Tag: photography

Is Adobe Photoshop CC 2015’s New Dehaze Made For Us?

Adobe announced a major update to its Creative Cloud subscription service last night. Photoshop CC 2014 became Photoshop CC 2015, and included with it are several useful new features.

One of the new features that caught my attention was Dehaze. I downloaded the new version immediately to try out Dehaze. Well, not as immediate as I wanted; for the update process was a bit clunky and took a while.

You have to update the Creative Cloud Services first, Then download the big install of Photoshop CC 2015 (and Lightroom). Copy all your plugins to the new folder and download, reinstall the latest Camera Raw.

Yes it can get ugly; so here’s a quick and dirty demo for those who don’t have the patience, time or a fast internet connection. Haze can now be easily removed or reduced with a simple slider in the Camera Raw Filter. It can add haze too, if desired.

As you know, Malaysia has one of the worst haze occurrences thanks to a leaky neighbour. So the true test of the Dehaze slider, for me, is whether it can fix a picture fogged up by the transboundary haze or smog.

I ran a picture from the last bad haze day which that was captured in October 2014. The original picture was photographed in RAW and I opened it directly in Photoshop.

For a different comparison, I included another picture with organic haze or mountain mist photographed at the Genting Highlands resort.

Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 100, f4, 1/800 sec (city scene)
Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 100, f7.1, 1/100 sec (mountain scene)

Man In The Tree

Sharing more outtakes from the earlier leg of the road trip. Saw a man plucking cikus (sapodilla) on top of a tree during exploration deep inside a village in Ulu Yam. I will continue with the journey after the long holiday weekend.

Someone asked me: Why carry the very expensive Sony A7R and its heavy arsenal of Zeiss lenses when it is safer, easier to use lighter, less expensive mirrorless systems?

The answer is simple. I do carry two other mirrorless cameras but a day will come. This was such a day. The day when a scene will cry out for the brute resolution of the A7r. The camera will clearly define every leaf and every fruit.

It will pick out the details right down to the ash on the tip of the cigarette or make out the motifs on the man’s shirt. Its fine tonal rendition will separate the leaves from the fruits. The excellent dynamic range will keep everything in check, from sky to face, even under the harsh sun.

I can think of more but the most important reason is that this is also an archival mission. Many of the old surviving buildings, towns and lifestyle documented on this journey will soon disappear forever. So why not capture it at the best practical quality for future generations to relive and to appreciate.

Sony Alpha a7R, ISO 100, f4, 1/800 sec.