Feedback on DPP DLO module

Here are some tests shots using the DLO module.
I have to say that I needed to remove the old lens data end to reload it again to make it work. I don't know why.

Here is the pic I have used for the test

One important thing I have noticed is that the shooting distance information is very important as you can see in the following screenshots.

Interesting, I've not even glanced at DLO!

DLO is marvelous and a great addition to DPP. DLO and the ability to output a linear tif are really the only two things I like about DPP. However, DLO is not without a drawback; it doubles the size of the CR2 file and because of DPP's limitations the chances are high that you will have to export and archive a tif. If you opt for a 16 bit tif you can jump from a 30 MB 5D2 Raw to nearly 180 MB.
Since the benefit of DLO is primarily in the corners and much less so in the center of the frame, it's utility will be primarily for landscapists and perhaps some macro (flowers) shooters. Others, such as portrait photographers or birders who are shooting at wide apertures in order to isolate the subject from the background, will not be interested in sharpening corners.

tzalman wrote in post #15450580
DLO is marvelous and a great addition to DPP. DLO and the ability to output a linear tif are really the only two things I like about DPP. However, DLO is not without a drawback; it doubles the size of the CR2 file and because of DPP's limitations the chances are high that you will have to export and archive a tif. If you opt for a 16 bit tif you can jump from a 30 MB 5D2 Raw to nearly 180 MB.
Since the benefit of DLO is primarily in the corners and much less so in the center of the frame, it's utility will be primarily for landscapists and perhaps some macro (flowers) shooters. Others, such as portrait photographers or birders who are shooting at wide apertures in order to isolate the subject from the background, will not be interested in sharpening corners.

Of course for those reasons and others few people will use it for every shot, but its nice to have when you really want or need it.

What makes people don't use it on every shot is probably the fact that it double the raw file size. It seems that a second set of corrected raw data are stored in the raw file. I don't know why canon developers have made this design choice ?
After all, for noise reduction for instance, or even the stamp tool, there was no need to save a second set of the raw data, so why for DLO they need to do this ? really don't know.

yb98 wrote in post #15450777
What makes people don't use it on every shot is probably the fact that it double the raw file size. It seems that a second set of corrected raw data are stored in the raw file. I don't know why canon developers have made this design choice ?
After all, for noise reduction for instance, or even the stamp tool, there was no need to save a second set of the raw data, so why for DLO they need to do this ? really don't know.

I'll add that many who use and love what DLO does to increase the quality of their images and who also dislike the additional file sizes associated with the DLO process might not realize that following the conversion, one can un-DLO their RAW image back to the original size by returning to the DLO dialog. This, assuming you've already created a high quality JPEG or TIFF image from the DLO'd file, and you no longer need the DLO'd RAW.

I only DLO certain and important images that can benefit and that I might print or display large. All other stay as original RAW sizes. Then I un-DLO if I want to after editing and conversion.

DLO is a huge quality improvement. I don't think Adobe has anything close to it. It has made me not want to even consider a Nikon 14-24G, as my Canon 16-35 mkII can now deliver the same IQ via DPP.

If I disable DLO after editing, the file size remains the same until I close DPP. Then it returns to it's original size.
I haven't noticed that.
Thanks for pointing it out.
Useful tip.

yb98 wrote in post #15455049
If I disable DLO after editing, the file size remains the same until I close DPP. Then it returns to it's original size.
I haven't noticed that.
Thanks for pointing it out.
Useful tip.

That is not what I see. If I disable the settings in DLO and save, the file returns to the original size immediately without having to close DPP. But I did find that if I use the Revert to As shot feature instead, I do have to exit DPP before the files returns to its original size. I'm sure you saw what you saw, so there must be additional factors at work here. I'm using Windows 7.

DLO is a huge quality improvement. I don't think Adobe has anything close to it. It has made me not want to even consider a Nikon 14-24G, as my Canon 16-35 mkII can now deliver the same IQ via DPP.[/QUOTE]

It also has made me reconsider, at times, which lens I would use for a shot, now that not all of them are "eligible" for DLO improvements ...

tzalman wrote in post #15450580
However, DLO is not without a drawback; it doubles the size of the CR2 file and because of DPP's limitations the chances are high that you will have to export and archive a tif. If you opt for a 16 bit tif you can jump from a 30 MB 5D2 Raw to nearly 180 MB.

Finally, since it's possible to disable DLO after the conversion and retrieve the initial size, I think I will use it more frequently now.

It seems this is not true. It's also quite efficient in the center but I'd like to insiste that the parameter "shooting distance information" is very important as it makes a huge difference. To bad that this can not be set automatically.

Here are another serie of tests with 100% crops of the center. Thanks to WolfProperties for the picture.
At left without DLO, at right with DLO.

Test shot

yb98 wrote in post #15456460
Finally, since it's possible to disable DLO after the conversion and retrieve the initial size, I think I will use it more frequently now.

It seems this is not true. It's also quite efficient in the center but I'd like to insiste that the parameter "shooting distance information" is very important as it makes a huge difference. To bad that this can not be set automatically.

Here are another serie of tests with 100% crops of the center. Thanks to WolfProperties for the picture.
At left without DLO, at right with DLO.

Test shot

Sharpening=0

Sharpening=3

Sharpening=6

What was the DLO setting on these. I generally leave it on the default of 50. What's your experience?

yb98 wrote in post #15447567
One important thing I have noticed is that the shooting distance information is very important as you can see in the following screenshots.

Distance info defaults when you go into the DLO feature. Moving the slider does not provide any distance markers other than infinity. Presumably the distance slider is set automatically set based on the EXIF data. Is that correct? I'm not sure how to get the best from it. Do you just adjust it by eye or am I missing something?

mwsilver wrote in post #15457023
What was the DLO setting on these. I generally leave it on the default of 50. What's your experience?

It was set to 100 here.

mwsilver wrote in post #15457053
Distance info defaults when you go into the DLO feature. Moving the slider does not provide any distance markers other than infinity. Presumably the distance slider is set automatically set based on the EXIF data. Is that correct? I'm not sure how to get the best from it. Do you just adjust it by eye or am I missing something?

Unfortunately there is no marker of distance.
I just try different positions following a dichotomic strategy (start by the extrems and the try the middle of the interval each time).

I have noticed that some raw files have an exif info concerning the focus distance. So I don't know why this is not used automatically at least for raw files that contain this information.