Free Panasonic SilkyPix worth the trouble?

Silkypix does a very good job on my Panasonic RAW images.

However, I found the interface dificult to get used to.

I purchased a full copy of Version 7 (I got a good price) so that I can sued it with other cameras.

I have evaluated version 10 twice, and found it was running rather slow on my Mac, and interface is no better. In the end, I didn't buy it.

I find that Capture One also does a very good job with my Panasonic raw images, that is my preferred tool.

Firstly, in usual forum manner, there's no need to post an individual "thanks" to every reply. It's good enough to put one bulk thanks at the end, with any comments needed for anything that stood out to you.

Plus of course the responders would like to know if you do try the free SE V8 Silkypix and see what you think of it. A suitable "nice" or "yuk" will tell us all we need to know.

Sure, Silkypix is different, but that is what makes it good as it's not yet another boring photoshop copy. It seems to be very original and thorough thinking coming from somewhere deep into the country where the cameras are actually designed. They must have good contacts with the camera companies.

Try https://silkypix.isl.co.jp/en/ext/special/silkypix-shot/getting-started.html

Also http://www.silkypix.us/latest-silkypix-tutorials may also be of some help, but it mainly is for the latest V10 so some features may be missing or different in V8.

More for V8 is this https://www.mu-43.com/threads/simple-basic-silkypix-pro8-raw-conversion-tutorial.103017/ which should work the same as the SE V8 version.

One restriction is that the Silkypix SE versions only handle raws and jpegs/tiffs etc from Panasonic cameras, whereas other branded free converters may only handle their brand raw files but will handle jpegs/tiffs etc from any source. Such as the free Olympus Workspace handles Olympus raws only but any brand jpeg you can think of works in it. Ditto the free Capture One Express for Sony, for Sony raws only but any brand jpegs.

Have fun!

Thanks!

I just like to people to know I read and considered their post.

I am taking it all under advisement, and will refer back to the thread when I get time to download the app. Thanks for the guide!

Carol T said:

I just like to people to know I read and considered their post.

Click to expand...

You are simply too kind, that is rare here.

Carol T said:

I am taking it all under advisement, and will refer back to the thread when I get time to download the app. Thanks for the guide!

Click to expand...

This thread has sparked up my interest in Silkypix again and seeking to get better results than I did before. Usually I simply use the defaults with any program (usually DxO, some Affinity, some Silkypix) then randomly fiddle a little to get things a bit nicer, but now I want to investigate a little further and try to read the manual more and experiment and fiddle in the proper manner.

To my mind the current V10 (and maybe V8) manual inbuilt seems to have more convoluted English than before (compared to my old V5 Pro version), I think they have done a new translation but using an even worse translator. It is awkward to read, it hurts the brain.

The big Section 10 is really the first thing to try and read and understand, but it is harder going than it used to be. That plus seek online tutorials should be a help. Silkypix is a darn good program but many get discouraged or dismissive simply because it is "different". I would call it software discrimination, being something like racial discrimination.

Wow, SP is quite the different experience. Reminds me very much of a FOSS app such as Dark Table or RawTherapee.

From comparing the specs of SP8, SP9, SP10, and SP10Pro and looking through my SE8, it looks like the version numbers for the free stuff correlates with that of the paid versions, so the free one is a couple versions back. Which is understandable, free vs $82. And wow, SP10Pro is $175!!!!! I downloaded SP10 (free trial only) in addition to SE8 (the current free one) for comparison.

So, the controls are very different from all the Western commercial converters with which I am familiar. Some of the same functions seem to be there, just handled differently, but some parameters seem to not exist in SP, such as Vibrance.

I don't seem to find the ability to fine control of exposure, either. SP10 does let you do highlights and shadows, but SE8 doesn't. SP8 also didn't, which is one way I figured out that the free and paid versions line up in specs but not time. They do have global 'dodge' and 'burn' which seem to be intended to kinda sorta do something like that, but don't seem very effective on a quick try at least.

It looks like the Pro version includes local adjustments, but the lower level versions don't. I don't know how extensive the local adjustments are, as I didn't download that version. The price is up in Capture One range, too much for me, lol.

