I. Open input image in Photoshop In Photoshop CS5 / CS4 64-bit, open the image to be processed (it should be either an RGB or grayscale image).
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II. Start Neat Image plug-in Start the Neat Image plug-in using the Filter > Neat Image > Reduce Noise... menu item in Photoshop. This will open Neat Image plug-in window.
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III. Build noise profile using Auto Profile 1. Click the Auto Profile button to build a new noise profile for the input image: Auto Profile will try to automatically find and analyze a flat featureless image area that contains only noise and no important details: 2. Visually inspect the selected image area - it should contain NO VISIBLE DETAILS, only noise; otherwise the noise profile and subsequent noise reduction may be inaccurate.
3. The noise profile is now ready and the input image can be processed.
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IV. Switch to Noise Filter Settings Click the Noise Filter Settings tab:
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V. Check Preview Neat Image will automatically select an area or the whole visible part of the image and prepare a preview: Hint: click in the preview area in Neat Image plug-in to compare before and after versions.
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VI. Adjust Filter Settings to achieve desired level of noise reduction and sharpening 1. The default filter settings should produce good results, yet it may be useful to change some settings and check the preview:
2. When you are happy with the preview results proceed to the next step below.
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VII. Apply filter to image Click the Apply button in the bottom of the plug-in window to start processing:
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VIII. Final result After the processing is completed, the filtered image is back in Photoshop: Hint: Move mouse over the image above to compare before and after versions.
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The above steps explain the basic Neat Image plug-in workflow. There is a lot more information about building noise profiles, adjusting filter settings, using the calibration target, etc. Please use the following materials to learn more about using Neat Image:
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