Noise Ninja vs Neat Image

[gary payne]

I have downloaded both these programs trial stand alone package and I'm using

them to try to reduce noise from images shot with a D200, 20mm f/2.8 lens at

ISO 1600 inside a historic Spanish Mission. This is simply a trial exercise to

gain more insight into shooting at high ISO and the capabilities of the

software.

 

Frankly, the results are unsatisifying with both Noise Ninja and Neat Image.

But, I certainly admit I don't know much about what I'm doing. Do any users

out there have suggestions on articles, books, or other educational media that

would help me get a grip on noise reduction in general or either or both these

software packages? I find the software documentation rather limited.

 

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

[don_cooper]

Can't recommend books etc. about using either but can mention some things I've found using Neat Image. Don't sharpen prior to removing noise. Sharpening adds/accents noise. Do not underexpose, very important. I've found it best to create my own profiles, found I got better results than the with ones available from Neat Image.

[sattler123]

Gary, there is only so much these programs can do - most important is that you expose to the right as much as possible. The slightest under exposure with ISO1600 magnifies noise and makes it look like golf balls. When shooting high ISOs I frequently check the histogram to make sure my highlights are just shy from clipping.

[ellis_vener_photography]

Try Noiseware.

 

A good thing to understand is that you should apply any noise reduction (or do any global edits in general) before performing any sharpening.

[User_1172872]

I can't comment on Noise Ninja, but I have used Neat Image for several years. In my experience, Neat Image can produce excellent results, but you have to experiment with each frame - forget about batch processing. I typically find that the default parameters are overly aggressive, removing noise but too much detail. Also remember that you can adjust high, mid, and low frequency noise seperately. A lot of reduction on the high frequency setting is what blurs fine detail.

[jacopo_brembati]

Try my father's PhotoDenoising.

[scott_turner]

I've also used Neat Image for years, and also get very good results, but...

 

Whenever possible, I custom profile each individual image before de-noising, and I'm willing to experiment with the controls and to mask in PS and selectively de-noise with optimized selections. In short, NI is a tool which requires practice, and can produce very good results with care, but the defaults are generally waaay too aggressive, and a less than optimal profile will always lead to less than optimal results.

 

Which leads me to - Noiseware.

 

I've recently been experimenting with Noiseware, and based on what I've seen over the past week, I'd enthusiastically echo the recommendation for it over NI and Noise Ninja. With Noiseware, within the first hour I was producing results as good as (or better) than I could with years of NI experience, and with considerably less effort. The various included "pre-sets" produce doggone good turnkey results for their respective image types, and you can tweak and tune to your hearts content with an array of controls, and built-in bracketing.

 

But keep in mind that, no matter how good these tools are, they can only do so much. When there's a lot of detail, and a lot of noise, even the best package has to make some guesses as to which is which. It's up to you to learn to manage the trade-offs when this occurs.

 

Scott

[garydem]

if you are using noise ninja, did you download the camera profiles for your camera and install them? i do not know if this will work with trial version.

 

also, when you denoise, select filter and push the strength bar to full right(the default is in the middle, so you are getting only part of the denoising). then shove the usm(sharpening) to full left, this turns the sharpening off. do it later in pp.

 

i have found noise ninja very good.

[frank_skomial]

Neat Image support is as BAD as it can get.

 

I had to replace system disc and reinstall system and all software. Despite having registered copy, serial number, and an unlock key, nothing worked. Multiple email back and forth to the support provided me with yet another unlock key that did not work. After 4 or 5 attempts I gave up on this crap.

[bill_tuthill]

Sorry to recommend an alternative with zero incremental cost,

but if the main problem is black areas with RGB dot-noise in them,

simply select the black areas in Photoshop/GIMP/PaintShopPro

and reduce color saturation in the HSV dialog.

[cfimages]

Another vote for Noiseware. I had been using NI but after I discovered Noiseware I immediately switched. Even the auto adjustments look great.

[littlemike]

Say. I just downloaded the Noiseware trial. Tried it on an image I shot at ISO 3200 of a stage performance with my 20D. That Noiseware does a very nice job!