The following are the differences that would be most important for me between the free SE8 and the $82 SP10:

• Individual adjustment of highlight/shadow
• Distortion correction by lens profile (does not seem to work, I think m4/3 corrections are built in and this does not apply in any commercial converter)
• Fine detail (noise correction)
• Perspective correction tool
• Customize toolbar (not entirely sure what this is but it sounds useful!)
• Control palette (again not sure what it is but it sounds useful)

Overall, I find SP far more clunky and poorly featured than any other commercial converter I have tried. Some, like ON1, could to large degree replace the need for an editor for a lot of people. I struggle with that myself, trying to decide whether to do stuff in ON1 or in Affinity Photo (AP). ON1 has a lot of fun filters, which I like, can get some looks that would be a lot of work to duplicate in AP. AP tends to not get so bogged down like ON1, which seems to get exponentially slower and more unstable as you add adjustment layers.

HOWEVER!!!!! I recently found that ON1 seems to not pull out as much detail as it should for my Panasonic files. I need to go back and look at this for my Olympus files, but for sure something seems off for my G9. And, this was why I was interested in SP in the first place, to see if it did a better job of conversion. It does, for sure.

The difference is really only noticeable at say 100% zoom, but the difference is there. I am not sure how much that matters in the end, but why would I throw away better IQ, even if it is marginal? Probably going forward I will use ON1 for quick edits and for stuff where I care more about the overall looks than the details. For stuff I want to really work on, I will convert in SP and then move to AP. I do worry about being able to adjust individual exposure regions as well as in ON1, though.

I have tried most of the commercial converters over the years, but perhaps it is time do that again and see if I can find something that does as good a job on conversion as SP but has more of the convenient features. I am glad I tried SP, though, and will definitely keep playing with it!

Thanks again everyone for your help and advice!

Hi Carol, that reflects my experience with SP as well . Overt time I have tried several versions of depending on what version came with the respective Panasonic camera. It may just be from using it so long but I find when I try non-Adobe products be it DXO , SP, or whatever. That they just do not feel right , it took a while to get too grips with all that PS can do and perhaps I am just too lazy to commit to a new interface

On a side not the G9 won my what camera next race and I should get it on Saturday along with the PL 12-60mm I like the longer range of the zoom

--
Jim Stirling:
Wittgenstein : Whereof one cannot speak, thereof one must be silent.
Feel free to tinker with any images I post

Carol T said:

So, the controls are very different from all the Western commercial converters with which I am familiar. Some of the same functions seem to be there, just handled differently, but some parameters seem to not exist in SP, such as Vibrance.

Click to expand...

I've never found vibrance does much for me, but I think you're right it's not there.

Carol T said:

I don't seem to find the ability to fine control of exposure, either. SP10 does let you do highlights and shadows, but SE8 doesn't. SP8 also didn't, which is one way I figured out that the free and paid versions line up in specs but not time. They do have global 'dodge' and 'burn' which seem to be intended to kinda sorta do something like that, but don't seem very effective on a quick try at least.

Click to expand...

Highlights and particularly shadows adjustment was the reason I upgraded to the Pro version, it isn't in the free version. Once you do get it, you find a "shadows" slider, it's not the same thing. I hadn't realised that what most apps call "shadows" is actually a non global tone mapping type thing (ie HDR-ish). In the Pro version its "HDR" or "Dodge HDR", not the "Shadow" slider which does a curves/level type adjustment at the low end.

It doesn't work as well as other apps "Shodow" adjustment.

Carol T said:

The following are the differences that would be most important for me between the free SE8 and the $82 SP10:

• Individual adjustment of highlight/shadow
• Distortion correction by lens profile (does not seem to work, I think m4/3 corrections are built in and this does not apply in any commercial converter)

Click to expand...

I hadn't noticed that before, but Silkypix doesn't correct based on the lens profile. Some M4/3 lenses have correction information embedded in the RAW file, others don't. Affinity seems to have a database of some lens corrections, and I quite often turn that off.

Silkypix pro has an option to "lens correction using embedded jpeg". So I assume, if the camera has done correction on the picture, it'll try to do the same correction to the output of the RAW conversion. On the pic I tried it on, that option didn't do anything, even on a RAW file which should have had corrections applied to the jpeg by the camera.

Hi Carol, I came to similar conclusions.

I have settled on Capture One. I find the coontrol easy to understand, quite a large feature set, some decent DAM capability, and does a good job on the RAW conversion.

