Reading mode: Light Dark

Lightroom on iPad, is the blur function better than on a PC?

Go to last post
R

Rupert the bear

Forum Enthusiast
Messages
315
Reaction score
1,021
OM1 with 300 f4 processed in Lightroom on iPad, Blur set high (81) And circle
OM1 with 300 f4 processed in Lightroom on iPad, Blur set high (81) And circle

Same image processing but without blur
Same image processing but without blur

Before taking a trip to Thailand I bought an iPad as an alternative to carrying my 15” laptop for two weeks. I’ve got adobe creative suite so could get the Lightroom app for iPad.

I’ve tried the blur function on the laptop but never been that impressed with the results but this app seems to take it to a whole new level making what was simply a record shot into quite a decent image to my eye.

Is Lightroom for iPad a different or better version of the blur Beta function?

This surely narrows the bokeh gap between M43 and the full frame big primes?
 
Last edited:
Well, for a start it’s cut the branch in half.
 
Rupert the bear said:
OM1 with 300 f4 processed in Lightroom on iPad, Blur set high (81) And circle
OM1 with 300 f4 processed in Lightroom on iPad, Blur set high (81) And circle

Same image processing but without blur
Same image processing but without blur

Before taking a trip to Thailand I bought an iPad as an alternative to carrying my 15” laptop for two weeks. I’ve got adobe creative suite so could get the Lightroom app for iPad.

I’ve tried the blur function on the laptop but never been that impressed with the results but this app seems to take it to a whole new level making what was simply a record shot into quite a decent image to my eye.

Is Lightroom for iPad a different or better version of the blur Beta function?

This surely narrows the bokeh gap between M43 and the full
Click to expand...
Sorry, just my opinion but for me this doesn’t look good at all, the edges around the subject are awful and the missing branch etc isn’t great.

Having said that, thank you for posting as it’s really useful to see real world results of new features like this.

There is an app called Focus (from bending spoons) that I had on my iPad for years which did just that one thing brilliantly especially for portraits, but as usual the software developers couldn’t leave it alone and recently updated the app to give you more features so they could moved from cheap one off purchase to subscription only and of course they have completely ruined what was previously an excellent app that now produces even worse results than the example you posted here.
 
My bad, my intention was to show the extent of blur but picked a bad example of a shot I wouldn’t normally keep anyway. I hadn’t even noticed the branch defect as I did this in an airport transfer vehicle :-)

What do you think of this example?



Same lens and camera on the same day, 61% blur applied.
Same lens and camera on the same day, 61% blur applied.
 
Rupert the bear said:
My bad, my intention was to show the extent of blur but picked a bad example of a shot I wouldn’t normally keep anyway. I hadn’t even noticed the branch defect as I did this in an airport transfer vehicle :-)

What do you think of this example?

Same lens and camera on the same day, 61% blur applied.
Same lens and camera on the same day, 61% blur applied.
Click to expand...
Edges of the branch are a bit unnatural,

blur effect error around the bird legs also.

But better then the monkey shot :) The monkey is so close to the background that no combo would blur the background that much in real life.
 
Mait said:
Rupert the bear said:
My bad, my intention was to show the extent of blur but picked a bad example of a shot I wouldn’t normally keep anyway. I hadn’t even noticed the branch defect as I did this in an airport transfer vehicle :-)

What do you think of this example?

Same lens and camera on the same day, 61% blur applied.
Same lens and camera on the same day, 61% blur applied.
Click to expand...
Edges of the branch are a bit unnatural,

blur effect error around the bird legs also.

But better then the monkey shot :) The monkey is so close to the background that no combo would blur the background that much in real life.
Click to expand...
Thanks for taking the time to look.

I’m not much of a pixel peeper to be honest and I can’t see what’s wrong with the branch or the legs. The blur has just made the background more attractive and to my eye has made the picture a more pleasing image, and ultimately that’s what I’m using Lr to do, improve the image.

Here’s the edited version with blur set to zero, I’m not sure the blur tool has degraded the bird or tree at all? Maybe it’s my other edits that you don’t like much? I’m not sure how to post up the raw file.

Anyway having ignored the blur tool since its appearance on my PC version because it didn’t seem to do much, I was just really trying to find out if anyone else had noticed the iPad app producing a more interesting blur effect?

a88cd30d34be446fa7ac48a9e6034e46.jpg
 
Rupert the bear said:
My bad, my intention was to show the extent of blur but picked a bad example of a shot I wouldn’t normally keep anyway. I hadn’t even noticed the branch defect as I did this in an airport transfer vehicle :-)

What do you think of this example?

Same lens and camera on the same day, 61% blur applied.
Same lens and camera on the same day, 61% blur applied.
Click to expand...
Yes that’s much better than the monkey
 
I use quite a bit but with caution. It sometimes misses small areas between gaps which sometimes becomes evident after further processing. Downy breasts of birds are a problem. The AI sees it as an OOF area and blurs it even more. This could happen with fluffy animals as well. I dare say, it will be improved in time. However, I think it's better at picking background than the algorithm used in masking. I guess they are different. One assesses depth by looking at existing blur and the other assesses background by selecting out sharp subjects.
 
I've found using Lightroom on an Android Tablet, that the blur tool is great (in some cases) but definitely not for furry creatures/birds.

You lose all the little hairs or feathers around the animal's body and it ends up looking unnatural.
 
IvorHooper said:
I've found using Lightroom on an Android Tablet, that the blur tool is great (in some cases) but definitely not for furry creatures/birds.

You lose all the little hairs or feathers around the animal's body and it ends up looking unnatural.
Click to expand...
What do you think of the Osprey? I’m quite surprised how decent it has turned out, but maybe I’ve just got low standards.
 
It seems to have done a good job with the osprey I reckon.

It's way better than any attempts that i have done with animals.
 
Here's one i used the blur tool. It's a dik dik at a local wildlife park.

The outline of the body is smoothed with no hair or fur sticking out at all.



6132bc64d57f4c1e93e27d9153da2b63.jpg
 
Well i got an example done at PC.

I almost like it, only thing that bothers me is the halo around the snow at background, right side of the image. Also some fine feathers are gone.

Without blur
Without blur

With blur
With blur
 
Interesting. Clearly there are some situations where it is useful, but lots more where it’s not. I can see it being improved over time, it would be particularly useful to see the masking and be able to add and subtract areas.
 
To be fair I think that the image looks good without the blur and there isn’t that much extra blur introduced by the app, and as you say it comes at the cost of some feather details around the head. I don’t think the snow halo looks bad at all.



Still, I wonder whether the iPad version might have done a different job. I might try do a comparison when I get home on some images and see what the differences are.

Thanks for posting.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Keyboard shortcuts

f
Forum
m
My threads
Mobile site
About
Editorial content
Cameras & Lenses
Community
All content, design, and layout are Copyright © 1998–2025 Digital Photography Review All Rights Reserved.
Reproduction in whole or part in any form or medium without specific written permission is prohibited.
When you use DPReview links to buy products, the site may earn a commission.
©GPS Media - Guides, Products, Services.
Back
Top