Capture One 4?

[Peter Mendelson]

I am currently playing with Adobe LR Beta 4 after being a regular RSP user. However, I saw that Capture One is coming out with Version 4 (LE) at the beginning of next year, which is supposed to be a lot faster and have other tweaks. Does anyone have any further info on what it will offer over the current version? Their website doesn't go into that much detail, and I am wondering if anyone saw it demonstrated at Photokina.

Right now, you can buy a Sandisk Extreme III memory card and you get Capture One LE for FREE with one free major upgrade, which will include the forthcoming Capture One 4. Also, there is a Sandisk rebate going on this month. So, for example, you can buy a 1GB Extreme III card for $45 after rebate and you will be getting Capture One 4 (LE) for FREE. That sounds like a great deal. The problem is that this is a limited time offer (the rebate expires at the end of the month and the LE deal is also a limited time offer), so I would have to decide very soon if I want to do this. I used to use Capture One and liked it, but it seemed to have a limited tool set compared to other programs (in particular, I missed the highlight recovery tools in other programs).

While I will probably use Lightroom (I get a free version 1 since I bought RSP), if Capture One is much faster and has as good or better output I might want to use it instead.

Any comments?

Thanks,

Peter

[Don Lashier]

So, for example, you can buy a 1GB Extreme III card for $45 after rebate and you will be getting Capture One 4 (LE) for FREE. That sounds like a great deal. The problem is that this is a limited time offer (the rebate expires at the end of the month and the LE deal is also a limited time offer), so I would have to decide very soon if I want to do this.
Assuming you can make use of the CF (or even not) I don't see how you can go wrong with this deal - what's to decide?

I used to use Capture One and liked it, but it seemed to have a limited tool set compared to other programs (in particular, I missed the highlight recovery tools in other programs).

I've never found any lack in C1's ability to extract highlights (http://www.lashier.com/home.cfm?dir_cat=30521), although admittedly I haven't done a comparision with latest ACR. In C1 I normally use the linear profile if highlights are an issue.

AFA output quality, imo C1 is still unsurpassed on the whole although selected images may work better in other RC's, but this is always the case with any RC. I have yet to play with LR but hopefully (especially now that Michael J is involved) it will be in the ballpark. My concern is more with workflow speed where C1 has always excelled and V4 sounds even better.

- DL

[Peter Mendelson]

Well, I don't really need any more CF cards, but you are right, it's kind of a no-brainer (I can always sell the card). I am going to download the C1 LE demo and compare the output to the LR beta this weekend.

I used to have a Magne profile for my 20D for C1, but don't have one for my 5D (although I do have his 5D profile for RSP). Does the 5D profile make a huge difference?

Thanks,

Peter

[Steve Brooks]

Magne's profiles are good but greens suffer,turn a yellow tinge.If you need good foliage etc use the generic profile which is a good all rounder.
Steve

[Nill Toulme]

Magne is in the process, I believe, of reworking the 5D profile.

Nill
~~
www.toulme.net

[Iain Mackenzie]

Where did you hear that Magne is updating the profiles?

[Nill Toulme]

I think I saw some discussion in the forums on his site, but it might have been somewhere else. Don't remember now.

Nill
~~
www.toulme.net

[Iain Mackenzie]

It would be nice if you were right. You're not thinking about the v2 profiles that came out in March are you?

[Nill Toulme]

No, my recollection is it was specifically to address the greens issue with the 5D profile.

Nill
~~
www.toulme.net

[Mike Bailey]

Since Don is the moderator of this forum and has been a beta tester and long-time user of Capture One, this seems a good place to restart a thread and maybe find out where the upcoming version 4 of Capture One is. What with the forum at PhaseOne down for about a month now - except for a brief moment a few weeks ago when it was running again for a day or two - there is precious little information available about what's going on at Phase One in regards to CaptureOne other than press releases from last September and Photokina.

If nothing else, the reputed huge improvement in processing time makes this a very much anticipated upgrade for me on my somewhat pokey homebrew AMD Athlon XP 3200+ system where a 5D raw develop takes about 24 seconds.

?

Mike

[Iain Mackenzie]

What is going on with Phase One? No forums, no news on C1 v4! I hope they are not going to do a Pixmantec on us!!!

[Robert Edwards]

Hi,

I hear Capture One 4 is finally out of alpha and a beta is due next week. I doubt this is a public beta but at least more info should be forth coming. AFAIK end of alpha means the features are locked in and betas are for catching bugs.

There are still two months left until the end of Q1 2007 - the promised date for Capture One 4 LE. With the Lightroom release date and price finally announced Phase One will be out doing some serious marketing.

-- Robert.

[Mike Bailey]

Robert,

Good to know that things might be moving along with release 4. Historically delays seem to be the pattern for Capture One - the dangers of announcing release dates and then having anxious (me) users wonder where it is!