--
Cheers
Eric
(Any image that I post in a DPR forum may be editted and posted in a DPR forum)

James Stirling said:

Hi Carol, that reflects my experience with SP as well . Overt time I have tried several versions of depending on what version came with the respective Panasonic camera. It may just be from using it so long but I find when I try non-Adobe products be it DXO , SP, or whatever. That they just do not feel right , it took a while to get too grips with all that PS can do and perhaps I am just too lazy to commit to a new interface

On a side not the G9 won my what camera next race and I should get it on Saturday along with the PL 12-60mm I like the longer range of the zoom

Click to expand...

Hi Jim, thanks for the reply!

Funny, I always hated using Lr and preferred almost everything else, lol. I never could wrap my head around Capture One even though I spent a lot of time with it, and it is just too expensive for me to justify. Ps was harder to quit, I spent a lot of time learning it and really liked it. Affinity Photo does almost everything I did in Ps, and I don't have to deal with Adobe. I like it pretty well, too, now, like it better the more I use it.

Congrats on the G9! I am a bit disappointed you didn't get a E-M1 MkII or III so you could tell us how you felt it compared, but I am sure you will like the G9 if it isn't too big and heavy for you. I really love mine other than a couple points. Still not a fan of DFD, it's quite large and heavy, and probably the most significant, I seem to see WAY more blur in the EVF when moving the camera than I do with my E-M1. Some of that is probably down to resolution and display differences, but I find it pretty disconcerting. I have switched to the high frame rate, which helps, but I guess probably sucks juice from the battery like crazy!!! Let me know how you like the G9!

I can't bring myself to get a m4/3 zoom, especially an f/4 one. We shoot very different things, of course, but I tend to shoot at f/2 almost exclusively. I wish I could stop down more to get in the range of the best resolution, but even f/2 doesn't give as much background separation as I want. If Nikon stays in business maybe in a few years I will get into the Z line. Or maybe Canon will actually eventually build a camera I like and some primes other than f/1.2 ones. Who know what the future holds!

Eric Nepean said:

Hi Carol, I came to similar conclusions.

I have settled on Capture One. I find the coontrol easy to understand, quite a large feature set, some decent DAM capability, and does a good job on the RAW conversion.

Click to expand...

I seem to be incapable of understanding Capture One, in spite of demoing it and spending quite a lot of time on it. I put a lot of work into picking a converter app, and really like ON1 in a lot of ways, but it has a lot of problems, too, including this conversion issue. And really, it seems the number one thing a raw converter should be good at is generating a good image from raw files, lol.

Carol T said:

James Stirling said:

Hi Carol, that reflects my experience with SP as well . Overt time I have tried several versions of depending on what version came with the respective Panasonic camera. It may just be from using it so long but I find when I try non-Adobe products be it DXO , SP, or whatever. That they just do not feel right , it took a while to get too grips with all that PS can do and perhaps I am just too lazy to commit to a new interface

On a side not the G9 won my what camera next race and I should get it on Saturday along with the PL 12-60mm I like the longer range of the zoom

Click to expand...

Hi Jim, thanks for the reply!

Funny, I always hated using Lr and preferred almost everything else, lol. I never could wrap my head around Capture One even though I spent a lot of time with it, and it is just too expensive for me to justify. Ps was harder to quit, I spent a lot of time learning it and really liked it. Affinity Photo does almost everything I did in Ps, and I don't have to deal with Adobe. I like it pretty well, too, now, like it better the more I use it.

Click to expand...

Affinity is one I have not tried out . I was not a big fan of capture one myself. I see they now have a Nikon dedicated version . Nikon's own software like most other makers it seems give good results but poor interface

Carol T said:

Congrats on the G9! I am a bit disappointed you didn't get a E-M1 MkII or III so you could tell us how you felt it compared, but I am sure you will like the G9 if it isn't too big and heavy for you. I really love mine other than a couple points. Still not a fan of DFD, it's quite large and heavy, and probably the most significant, I seem to see WAY more blur in the EVF when moving the camera than I do with my E-M1. Some of that is probably down to resolution and display differences, but I find it pretty disconcerting. I have switched to the high frame rate, which helps, but I guess probably sucks juice from the battery like crazy!!! Let me know how you like the G9!

