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Post by hmca on Aug 21, 2018 12:13:04 GMT
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Post by kdcintx on Aug 22, 2018 3:29:29 GMT
I watched the webinar today. AI Gigapixel definitely looks like it might be the best upscaling/enlarging program on the market. However, it requires a hefty graphics card so be sure to check out the system requirements. There are several graphics cards from major manufactures (Nvidia, Intel, AMD) that are not supported. help.topazlabs.com/hc/en-us/articles/360012419692-A-I-GigapixelThe a 20% off storewide coupon offered during the presentation is GigaGreg which is good for A.I. Gigapixel, The Topaz Studio Go Pro Adjustment Pack, or any other items in the Topaz Store. The coupon expires on Monday, August 27, 2018. |
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Post by Bailey on Aug 22, 2018 3:44:27 GMT
I watched the webinar today. AI Gigapixel definitely looks like it might be the best upscaling/enlarging program on the market. ... That's what I am leaning towards as well from what I have tested so far.
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Post by fotofrank on Aug 22, 2018 5:39:20 GMT
Just to repeat - if you are looking to buy this make sure your system is between the recommended and optimal or you can plan on waiting a while for the up-size to complete. The PPI of the outputted image will be at 72 no mater what the original image is. The webinar today used extremely small images and did have excellent results. However for the minimal amount of times I have upscaled an image, ON1 does an excellent job in a very short time. Test Image  |
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Post by Bailey on Aug 22, 2018 9:24:00 GMT
... The PPI of the outputted image will be at 72 no mater what the original image is. ... So what? The actual ppi value an image is set to has 0 relevance and so is meaningless when the image is used for online display. The only thing that matters is the actual pixel dimensions - length, width. A 6000px x 4000px image will look exactly the same on a screen or given web page whether the image is set to 72, 100, 200, 300, 400ppi or whatever. The only time PPI becomes relevant and is used is when you want to print an image to a paper size.
In PSE I set the ppi value to match the paper size or set a paper size and PSE calculates the PPI for the pixel dimensions of the image. As long as the calculated PPI is ~300+ then I have enough resolution.
But regardless of the image's ppi value, all printers will resize the image to their native printing resolution before printing anyway (Epson printers: 360ppi, Canon and most others 300ppi). So for the purposes of testing/evaluating AI Gigapixel, I am setting either the output pixel dimensions I want or the upsizing factor in %. The ppi the outputted image is set to by AI Gigapixel is totally irrelevant.
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Post by hmca on Aug 22, 2018 13:42:12 GMT
I also watched the webinar and it did look impressive. Not that long ago my daughter sent me some phone pix that she wanted resized to 8 x 10. I used OnOne. She was happy enough with them to frame and hang them but I wasn't as pleased. She now has a new batch but won't be home till this weekend. In the meantime, I have one picture she wants done and am hoping to give it a try before the coupon runs out. If anyone else would like to give it a try, here's the dropbox link. You shouldn't need a Dropbox account to access the picture. Have run into a password problem and can't open the software. Have signed in/signed out/created new passwords several times.....getting nowhere. Have contacted Topaz support who are usually wonderful with response time but may be backed up at present.
Much to do today, will post back when I have completed my test. |
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Post by fotofrank on Aug 22, 2018 13:52:56 GMT
Printers use DPI (Dots Per Inch) not PPI (Pixels Per Inch) - they are not the same. The printer manufacturers don't list their products in PPI.
So if you are planning on printing your upscaled image, the PPI becomes relevant, it kind of makes sense the the outputted image PPI is not irrelevant.
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Post by Sepiana on Aug 22, 2018 14:35:53 GMT
Not that long ago my daughter sent me some phone pix that she wanted resized to 8 x 10. I used OnOne. She was happy enough with them to frame and hang them but I wasn't as pleased. Helen, I am curious. I noticed you list ON1 Photo 10 in your signature. Did you use, then, Resize 10 (discontinued)? Or did you use Resize 2018?
I am asking this because ON1 revamped Resize with the 2018 version.
