# Apply in camera or in Lightroom?



## cmagnos (Jun 27, 2015)

Hi

I have just purchased a Nikon D750 and I have a few questions about post-processing my images in Lightroom.


The camera has the following features: Picture control, Vignette control, Auto distortion control, Long expose NR and High ISO NR.


I only shot in Raw and I do not use Nikon software to process my images. I use either Lightroom CC or Capture One Pro 8 instead.


If I apply these features in camera, would Lightroom CC recognised them?


If I apply Vignette control, Auto distortion control in camera and in Lightroom, will Lightroom apply these on top of what the camera has already done?


If I apply these features in camera, could I undo them in Lightroom?


I do not want to double process me images, i.e. apply vignette control in camera and after in software.


Would Long expose NR and High ISO NR be better than the noise reduction I could apply in Lightroom?

Thank you.

Magno


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## Jim Wilde (Jun 27, 2015)

Hi, welcome to the forum.

If you only shoot in Raw, then none of the controls that you mention would have any effect on the Raw file. They would only affect the Jpeg preview that is created from the raw file in camera to show you on the camera's LCD, and which is also included as a preview in the header of the Raw file. Lightroom (and I suspect C1) ignores any information stored about the in-camera settings (which are stored in the "Maker Notes" area in the file header), though Nikon's own software presumably would read and apply those settings during the raw conversion. I know that's how Canon's own software (DPP) deals with in-camera settings, so I expect Nikon's is similar.

But as far as Lightroom is concerned, you are wasting your time in using those in-camera features, as they are ignored. The only setting which can affect the resulting Raw file is Active-D lighting, and generally the advice is to turn it off if shooting Raw.


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## cmagnos (Jun 28, 2015)

Thanks Jim

And what about the Long expose NR and High ISO NR? I guess it would make difference when applied in camera. Could you tell me whether is better to apply them in camera or in Lightroom?

Regards

Magno




Jim Wilde said:


> Hi, welcome to the forum.
> 
> If you only shoot in Raw, then none of the controls that you mention would have any effect on the Raw file. They would only affect the Jpeg preview that is created from the raw file in camera to show you on the camera's LCD, and which is also included as a preview in the header of the Raw file. Lightroom (and I suspect C1) ignores any information stored about the in-camera settings (which are stored in the "Maker Notes" area in the file header), though Nikon's own software presumably would read and apply those settings during the raw conversion. I know that's how Canon's own software (DPP) deals with in-camera settings, so I expect Nikon's is similar.
> 
> But as far as Lightroom is concerned, you are wasting your time in using those in-camera features, as they are ignored. The only setting which can affect the resulting Raw file is Active-D lighting, and generally the advice is to turn it off if shooting Raw.


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## Jim Wilde (Jun 28, 2015)

As I said.....none of the in-camera settings, apart from Active-D lighting, have any affect upon the raw file. So if NR is needed, doing it in LR or other raw converter (or dedicated plug-in) is where you would need to do it if you are shooting raw. The only raw converter that CAN read and apply the in-camera settings is typically the camera manufacturer's own software.


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## Johan Elzenga (Jul 5, 2015)

Jim Wilde said:


> As I said.....none of the in-camera settings, apart from Active-D lighting, have any affect upon the raw file. So if NR is needed, doing it in LR or other raw converter (or dedicated plug-in) is where you would need to do it if you are shooting raw. The only raw converter that CAN read and apply the in-camera settings is typically the camera manufacturer's own software.



I don't think that's correct. Long exposure noise reduction uses 'dark frame subtraction' to clean up the fixed pattern noise in an image. That works on raw files too and is indeed applied on raw files.


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## Jim Wilde (Jul 5, 2015)

Yes, you're right of course, I was mixing up the Long Exposure NR setting and the High ISO NR setting. As you say, Long Exposure NR does indeed affect the Raw file, so it's worth having that setting ON if taking exposures longer that 1 second. High ISO NR, OTOH, is not applied to the Raw file in camera, nor indeed by third-party Raw converters such as Lightroom. The manufacturers own raw converter (e.g. NX2 or DPP), however, would be able to read the High ISO NR settings and apply them during the Raw conversion.


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## Johan Elzenga (Jul 6, 2015)

Correct. The only time when you do NOT want to use long exposure noise reduction in the camera is when you shoot a series of night images with the intention to stack them and make a 'star trail' picture. Because long exposure noise reduction works by making a 'dark frame' (an exposure of the same length with the shutter closed) and subtract that from the real exposure, it means that the camera takes a 'pauze' after each shot, that is just as long as the exposure setting. That would mean you'll get gaps in your star trails, because the earth doesn't stop rotating while your camera makes its dark frames.


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