Click to expand...

It was a close call as they are all great cameras . Familiarity swung it as I have been using Panasonic for years now. The are both good at most things and the things that one may be better at largely are of no interest to me. The DFD seems to be a bit of a deal-breaker for some users. As does the EVF though it seems to be one of those things that only effects some folk, Hopefully I am not one of them or back it goes

Carol T said:

I can't bring myself to get a m4/3 zoom, especially an f/4 one. We shoot very different things, of course, but I tend to shoot at f/2 almost exclusively. I wish I could stop down more to get in the range of the best resolution, but even f/2 doesn't give as much background separation as I want. If Nikon stays in business maybe in a few years I will get into the Z line. Or maybe Canon will actually eventually build a camera I like and some primes other than f/1.2 ones. Who know what the future holds!

Click to expand...

All my zooms lenses are the mk 1 versions so I wanted at least one lens that can use all the features and it is a good price as part of the kit

Linda , has went from having zero interest in photography. To dabbling with her phone , to a Sony RX100V . Now she is getting interested in bird photography. While she liked the ergonomics of my Z7 she felt the lenses were to big and I only have a 300mm focal length . She like the focal length of the 100-300mm but did not like my GX8 { I considered phoning a divorce lawyer } she wanted a camera with a grip so we will probably end up sharing the G9. It will be for birds on branch so S-AF should do the trick. The way she is going she may be after a D6 and one of those nice £10,000+fast tele lenses.

The future of photography and photography gear makers is anyone's guess

Trolleyman said:

I bought the Studio Pro 9 version for Panasonic, very pleased with it

Downloaded trial versions of all the different raw converters and found this one to be the best along with Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) Didn't fancy paying for a subscription to get the latest version of ACR so stuck with Silkypix.

It has some very handy tools, especially like the raw focus stacking tool and the sharpen facility works well too.

Click to expand...

I purchased the Pro 9 version as well but don't know anything about raw focus stacking? Wouldn't this need layers, which SP doesn't support?

In answer to the OP, it takes a bit to get your head around after using LR but I am quite comfortable with SP now. Like anything, the more you use it the easier it becomes.

Originally used the free version with my L1 as it was the only raw converter I had. Upgraded to Lightroom for several years but then my two latest cameras were not supported so took advantage of the Panasonic Pro8 and Pro9 offers when they came out for Y3,800.

Carol T said:

Wow, SP is quite the different experience. Reminds me very much of a FOSS app such as Dark Table or RawTherapee.

Click to expand...

As for RawTherapee, I gave up on experimenting with that. It's written by a committee of geeks for only geeks to use. I simply could not get anywhere near a good conversion as DxO from it despite many hours of trying all ways.

Carol T said:

From comparing the specs of SP8, SP9, SP10, and SP10Pro and looking through my SE8, it looks like the version numbers for the free stuff correlates with that of the paid versions, so the free one is a couple versions back. Which is understandable, free vs $82. And wow, SP10Pro is $175!!!!! I downloaded SP10 (free trial only) in addition to SE8 (the current free one) for comparison.

So, the controls are very different from all the Western commercial converters with which I am familiar. Some of the same functions seem to be there, just handled differently, but some parameters seem to not exist in SP, such as Vibrance.

Click to expand...

I would have to know what "Vibrance" does to find some sort of equivalent elsewhere. Is it the fabled micro-contrast? Or something to do with Saturation?

Carol T said:

I don't seem to find the ability to fine control of exposure, either.

Click to expand...

Exposure is the simple slider....



And I found the most useful bit is the "meter" icon on the right, click that and it does a matrix metering of the image and shows the EV offset it thinks is correct. Fine tune the look of course with the slider.

Carol T said:

SP10 does let you do highlights and shadows, but SE8 doesn't. SP8 also didn't, which is one way I figured out that the free and paid versions line up in specs but not time. They do have global 'dodge' and 'burn' which seem to be intended to kinda sorta do something like that, but don't seem very effective on a quick try at least.

Click to expand...

As with all edit programs, before the software industry invented "shadows" and "highlights" sliders, the best way was to fiddle directly with the tone curves. In Windows it's Ctrl-M to get the curves with all versions it seems, in my old V5 Pro it was in "View-Tone Curve" but it seems to be missing from "View" in SEV8 but Ctrl-M still works to get the Tone Curves in SEV8. Then manipulate the Curves via control points on the curves to get the desired result.

