LucisPro

[skydog]

http://www.lucispro.com/homepage1.htm
http://www.lucispro.com/lucis-artistic/artist-index.htm

Looks like lucispro is ready to order. If anyone has "bit the bullet" please let me know your feedback.

[plugsnpixels]

I'm expecting my copy later today. I hope to post some quick comparisons to Adjust and ContrastMaster as a start.

[skydog]

One thing said in the promo letter was the new program would provide smoother pics with less grain (like skin)...let me know if this is the case.

[plugsnpixels]

I haven't tried it with people photos just yet, but you can now get into individual channels and apply effects to each separately, so this may be a way to deal with noise. You can now also control those spiky artifacts and restore the image's original color if desired (assuming Lucis Pro colored it in some way).

I posted a quick comparison set of Lucis Pro and Topaz Adjust here. I'll add more examples to it soon.

[secretagents]

Originally Posted by plugsnpixels

I posted a quick comparison set of Lucis Pro and Topaz Adjust here. I'll add more examples to it soon.

I gave a very quick jab at some of the original pics and I come very close to your results with free plugins only, plus eventually some blending with the original image.

I used :

Adaptive Equalization by Reinder Graphics
Multiple Histogram Equalization by Belousov
Local Contrast Enhancement by PhotoPlugins
SuperSmooth by Xero

Anything else they can do to justify the price tag, particularly for Lucis ?

[plugsnpixels]

Can you post the results somewhere for us to see?

Your workflow sounds great if one has a lot of time and no deadlines! ;-)

[secretagents]

I point out that it is either or and not all at once as far as the plugins go so the workflow is extremely simple and fast! ;-)

If you provide clean images to start with I'll give it a jab.

I won't post what I have obtained because it is not too nice due to the fact that the jpeg compression artifacts also get emphasized by the treatment. Otherwise I think it's pretty much there .

But you can try yourself as well I guess.

[plugsnpixels]

Ah. It sounded like you used a 4- or 5-step sandwich ;-).

Until I get back on broadband next week the images I already posted will have to do, but you can post a before-and-after using your own images if you wish.

I haven't Googled them all yet but I assume most of these plug-ins are Windows-only (?). That would limit their desirability (at least for Mac users!).

[terranaut]

thanks for the initial comparison, as i am so confused for now as to whether to get adjust or contrastmaster, although ive played with both all week. i like contrastmasters controls, i just wish i knew more detailed exactly what the 3 main tabs are doing and settings, other than 'good for small details, better for larger details' and so forth.
im guessing all types of the these contrast apps are processor intensive as the initial releases are a tad slow to process.
i look forward to your thoughts and compairons with contrastmaster...

[plugsnpixels]

Terranaut, are you a digital terrain-generating type? I enjoy that too (Terragen, etc.).

I corresponded with Adjust's developer yesterday and I am told they have made some speed improvements which we should see soon.

And yes, I do have to add ContrastMaster results to my comparisons!

[TreesOfMyTime]

I am confused more now. As a Lucis Art user, what will the price for Pro be when the Mac version is available Sept.1 ?

[plugsnpixels]

Hi Don,

I agree it's been confusing, and I've tried to keep up with the various options, incentives, revisions and release dates. There's a summary of options on the top of the page here, but further details can be found on the developer's website.

If you are an existing registered customer of LucisArt 2 or Pro 5, you already received a coupon code for $140 from the developer via email. If you are a new customer, you can use the $70 coupon code on the page linked above. There is also a $50 introductory price reduction for Lucis Pro 6 being offered for a limited time, but I'm not sure if this is in addition to other discounts or not.

I've already got the Mac version of Lucis Pro 6, but an updated version is being tested next week (to address issues with multi-processor Macs, ie, quad and above). As a result, the Mac incentives are being extended to cover the additional testing time of the updated version.

[TreesOfMyTime]

Well I hope I can find the code again, because I do not seem to have it now. I guess I will call Barbara.

[terranaut]

no i havent been into 3d terrain since mid-90s, the name/domain i thought of when i was on a 14-day water fast floating in the ocean belly-up, and the name sort of popped in my head. well 14 days without food alot tends to pop up in ones head. so i grabbed the domain that night..
thanks for these comparisons, ive always kept plugins to a minimum but these 3 i cant emulate in any time-saving way, so your comparisons will help, for now i lean to contrastmaster, although i gave the topaz people a list of 6 things id like to see in their plug, so ill see if they get incorporated. id use them most often as masks than anything else.
my most used plug for now in getting masks is maskerade, i wish photoshop had this sort of control in their upcoming version. or else i wish this plug could be used as a smart filter, or i wish there was a way to do smart-masks....
thanks again

[plugsnpixels]

Maskerade: very cool, though not updated for years:

http://www.plugsandpixels.com/maskerade.html