Silence is the most worrisome, but granted there never was much traffic on the Capture One user forum. Maybe they just got frustrated at all the times it was being hacked by spammers before they took it down.

Mike

[Robert Edwards]

Hi Mike,

The Phase One forums are back... and so are the spammers (unless Britney Spears is a C1 user!).

-- Robert.

[Mike Bailey]

Robert,

Thanks!

Mike

[Ralph Eisenberg]

Still waiting for the 4 beta. Any news?

[Nill Toulme]

None on the beta, but the C1 website (http://www.phaseone.com/Global/Campaigns/CaptureOne4.aspx) front page says this:

"Availability - Capture One 4 will be available in 2007. The LE version is ready in Spring 2007 and the PRO version in Autumn 2007. If you purchase Capture One now you get Capture One 4 as part of your purchase since Capture One LE includes 1 free update and Capture One PRO includes 2 free updates. Capture One 4 LE will process Phase One digital back files and all PRO users will get Capture One 4 LE for FREE as soon as it is available."

Autumn 2007? Good grief...

Nill
~~
www.toulme.net

[Ralph Eisenberg]

Thanks Nill. The beta was due in January, as you undoubtedly know, which is what prompted my inquiry. It has been a very long time since a significant upgrade has become available from C1 that included major enhancements to their software's core conversion capabilities (i.e. tonal and color correction to name those that are most important to me). Right now I'm praying that ACR (both in Bridge and Lightroom) will undergo tangible development in regard to Raw conversion, particularly with respect to color,and that this will become available in the not too distant future.

[Nill Toulme]

Fortunately I'm reasonably happy with v3.7.6 as it is, but I'm really looking forward to v4 all the same.

Nill
~~
www.toulme.net

[Don Cohen]

Thanks for the updates. I'm on their email list, and have had the occasional note, but I have close to zero confidence in their ability to deliver on their promises, in any kind of a reasonable time-frame. Based on prior experience, I'd be shocked if it actually came out this year (Pro version).

I use CO for all my work with Raw files, and have been pretty satisfied with it in general, but with no real improvements or bug fixes in several years now, I've pretty much resigned myself to staying with 3.7.4 (the version I'm using) indefinitely. If something comes along, great, but I'm not holding my breath....

[scott kirkpatrick]

Fortunately I'm reasonably happy with v3.7.6 as it is, but I'm really looking forward to v4 all the same.



I'm using 3.7.6, since it does the best job available with standard profiles for the M8's DNG files. And there are reliable rumors that there will be a quick release of adjusted profiles for use with and without IR-cut filters once Leica brings out their next M8 firmware release. I have beta-tested for them in the past, and hope to continue. But I can't tell you more, or they will have to shoot me.

COne and the late lamented RSP had much more sophisticated color profiling controls than anything that ACR offers or Lightroom incorporates. The fancy package that Magne Neilsen released for RSP was good evidence of the potential. Apparently when that team went over to Lightroom they decided to use their talents for a broader approach to workflow management, and leave ACR alone for the time being. Which is kinda sad, IMHO, but might be the right business decision.

scott

[Harvey Moore]

....Apparently when that team went over to Lightroom they decided to use their talents for a broader approach to workflow management, and leave ACR alone for the time being. Which is kinda sad, IMHO, but might be the right business decision.
scott


This podcast is an interview with the RS guys that went to Adobe, they are integrating many features from RSP/RSE into Lightroom/CS3 ACR

http://idisk.mac.com/george_jardine-Public?view=web

[scott kirkpatrick]

This podcast is an interview with the RS guys that went to Adobe, they are integrating many features from RSP/RSE into Lightroom/CS3 ACR

http://idisk.mac.com/george_jardine-Public?view=web

Thanks. Your link brought up a long list of George jardine's podcasts, but I didn't see one labelled by having Michael Johnsson or the RSP team. Which one did you want to point out?

scott

[Harvey Moore]

Sorry about that, the podcast is "0712", I should have tested the link

harvey

[scott kirkpatrick]

Thanks for the pointer. That was done in July 2006, during Michael Johnsson's first visit to Adobe after the purchase of RawShooter, and they certainly were then doing an ACR - RawShooter feature by feature comparison. But they were already cautious not to promise that any particular algorithm or that any code at all would be transferred.

scott

[Harvey Moore]

From a query I made on the NAPP forums, the Vibrance and Fill light slider adjustments are from Raw Shooter team. Others functions are being worked on, but I do not have specifics.

I am currently using LR beta 4.1 and CS2, trying CS3. LR v1.0 at $199 is at the top of my price tolerance, but I will order it.

I tested C1 before the Magnes 5D profiles, the price was too high for me since I had PS CS2. I do read good things about C1, for me it's a matter of economics.

harvey