Highlight recovery with Silkypix has always been different, I'm rusty on that right now so will need to go away and experiment. It's all to do with first reducing the exposure, then bringing the rest up, so to speak. I am so used to V5 Pro, still exploring V10 Pro and also throwing SEV8 into the mix to find the differences.

Carol T said:

It looks like the Pro version includes local adjustments, but the lower level versions don't.

Click to expand...

Yes. Create a tiff or high quality jpeg and move to a familiar edit program like Affinity Photo to fiddle further, by the way, Affinity is so much like my old favourite PaintShop Pro which I abandoned as Corel messed it up. With care in Affinity I can get a result that looks almost as good as DxO can do, except for that Prime noise reduction in DxO, but Affinity with care is truly as good as anyone really needs. Just takes some time (like all programs) to get things to the way you like. But I still liked the ease of controls and the variety of tools in the Silkypix variations.

Carol T said:

I don't know how extensive the local adjustments are, as I didn't download that version. The price is up in Capture One range, too much for me, lol.

Click to expand...

Yup, too many dollars in this now uncertain world.

Capture One is very good, up there with DxO I would say, but an awkward dog to learn. I use the free Express version with Sony files at times, but try to avoid it as it's so darn awkward.

Carol T said:

The following are the differences that would be most important for me between the free SE8 and the $82 SP10:

• Individual adjustment of highlight/shadow

Click to expand...

I use Curves but tinkering with the usual Contrast controls may help....



Ctrl-M of course to get the Curves displayed to see what effect the sliders are having.

Carol T said:

• Distortion correction by lens profile (does not seem to work, I think m4/3 corrections are built in and this does not apply in any commercial converter)

Click to expand...

Lens aberration control is there, used to be found from the top line menu, now in SEV8 it's this......



Click on that "pincushion" icon shown as third in at the bottom right and you get the little Lens Aberration Controller as above, select the Pincushion there, click Enable and use the slider.

Time has run out so will come back later to look at these items.

Carol T said:

• Fine detail (noise correction)
• Perspective correction tool
• Customize toolbar (not entirely sure what this is but it sounds useful!)
• Control palette (again not sure what it is but it sounds useful)

Overall, I find SP far more clunky

Click to expand...

Because you are not used it , same as many folks, it does take some learning and understanding.

Carol T said:

and poorly featured than any other commercial converter I have tried.

Click to expand...

Whoa! It is stacked with features, but not always immediately visible. If I decided to turn on all the individual controls that appear as little windows then I would have no room left to see my image. It has always been extraordinarily well featured, it's just that the names are unfamiliar and sometimes hidden a little.

Carol T said:

Some, like ON1, could to large degree replace the need for an editor for a lot of people. I struggle with that myself, trying to decide whether to do stuff in ON1 or in Affinity Photo (AP). ON1 has a lot of fun filters, which I like, can get some looks that would be a lot of work to duplicate in AP. AP tends to not get so bogged down like ON1, which seems to get exponentially slower and more unstable as you add adjustment layers.

HOWEVER!!!!! I recently found that ON1 seems to not pull out as much detail as it should for my Panasonic files. I need to go back and look at this for my Olympus files, but for sure something seems off for my G9. And, this was why I was interested in SP in the first place, to see if it did a better job of conversion. It does, for sure.

The difference is really only noticeable at say 100% zoom, but the difference is there. I am not sure how much that matters in the end, but why would I throw away better IQ, even if it is marginal? Probably going forward I will use ON1 for quick edits and for stuff where I care more about the overall looks than the details. For stuff I want to really work on, I will convert in SP and then move to AP. I do worry about being able to adjust individual exposure regions as well as in ON1, though.

I have tried most of the commercial converters over the years, but perhaps it is time do that again and see if I can find something that does as good a job on conversion as SP but has more of the convenient features. I am glad I tried SP, though, and will definitely keep playing with it!

Thanks again everyone for your help and advice!

Click to expand...

Anyway, late breakfast time here now so better get out of my jammies and shower and breakfast, more later if needed.

Guy Parsons said:

Carol T said:

Wow, SP is quite the different experience. Reminds me very much of a FOSS app such as Dark Table or RawTherapee.