New ON1 Resize 2018
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Post by hmca on Aug 22, 2018 14:54:25 GMT
Good point, Sepiana. I don't know what version I used the last time but usually update my OnOne as new versions come out. I just did the picture above using OnOne's newest version and am waiting for Topaz to try their software. My current version of OnOne:  |
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Post by hmca on Aug 22, 2018 22:50:37 GMT
Let me start off by saying I don't claim to have run a very sophisticated test.
In On1, I simply opened my photo in Resize. Put in the longest side dimension and set print resolution for 360 for my Epson printer.
In the Topaz program, I chose 400%, checked Enhance image and had my results in 1 minute.
I printed them both.
What I first noticed was how noise-free the sky came in in the Topaz program. It is something that I do not like to see in my images.
The next thing I noticed was that his head looked sharper against the sky in the Topaz program.
Looking at the pictures the left side of his body looked to be about the same using both programs; on the right side Topaz offered a cleaner line. His skimboard also looked better in the Topaz program.
I then showed the two prints to my husband asking which he thought was the better print. He chose the Topaz print saying it looked clearer overall.....noting the boat, ocean and stones in the sand. (I think I should have cloned out the boat!)
Because I am often given pictures by my family that have been taken with a cell phone I am going to take advantage of the discount that I received for attending the presentation.
Knowing how you work, the quality of photo you will start off with, how big you will want them to be, and how often you might need to make enlargements should all be considered before you purchase. This would be especially true if you are happy with the program you are now using.
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Post by Bailey on Aug 22, 2018 22:55:43 GMT
Printers use DPI (Dots Per Inch) not PPI (Pixels Per Inch) - they are not the same. The printer manufacturers don't list their products in PPI. So if you are planning on printing your upscaled image, the PPI becomes relevant, it kind of makes sense the the outputted image PPI is not irrelevant. Yes, PPI and DPI are not the same, but many people nowadays mistakenly interchange them in their use. DPI is how many dots of ink a printer lays down per inch on the paper to produce the colours in the pixel data.
My Epson SC P600 has a native resolution of 360PPI and 720PPI at the highest setting. Inside the printer driver I typically have the Print Quality setting set to either 1440dpi x 1440dpi or 5760dpi x 1440dpi, depending on the printer profile I am using for the print.
So if anyone is testing AI Gigapixel, don't be concerned about the outputted PPI setting for the reason I posted earlier.
Hope this helps  |
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Post by Bailey on Aug 24, 2018 23:52:47 GMT
I have tested quite a few photos using AI Gigapixel and On1 for the purpose of enlarging photos for large sized prints and not online display. PSE, ON1 and AI Gigapixel all produce very good enlargements for online display purposes. But for enlarging photos for large sized prints I found that AI Gigapixel outperforms the other 2 applications, especially in enlarging fine details like hairs and small distant objects in a panoramic landscape. But to be honest the extra quality from AI Gigapixel, although noticeable on my test prints is not that much. The other 2 do produce very good enlargements for large sized prints as well.
But I will have no hesitation in using AI Gigapixel for enlarging images for large sized prints if I ever need to. Normally I don't have to enlarge photos for prints. Shooting panoramas in portrait orientation gives me more than enough resolution.
I can see AI Gigapixel will be very useful for me in enlarging old small sized images that I might want to make a large print of.
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Post by Sydney on Aug 25, 2018 0:51:40 GMT
Other than reading discussions on the Topaz Forum, I haven't had a chance to trial either resizing app (On1 vs AI Gigapixel) as yet. AI Gigapixel seems to be getting favourable reviews with one person saying there was more detail in the resized image than in the original unsized image. I found that quite interesting.
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Post by Bailey on Aug 27, 2018 5:11:34 GMT
Hi Sydney,
I'm not sure what that person means by "extra detail", but from my observations of my test prints, AI Gigapixel produces slightly sharper prints.
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Post by hmca on Feb 10, 2019 2:24:59 GMT
This summer, I took this picture:  I made this almost 5" square image from that picture:  I used Topaz Gigapixel and made it a 15in. square at 360ppi. It took only a couple of minutes to resize and I was very happy with the way it looked on my screen. However, the real test would be how it printed. I received the print on Friday and am thrilled with the results. Not sure if attaching it is very helpful since it has been downsized to post here. But I remembered this discussion and thought people considering this product might be interested with my results.  |
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