C1pro ... talk to me!

[Hamish Gill]

Assuming c1pro is capture 1?

i have been so impressed with the sharpness of rudi's images i want to know more!

what can you tell me about it ?
how does it compare to the likes of lightroom?
what does it do
what doesnt it do

sorry to be such a broad question... but this is the first time in a long time i have found any reason to use somthing other than lightroom?

 

[Rudi Venter]

Yes, the actual version I am using right now is Capture one Pro version 6.0.1

I think it is a great program but I don't think it is really much better than some others, Lightroom is also great and I sometimes use it as well as Canon's DPP.

Most of my sharpening is not done in C1 but in Photoshop. The main features I use in C1 is rotating the image if the horizon is not 100%, cropping if needed, recovering blown highlights if I slipped up with the exposure and sometimes a contrast boost but I prefer to do that in Photoshop. If white balance is not right (just about never) I would also adjust it in C1.

I like the work flow and find I can process a lot of images in a short time but work flow is a personal thing, I have been using C1 since version 1 so I suppose it is the converter I now best.

I do any adjustments to curves and color, if needed as well as sharpening and noise reduction, also seldom needed, in Photoshop.

 

[Hamish Gill]

I have got my self confused i feel... we shall get back to this sharpening ... as im still not sure how your doing it ... for now then ... c1pro ....

So... daft question maybe? if you know lightroom too ... other than having used it for so long ... what keeps you using c1?
does it have features that lightroom doesnt ... or the other way round?

 

[Pete Askew]

Hi Hamish,

I find the file handling a bit more intuitive in LR but, like many people, I find the image processing has the edge in C1. Having said that,I tend to use if mainly for images from PhaseOne backs. That's mainly because I haven't committed time to learning the ins and outs of C1 and developing a decent work flow. That may now change with v6 (the version I use). There are a lot of extremely good tutorial on the PhaseOne site. I've watched a few and leaned a lot. I will probably switch to a certain extent once they get the integration with Expression Media (which I use as my master index) sorted out better.

http://www.phaseone.com/en/Software/Capture-One-Pro-6/About/Pro-Overview.aspx

 

[Rudi Venter]

The resulting images are SLIGHTLY better in my opinion, it also seems to be faster (with many images being converted in the background) but again that might just be a perception, I have not timed it but while it is converting the front-end seems to be more responsive than other converters.

I do not think it is the features that does it for me, I just love the work flow, I seem to zip through 100's of images a lot quicker and smoother than any other program, but again, if I spent the time getting to know the other programs as well I might feel differently.

Sometimes when I have a "special" image that is close but I am not totally happy I will convert it with a few converters and choose the best result, 90% of the time I end up using the C1 image.

 

[Rudi Venter]

Hi Pete,

A bit off topic, sorry Hamish! What body/lenses are you using and what PhaseOne back? I have started shopping around seriously but would like to talk to a few users. I have just priced the IQ180 and it is not exactly cheap so I want to do this right....

Thanks!
Rudi

 

[Hamish Gill]

The speed and file handling interests me I have to say... Lightroom seems VERY heavy on ram useage and with weddings if I have 1000 images that I'm racing through removing the ones I don't like it often grinds to a halt!
I wonder if c1 handles things differently?

I use the X U and P buttons to organise my workflow in light room, does c1 work in a similar way?

Pete... You have so much kit I want to play with (phase one back this time) I makes me sick

 

[Pete Askew]

Another highly acclaimed raw converted is Bibble Pro. I have a copy (bought in a bored, idle moment), but I have to confess I haven't done any more than convert a couple of files with it. C1 is certainly very fast and handles the files from a PhaseOne P45 back with ease (the P45 is 39MP and they have 60 and 80MP backs as well - I have never heard about anyone complaining). No idea how LR / Camera Raw would cope - I've never tried.

 

[Rudi Venter]

I think C1 is a bit lighter on the hardware, I often process 100's of images on a laptop (HP with quad core CPU and 4gb RAM) and it runs fine, with most other programs I would move to one of my main PC's for large volumes. I have never had a PC or laptop become substantially slower while processing, the way it handles back-ground processes seem to be very efficient, if there was a Linux version it would work even better

The C1 work flow is a bit different, they have a 30 trial so you can try before you buy.

 

[Rudi Venter]

I have used Bibble Pro but it sometimes crashes on me, often with many images in the develop queue that you then need to redo, decided it was a waste of time, does produce good images though so I sometimes still use it for single images.

Thanks, the P45 seems a good option but the IQ180 (80MP) is tempting even though the quote I received was for around $125K! I still need to decide on a body as well.

 

[Hamish Gill]

i have downloaded the trial ... ill let you know how i get on!

 

[Pete Askew]

C1P6 is certainly a lot easier to find your way around that the earlier versions. Hopefully you'll have less, "where the..." moments than I did when used I V1 and 2 the first time.

 

[Paul Lange]

I gave it a quick go but found the interface a bit too clunky for my liking. I find that most programs are capable of the same thing, just that the user and visual interface of how the change is occurring differs. Some I get along with others I don't.