Click to expand...

As for RawTherapee, I gave up on experimenting with that. It's written by a committee of geeks for only geeks to use. I simply could not get anywhere near a good conversion as DxO from it despite many hours of trying all ways.

Click to expand...

lolol

Guy Parsons said:

I would have to know what "Vibrance" does to find some sort of equivalent elsewhere. Is it the fabled micro-contrast? Or something to do with Saturation?

Click to expand...

Vibrance typically 'increases the intensity of the more muted colors and leaves the already well-saturated colors alone,' Saturation increases everything together. Sort of like raising shadows vs raising exposure.

Guy Parsons said:

Guy Parsons said:

I don't seem to find the ability to fine control of exposure, either.

Click to expand...

Exposure is the simple slider....



And I found the most useful bit is the "meter" icon on the right, click that and it does a matrix metering of the image and shows the EV offset it thinks is correct. Fine tune the look of course with the slider.

Click to expand...

Sorry, by fine control I meant the ability to do shadows, highlights, and so forth separately with sliders...

Guy Parsons said:

Guy Parsons said:

SP10 does let you do highlights and shadows, but SE8 doesn't. SP8 also didn't, which is one way I figured out that the free and paid versions line up in specs but not time. They do have global 'dodge' and 'burn' which seem to be intended to kinda sorta do something like that, but don't seem very effective on a quick try at least.

Click to expand...

As with all edit programs, before the software industry invented "shadows" and "highlights" sliders, the best way was to fiddle directly with the tone curves. In Windows it's Ctrl-M to get the curves with all versions it seems, in my old V5 Pro it was in "View-Tone Curve" but it seems to be missing from "View" in SEV8 but Ctrl-M still works to get the Tone Curves in SEV8. Then manipulate the Curves via control points on the curves to get the desired result.

Highlight recovery with Silkypix has always been different, I'm rusty on that right now so will need to go away and experiment. It's all to do with first reducing the exposure, then bringing the rest up, so to speak. I am so used to V5 Pro, still exploring V10 Pro and also throwing SEV8 into the mix to find the differences.

Click to expand...

I use tone curves in pretty much everything I mess with, but usually find it far more coarse than the adjustments I can get from the shadow, whites, and so forth sliders. Same with contrast; the slider seems to ramp up far more slowly than using the tone curve.

Guy Parsons said:

Guy Parsons said:

It looks like the Pro version includes local adjustments, but the lower level versions don't.

Click to expand...

Yes. Create a tiff or high quality jpeg and move to a familiar edit program like Affinity Photo to fiddle further, by the way, Affinity is so much like my old favourite PaintShop Pro which I abandoned as Corel messed it up. With care in Affinity I can get a result that looks almost as good as DxO can do, except for that Prime noise reduction in DxO, but Affinity with care is truly as good as anyone really needs. Just takes some time (like all programs) to get things to the way you like. But I still liked the ease of controls and the variety of tools in the Silkypix variations.

Click to expand...

Yes, I am quite comfortable using AP for all that, especially because it has a lot of non-destructive adjustments, and I know how do even do things like dodge and burn and fixes like healing or clone stamp non-destructively. I actually converted something to a TIFF in SP and worked it up completely in AP earlier; I had forgotten there is a highlight/shadow adjustment layer in AP, and things like saturation/vibrance as well. I like that in AP I can easily add a mask and do the equivalent of the 'local adjustments' many raw converters do these days without having the app slow down or crash.

Guy Parsons said:

Guy Parsons said:

I don't know how extensive the local adjustments are, as I didn't download that version. The price is up in Capture One range, too much for me, lol.

Click to expand...

Yup, too many dollars in this now uncertain world.

Capture One is very good, up there with DxO I would say, but an awkward dog to learn. I use the free Express version with Sony files at times, but try to avoid it as it's so darn awkward.

Guy Parsons said:

The following are the differences that would be most important for me between the free SE8 and the $82 SP10:

• Individual adjustment of highlight/shadow

Click to expand...

I use Curves but tinkering with the usual Contrast controls may help....



Ctrl-M of course to get the Curves displayed to see what effect the sliders are having.

Click to expand...

That's a neat trick to see the effect of the tone curve!!

