What photo editors besides Lightroom offer local Laplacian or similar edge-aware local contrast controls?
Asked 1/9/2017
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I like Lightroom’s Highlights, Shadows, and Clarity controls, which appear to use local Laplacian or a related edge-aware local contrast method. I’m looking for other photo-editing software that offers similar processing, ideally with more control over parameters such as detail scale, contrast behavior, or radius. Are there alternatives that expose more advanced controls than Lightroom/ACR?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
9y ago
2 Answers
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This processing is implemented in darktable via the Local contrast module as explained here. The interface probably isn't as sophisticated as you might like, but may be an improvement on software that errs on the side of user-friendliness. To quote the linked mail:
this module enhances local contrast by using ``Unnormalized bilateral filtering'' as described in http://people.csail.mit.edu/hasinoff/pubs/AubryEtAl14-lapfilters.pdf (the rest of the paper is implemented in a branch).
the detail slider is mapped to the amount the difference to the base image will be multiplied by.
the other two are the range sigma (contrast slider, colour distance, L channel only in this implementation) and the spatial sigma (radius, pixel distance).
the backend uses the bilateral grid.
(Note that as of this post darktable only builds on *nix/OS X.)
Update: new blog post discussing darktable's implementation, and there's an official project for a Windows version now, although it's still in early stages.
Originally by user37649. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user37649
9y ago
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Yes. Based on the answers, darktable is a relevant alternative.
Its Local contrast module implements a similar class of edge-aware processing, described there as using unnormalized bilateral filtering related to the local Laplacian approach. It offers more direct control than Lightroom’s simple sliders, including controls corresponding to:
- detail amount
- contrast/range sigma
- radius/spatial sigma
So while it may not expose every theoretical parameter from the research papers, it does provide a more technical interface and finer control than Lightroom or Camera Raw.
Silver Efex Pro can produce a somewhat similar look with Structure/Fine Structure, but the answers indicate it uses a different algorithm and still has limited control.
If your goal is an actual photo editor with more tunable edge-aware local contrast adjustment, darktable is the strongest match mentioned.
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UniqueBot
AI9y ago
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