How To Get Vivid Reds: My camera is a Panasonic FZ200, which is a high end point and shoot camera. I will be shooting a room full of red poinsettias and want to get a vivid red in my...

Moose Loc: North Carolina

My camera is a Panasonic FZ200, which is a high end point and shoot camera. I will be shooting a room full of red poinsettias and want to get a vivid red in my images. My past experience with reds hasn't been all that great with the red not crisp and clear. Trouble describing it. I seem to lose definition, like petal edges. The attached photo may help to describe the problem. I'd appreciate your help in setting the camera so that my images with red come up great. Thanks for your help.

Tulip

(Download)

tsilva Loc: Arizona

get a x-rite colorchecker passport and create a color profile for your camera

http://xritephoto.com/ph_product_overview.aspx?id=1257

n3eg Loc: West coast USA

I have heard that Panasonic and Olympus sensors tend to oversaturate the reds.

rpavich Loc: West Virginia

Moose wrote:

My camera is a Panasonic FZ200, which is a high end point and shoot camera. I will be shooting a room full of red poinsettias and want to get a vivid red in my images. My past experience with reds hasn't been all that great with the red not crisp and clear. Trouble describing it. I seem to lose definition, like petal edges. The attached photo may help to describe the problem. I'd appreciate your help in setting the camera so that my images with red come up great. Thanks for your help.

Feel lucky, most cameras blow the red out completely.

raise the saturation and contrast; that should help.

oldtigger Loc: Roanoke Virginia-USA

Moose wrote:

... I will be shooting a room full of red poinsettias and want to get a vivid red in my images. My past experience with reds hasn't been all that great with the red not crisp and clear. Trouble describing it. I seem to lose definition, like petal edges. The attached photo may help to describe the problem. I'd appreciate your help in setting the camera so that my images with red come up great. ...

find some old kodachrome

CaptainC Loc: Colorado, south of Denver

Vivid reds wil tend to blow out reds easily. Shooting raw and bring back that red channel may help. It is a common issue.

Moose Loc: North Carolina

Thank you all for your comments.
Moose

dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

I just recalled that somewhere in the closet in a box, unused is a pack of inkjet UV Poster dye inks. Hummm, mix a UV glow ink with the regular magenta and yellow (sun glasses used for safe viewing ... OSHA rule).
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Invisible-Ink-UV-Ink-for-inkjet-printers-6-UV-colors-/120738200403?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item1c1c8ebb53

AzPicLady Loc: Behind the camera!

I've had this same problem ever since switching to digital. This fall I tried dialing the exposure back about .7. It seemed to help. I had tried saturation levels and luminosity levels but they just took the color out, which wasn't what I wanted. The underexposure isn't a perfect answer either, but it does seem to help.

ole sarg Loc: south florida

If I recall, red both reflects and absorbs light and thus is very hard to capture.

Bill Emmett Loc: Bow, New Hampshire

tsilva wrote:

get a x-rite colorchecker passport and create a color profile for your camera

http://xritephoto.com/ph_product_overview.aspx?id=1257

I agree. I had problems with the color "red" for a long time. Canon is notorious for poor "red" display. I was looking for a light meter, on "Youtube" and discovered along with Sekonic Light Meters, the guy on the video paired the light meter with a X-rite Color Checker Passport. In his pitch he mentioned Canon, and the universal problem with cameras, and "red" along with Lightroom. After testing another color card, which came in my Field Guide Book, I found the system had possibilities. So, I got one through Adorama. I installed the software (must do, even if your going to use Lightroom) I then followed the instructions to build a preset for the Passport in LR. The results were amazing, reds, blues, and greens are perfect as to the actual color and shade. I shoot RAW, so shooting a CCP at the beginning of every shoot, and when the light changes does the trick. LR will display your camera profile for the exact lighting situation. You can also use the enclosed software, and import the adjusted shots into any photo post Processing program. It is good for both indoor (artificial light) outdoor (with mixed light) In LR you can see the difference in side by side displays. The CCP also comes with a gray card too, for custom white balance. The very first time you use the Color Checker Passport you will see the difference in your colors.

B

twowindsbear

oldtigger wrote:

find some old kodachrome

Tell me , oldtigger - I'd really like to know . . .

What photo lab processes Kodachrome now?

nikon_jon Loc: Northeast Arkansas

It isn't just digital. I always had the same problem when shooting film. Take a pic of the heart of a beautiful deep red rose and all the detail will run together.

dmsM43

I have both Panasonic and Olympus cameras, and, yes, they do oversaturate red a bit. I have noticed that the Olympus E-M1, even though it has a Panasonic sensor, doesn't oversaturate red as much as the Panasonic GH2 does. You can always reduce the red saturation in PP.

Moose Loc: North Carolina

Thanks PicLady. I'll give that I try. Shooting at a Poinsetti event this weekend and wanted to get the best shot I could.

AzPicLady wrote:

I've had this same problem ever since switching to digital. This fall I tried dialing the exposure back about .7. It seemed to help. I had tried saturation .