Guy Parsons said:

Guy Parsons said:

• Distortion correction by lens profile (does not seem to work, I think m4/3 corrections are built in and this does not apply in any commercial converter)

Click to expand...

Lens aberration control is there, used to be found from the top line menu, now in SEV8 it's this......



Click on that "pincushion" icon shown as third in at the bottom right and you get the little Lens Aberration Controller as above, select the Pincushion there, click Enable and use the slider.

Time has run out so will come back later to look at these items.

Guy Parsons said:

• Fine detail (noise correction)
• Perspective correction tool
• Customize toolbar (not entirely sure what this is but it sounds useful!)
• Control palette (again not sure what it is but it sounds useful)

Overall, I find SP far more clunky

Click to expand...

Because you are not used it , same as many folks, it does take some learning and understanding.

Click to expand...

It just does things is such a different way from everything else I have used, lol.

Guy Parsons said:

Guy Parsons said:

and poorly featured than any other commercial converter I have tried.

Click to expand...

Whoa! It is stacked with features, but not always immediately visible. If I decided to turn on all the individual controls that appear as little windows then I would have no room left to see my image. It has always been extraordinarily well featured, it's just that the names are unfamiliar and sometimes hidden a little.

Click to expand...

It may do some of the same things, but I think you really need SP9 or SP10, and better yet the Pro version, which is far more than I will pay. The SP10 Pro probably does have most of what other coverters have, but I think it is more expensive than most others with the same features.

Guy Parsons said:

Guy Parsons said:

Some, like ON1, could to large degree replace the need for an editor for a lot of people. I struggle with that myself, trying to decide whether to do stuff in ON1 or in Affinity Photo (AP). ON1 has a lot of fun filters, which I like, can get some looks that would be a lot of work to duplicate in AP. AP tends to not get so bogged down like ON1, which seems to get exponentially slower and more unstable as you add adjustment layers.

HOWEVER!!!!! I recently found that ON1 seems to not pull out as much detail as it should for my Panasonic files. I need to go back and look at this for my Olympus files, but for sure something seems off for my G9. And, this was why I was interested in SP in the first place, to see if it did a better job of conversion. It does, for sure.

The difference is really only noticeable at say 100% zoom, but the difference is there. I am not sure how much that matters in the end, but why would I throw away better IQ, even if it is marginal? Probably going forward I will use ON1 for quick edits and for stuff where I care more about the overall looks than the details. For stuff I want to really work on, I will convert in SP and then move to AP. I do worry about being able to adjust individual exposure regions as well as in ON1, though.

I have tried most of the commercial converters over the years, but perhaps it is time do that again and see if I can find something that does as good a job on conversion as SP but has more of the convenient features. I am glad I tried SP, though, and will definitely keep playing with it!

Thanks again everyone for your help and advice!

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Anyway, late breakfast time here now so better get out of my jammies and shower and breakfast, more later if needed.

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Hope you have a good day!

kiwigirl said:

Trolleyman said:

I bought the Studio Pro 9 version for Panasonic, very pleased with it

Downloaded trial versions of all the different raw converters and found this one to be the best along with Adobe Camera Raw (ACR) Didn't fancy paying for a subscription to get the latest version of ACR so stuck with Silkypix.

It has some very handy tools, especially like the raw focus stacking tool and the sharpen facility works well too.

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I purchased the Pro 9 version as well but don't know anything about raw focus stacking? Wouldn't this need layers, which SP doesn't support?

In answer to the OP, it takes a bit to get your head around after using LR but I am quite comfortable with SP now. Like anything, the more you use it the easier it becomes.

Originally used the free version with my L1 as it was the only raw converter I had. Upgraded to Lightroom for several years but then my two latest cameras were not supported so took advantage of the Panasonic Pro8 and Pro9 offers when they came out for Y3,800.

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My apologies, think the hot weather has got to me, 32c is too much for me.

I also downloaded Affinity which has the focus stacking and merge.

Carol T said:

Hope you have a good day!

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A good day so far, relaxing now after a day's work bringing back to usefulness a small model-making metal lathe that I've owned for over 50 years. More to do there, beats painting the outside of the house like I should be doing.

Meanwhile, yes sliders vary things much more gently than Curves where you have to be ultra careful and put plenty of pins in place so unwanted bulges in the curves are better controlled.

