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Created May 4, 2017 22:45
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My Darktable Workflow
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darktable-workflow.md

My Darktable Workflow

Basic workflow

  • Copy a film roll (a directory of RAW images) into a directory on the machine running Darktable.
  • Import the film roll into Darktable.
  • Review the images using lighttable mode and remove any images that are beyond repair.
  • Take a snapshot of the image so we can do a before and after comparison.
  • Adjust the white balance.
  • Exposure compensation and recovery.
  • Noise reduction.
  • Lens corrections.
  • Capture sharpening.
  • Contrast with levels and curves.
  • Crop and rotate the image.
  • Colour and selective enhancements such as saturation, colour adjustments and spot removal.

Output workflow

  • Resize the image for the web or printing.
  • Output sharpening.

Black and white workflow

  • Monochrome plugin
  • Channel mixer with the combination of RGB values equalling one.
  • Colour zones plugin.
  • Improve contrast with tone curve plugin.

Darktable Modules

Basic Group

  • Crop and rotate (including keystone for architectural)
  • Shadows and Highlights
  • Base curve
  • Exposure
  • Demosaic (PPG is faster)
  • White balance

Tone Group

  • Levels
  • Tone curve
  • Zone system
  • Local contrast

Colour Group

  • Velvia
  • Channel Mixer (check table of film values below)
  • Colour Correction for tinting and split toning
  • Monochrome
  • Color zones (modifies color in images)

Correction Group

  • Sharpen
  • Denoise - Non local means (see denoising starting point below)
  • Lens correction
  • Spot removal

Effect group

  • Watermark
  • Framing
  • Splittoning
  • Vignetting
  • Soften (Orton effect)
  • Grain
  • Graduated Density

Channel Mixer B&W film

Film Type (Red, Green, Blue)

  • AGFA 200X (0.18, 0.41, 0.41)
  • Agfapan 25 (0.25, 0.39, 0.36)
  • Agfapan 100 (0.21, 0.40, 0.39)
  • Agfapan 400 (0.20, 0.41, 0.39)
  • Ilford Delta 100 (0.21, 0.42, 0.37)
  • Ilford Delta 400 (0.22, 0.42, 0.36)
  • Ilford Delta 3200 (0.31, 0.36, 0.33)
  • Ilford FP4 (0.28, 0.41, 0.31)
  • Ilford HP5 (0.23, 0.37, 0.40)
  • Ilford Pan F (0.33, 0.36, 0.31)
  • Ilford SFX (0.36, 0.31, 0.33)
  • Ilford XP2 Super (0.21, 0.42, 0.37)
  • Kodak T-Max 100 (0.24, 0.37, 0.39)
  • Kodak T-Max 400 (0.27, 0.36, 0.37)
  • Kodak Tri-X 400 (0.25, 0.35, 0.40)
  • Normal Contrast (0.43, 0.33, 0.30)
  • High Contrast (0.40, 0.34, 0.60)
  • Generic B/W (0.24, 0.68, 0.08)

Denoise (non-local means) starting point

Take a tenth of the ISO value. So if ISO is 160...

luma 16% chroma 32% (double luma)

Common ND filters

Filter ([ev] or f-stop, absorbance, transmittance) ND2 (-1, 0.3, 50%) ND4 (-2, 0.6, 25%) ND8 (-3, 0.9, 12.5%) ND400 (-9, 2.7, 0.195%)

HDR Workflow

  • Import bracketed shots into Darktable.
  • Click on Create HDR.
  • Turn off all modules in the 'Active' group.
  • Adjust the exposure.

With a night shot with a few light sources correct the light source to bring back as much detail into the light source without lowering its intensity. With a daylight show expose the darker parts of the image.

  • Use the global tonemap module. Day shot you need to bring out highlights. Night shot bring out shadows.
  • Fine tune the exposure.
  • Use the equaliser module to increase contrast.

Resources:

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