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Exposure Compensation

dbritch
I am evaluating Capture One. So far, I've been very impressed.
I have a question on the use of the different types of controls for exposure compensation.

It appears that when I use levels to adjust for an underexposed image, the levels are applied before the standard film curve. The result is very much as though the image had been exposed properly. If, however, I use the EC (Exposure Compensation) slider, it is much more difficult to achieve the same sort exposure shift. That's OK - I guess levels are easier for me.

I have more of a problem when I have an overexposed image. I can't shift these using levels. However, I *can* shift them using EC. When I reduce the exposure, the higlights drop, as expected, and are no longer blocked. Howver, this dramatically reduces the contrast and saturation of the image. It looks as though EC is being applied *after* the curve. I've been able to improve my results by using the Film High Contrast curve and altering the middle triangle in the levels control, but I would really prefer to be able to simply slide the right triangle (white point) farther to the right, and avoid the shift in contrast and saturation.

So - I really like using the levels control to shift the exposure to the right, and would like to be able to use it (or something similar) to shift it to the left, as well. How should I do this? Is there documentation, or a paper on how to use these controls effectively, and what their differences are?

Thank you!

David
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5 comments

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  • dbritch
    After a bit more experimentation, I believe I can refine my questions a little.

    I am a long-time user of ACR, Adobe's Camera Raw software. I am accustomed to setting the white point using the exposure slider, the black point using the shadow slider, and the luminance midpoint using the brightness slider. Moving these sliders affect the luminance of the image, but do not dramatically change the color saturation. In Capture One, when I use the midpoint levels slider in a similar fashion to ACR's brightness slider, there is a dramatic shift in both contrast and saturation.

    So, my questions arising from this are as follows:

    1) Gamma/Mid-tones: Is there a control in Capture One that will allow me to shift the mid-luminance values up or down without dramatically affecting the color, similar to the brightness slider in ACR?

    2) Workflow: How should I set white point, black point, and mid-tones in Capture One, while preserving the contrast curve and color properties? I certainly don't mind learning a different approach - what should it be?

    3) General Documentation: Where can I find documentation on best practices and underlying techincal foundations of the image controls in Capture One?

    Thank you!

    David
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  • dbritch
    Apparently this is not the right place to ask this sort of question. Could someone suggest a better venue?

    Thanks,

    David
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  • Anonymous
    David,

    This is a User to User Forum, so most of the time answers / replies do come but there are a few occasions when a post goes silent.
    There is always the option to create a Support Case and submit to Tech Support:
    Support Site: http://support.phaseone.com

    This is the best way and a guaranteed way to get a response.

    See Knowledge Base article and links at web site:
    Support Site: http://support.phaseone.com

    You'll see that there are many different tools to accomplish the same tasks available in Capture One. Finding the ones you like by trial and error and testing is the next step in learning the program.

    Enjoy Capture One !
    Cheers,
    k c
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  • bcf
    You could say that... Welcome to the Phase One forums... 😕

    It is difficult to get some good advice on the use of Capture One. The manual is very, very basic... And I rarely got a useful answer here, especially on these \"best practice\" questions.

    I found some info on Don Lashier's site:
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  • dbritch
    Thanks, KC and BCF! I was getting a little worried about the lack of response.

    I've purchased C1 - it gives great results - but I've been a little concerned about the lack of readily available info on it. In particular, the manual and help files are, as indicated, very basic. (EC is for exposure compensation - and no more in-depth info on how or what it does, or on how it interacts with the other controls.)

    There is a very good support forum for ACR on the Adobe page, and had hoped for discusion and sharing along those lines. I'll take a look at Lashier's page. I'd still love to find a good, active, sophisticated C1 discussion forum...

    Thanks again,

    David
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