I have started to get serious after many years delay to get better re-acquainted with Silkypix, lots to learn and re-learn.

What I've found so far is that the Help manual that is installed with SE V8 is 100 times more readable than the one that installs with V10 Pro.

For SE V8 Section 5 re Controls explains those little icons on the right of the window, those are normally hidden in the drop-downs in the top line menus at View-Sub Controls. Online that same page is at https://www.isl.co.jp/SILKYPIX/english/p/product/manual/man0005.html

So I've paused now to read the SE V8 manual to get a better handle on my V10 Pro manual.

One pain is that if I have V10 open then I can't start SE V8 until I close V10. So lots of swapping is happening, open-close-open-close-open-close ad nauseum.

I'll do some online searching re highlight recovery as it is done differently, something that I need to re-learn.

Silkypix manuals problem...

I have a habit of telling people to read Section 10 first, but that advice is faulty as far as SE V8 is concerned, its Section 10 does not match all the other versions Section 10.

The "normal" Section 10 talks about "How to Handle SILKYPIX Perfectly" and V10 Pro Section 10 looks like this https://www.isl.co.jp/SILKYPIX/english/support/manual/dsp10/man0012.html and is a long and difficult read now.

In my old V5 Pro it was simpler and more helpful from what I remember, found that Section 10. here https://www.isl.co.jp/SILKYPIX/english/support/manual/dsp5/man0012.html#_Anchor10

As for SE V8 with its simpler and shorter help file I guess you start at the top and dig for what you are interested in https://www.isl.co.jp/SILKYPIX/english/p/product/manual/index.html

Late to the party and i think all is said and djscused.

I am a panasonic user and bought sp5pro for my fz200 and later used it for my g85.

My experience, and i was first using a old LR4 which i hated for it's automated search every time i stuck a usb in my pc, is a learning curve in developing it self not in Silkypics itself.

Manual of sp5pro was very helpfull in learning what to do and how things worked. Because English isn't my native language i have less trouble with there crooked english.

When i got my G85 i stumbled on the free Dx0 optic pro v10 essential and there optical module is a God, instant sharpnes. But i was strugling to get same result as in my strusty old sp5pro.

Tested my then quite experienced SP5pro use against the DxOPLv1 elite and hopped over. Only for there prime denoise and optical module and viewpoint But silkypix had some tricks that DxO plv1.2 hadn't.

- very good color recovery from highlights.

- cloning repair was working quite wel but manual. Same as perspectivetools.

- Auto WB natural/absolute: Great auto colorcast recovery if your camera mishitted the WB.

- Camerastyle which read idyn and ires and applied it on the rawfile along your cameracolorsettings.

- the tonecurve tool and histogram give's lots of information and you can include the sliders of contrast in the tonecurve which i don't had/have on other aplications.

It's still on my pc and i use it for WB control

So now i am at PhotoLab v3.2 suite elite.(inlcuding filmpack and viewpoint)

But i am waiting for a SP10Pro for panasonic because it still is in my favorit corner with there special and unique look at things.

They have now focalplane filter, multishot blending in more then one way, it's a interesting software company :no LR clone doing stuff there own way and very succesfull imo.

Edit: Forgot they have colorproofing also. Don't know if i need it doh.

My advise is wait for the panasonic only version in pro. And upgrade from there to a full version if the right offer is in your mail.

(i emailed them to ask if they launch the panasonic only in the future and despite the hystory of all versions of panasonic only they say we don't........ )

My gues is somewhere in the fall.....

In the maintime look at DxOPL elite not very cheap but for m43 sensors it's a blessing.

I can recover a 6400 iso in detail which is better then sp5pro raw to tiff and run through define2 of nik.

The lens correction and sharpning is that good that they have more image then SP5, sp cuts off more to solve things like distortion and vignetting.

I run several test and dxoPL keeps more image visual then SP when straigtend and corrected.

My two cents

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knowledge is addictive, every time i get some i want more.....
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(If i can remember 1/1000 of everything i learned/read in the past i will be happy as a monky with........)

spike29 said:

I run several test and dxoPL keeps more image visual then SP when straigtend and corrected.

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Yet to compare that, In Silkypix the combination of fiddling with lens correction and Crop (previously called Trim) extending the crop outside the normal frame allows quite a larger frame with some cameras.