G1 -- raw software?

[httivals]

I tried searching and browsing through the forum but couldn't find the answer -- sorry if it's been answered before: For the Panasonic G1, what are my Raw software choices other than SilkyPix? I tried SilkyPix with the LX3 and that's a big part of why I ended up selling the LX3.

Unlike some on this forum, I like Lightroom. Have version 2.5. I know it supports the G1, but does it support Panasonic's lens corrections -- chromatic aberration and geometric distortion corrections? Does Lightroom 2.5 support Panasonoic's lens corrections for all/most of Panasonic's lenses? (I.e., in addition to the 14-45mm, I'll probably end up getting a 20mm f1.7, and possibly, the 9-18mm, or 7-14mm.)

I'd rather not need to learn and buy Capture 1, but if it supports Panasonic's chromatic aberration corrections and distortion corrections, it would be another option. Does it? Does Capture 1 also have lens adjusted sharpening profiles for the G1 and lenses (i.e., like DXO Optics does, based on measurements of a lens's defects)?

Thanks for the help!

 

[Per Ofverbeck]

...Unlike some on this forum, I like Lightroom. Have version 2.5. I know it supports the G1, but does it support Panasonic's lens corrections -- chromatic aberration and geometric distortion corrections? Does Lightroom 2.5 support Panasonoic's lens corrections for all/most of Panasonic's lenses?....

FWIW, LR certainly supports correction for both the 14-45 and 45-200 zooms (as you may recall, there was quite some wait before it did, and there was a short period where one had to convert the raw´s to to "linear DNG´s" before importing them into LR.

What finally happened was that the conversion engine in ACR (which is used in LR too) was modified to make this kind of corrections. It´s the same with the D-Lux 4; the corrections are now applied.

I haven´t had the opportunity to test any other Panasonic mFT lenses than the 2 zooms mentioned, but I presume that the protocol for writing correction info to the raw file must be the same, and that the conversion engine will adjust to whatever is written into the file (after all the three different lenses I´ve tested, including the D-Lux 4 one must be wildly different in what amount of correction is needed). So why would Panasonic do any changes that would upset the apple-cart again?

 

[httivals]

Can someone who has the G1 with the 7-14mm zoom or 20mm f1.7 confirm that Lightroom can read and apply Panasonic's automatic lens corrections for these lens?

 

[kwalsh]

Yes, LR applies corrections for all the Panasonic lenses (7-14 and 20 included). Keep in mind LR actually gets the information on how to apply the lens correction from the RAW file metadata that the camera writes - LR itself doesn't need any prior knowledge of the lenses. LR and ACR processing of G1 RAW files perfectly match the in camera JPGs for both distortion and CA correction for all Panasonic lenses. Andy Westlake over at DPR has tested and verified this many times.

Ken

 

[httivals]

Ok -- so is there a way to turn distortion and CA correction on and off in Lightroom or to adjust their strength, or does it just always happen, automatically, behind the scenes? I didn't see any buttons or commands in Lightroom to enable or disable this feature. Thanks! I'm using Lightroom 2.5.

 

[47th_vacuum_space]

It happens automatically. If you want to make TIFFs out of uncorrected RAWs, you can use RAWdrop/dcraw.

 

[Godfrey]

Lightroom processes Panasonic .RW2 files with all lens corrections as intended by Panasonic. There's no way to stop it from doing so.

dcraw and other products that use the dcraw engine will process Panasonic RW2 files without applying the lens corrections. They're pretty much a waste of time unless you just want to convince yourself that Lightroom is doing the job correctly.

Capture 1 does not support Panasonic .RW2 files (at least not without hacking it). I don't believe DXO does either.

I use Lightroom. The current RC version handles all mFT cameras, including the recently announced Olympus E-P2.

 

[httivals]

Thanks, Godrey. That helps a lot. Is anyone using FocusFixer for deconvolution sharpening with the G1? If so, how much of an advantage does this offer over Lightroom?