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Lightroom settings/adjustments M9?

J

johanhagelin

Guest
Hi, I am a new Leica M9 user + Summilux 50 asph. I am curious as to what adjustments you usually do in Lightroom specifically for the M9. For example I read on the excellent Overgaard site that he usually desauturates 8-10% on the reds and 10-30% on the orange. At least he used to I believe. Something to do with how the M9 sensor handles those colors. Then on other places I see users that claims that almost nothing is needed as the images are perfect as they are.

Now, before anyone says it, I am aware that most people tweaks exposure white balance, and sharpness to taste and that is not what I am asking about.

Also I use the latest version of Lightroom.

Please share what you have found out works best with the M9 (color) files in Lightroom. Thanks! //Johan

ps. If you have any Lightroom preset to share for the M9 that does this I wouldnt mind looking at it
 

Stuart Richardson

Active member
I use a color checker passport to shoot a test chart while I am on location, and then I use their export preset to develop a custom profile for each (important) shoot. I have no color issues that way. I have not found the need to adjust anything else in lightroom, other than the sharpening, white balance and occasionally the other settings you mention.If I have to do more than that, it is generally localized curves adjustments, which I will do in photoshop, or black and white conversion, which I will do with True Grain.
 
I agree with Stuart. I also use a portable color checker passport with both my M9 and 5DMKII. I find that the included, LR3 Adobe profile is very similar to the custom profile I generate with color checker for my M9 images. The colors Adobe profile colors are great and the image is ready for the usual interpretative adjustments. I don't use the color checker for my M9 anymore - I haven't seen the value.

The color checker-generated profile does impact my 5DMKII images more - adding more saturation and color luminosity in the oranges/yellows. This is most likely due to the LR3 Adobe Profile for the 5DMKII not being as precise.

Sorry to get off point - my basic advice is to shoot with the M9 and "season to taste" as Michael Reichmann calls it. The lightroom profiles are great and the colors come out "ready to roll"..

Regards,
George Pappas
 
J

johanhagelin

Guest
Thanks guys. One thing I find odd with Lightroom and the M9 profile is that there is no profile named "Leica M9" similar in the Camera Calibration tab. There is just "embedded" and "Adobe Standard". I read somewhere that "Adobe Standard" is interpreting your camera as M9 but still.. wouldnt it be better to have a specific profile named "Leica M9". Makes more sense to me. Note that I do not choose to convert the Leica DNG to Adobe DNG on import. I just keep the files as they are e.g. Leica DNGs. Perhaps that has something to do with it.

I have also found a separate M9 Profile from Chromasoft http://sites.google.com/site/chromasoft/referenceimages and I think it works out pretty well.
 

atanabe

Member
+1 on the Color Checker Passport profiles. I have generic profiles that I created under low illumination ~7EV (about f2 @ 1/30th)@ 1250 and another (f2 @1/60)@ 2500 ISO as well as standard illumination profiles. This compensates for the lack of color spectrum in low light levels and gets most of my images within the ballpark when I choose not to profile the individual scene. If I am going to be in one area shooting and want to be absolutely perfect on the color then I will calibrate to the scene.
 
Johan,

Lightroom identifies your files as coming from the M9 automatically and applies it's profile to your M9 images. The "standard" is Adobe's way of depicting a "standard" rendering using it's M9 profile and your images. Any customized profile for the M9 will show up there.

With my 5DMKII, I get the choice of "landscape", "Natural", and others in addition to "standard" rendering. Adobe or Canon must have provided these other choices. They provide different levels of saturation and color luminosity intended to their subject types.

The digital age is very interesting...Tokyo, Rochester, and Leverkusen used to set rendering and saturation by their choice of chemistry and film characteristics. Now, we are on our own - the flexibility is great, but takes some getting used to.

FWIW, I don't believe that the M9's DNG files are different than LR's DNG files - they are supposed to adhere to the same standard.

Enjoy the M9 - it is truly in a class of its own for size/image quality and photographabality (I know it is not a word but it is the best term I can come up with)...
 
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