Topaz AI Post Processing Bird Photography Edits

Background

While I do minimal post processing of my images, I have always performed basic lighting edits … normally adjustments to clarity, shadows and highlights. In addition I often make minor image crops. However, yesterday I decided to try Topaz AI’s Sharpen Tool (free 30 day trial), and I was positively blown away by the results. Let me stress I have ZERO financial relationship with Topaz, nor do I receive any compensation should you purchase their products. My cost for Topaz Sharpen AI was $70 (used an online coupon to slightly lower the price).

Let’s start with a screenshot of from Topaz Sharpen AI which shows a motion blurred image of mine in the process of being recovered.

The actual editing process was easy. I selected my desired process, “Motion Blur – Very Blurry“, and then clicked “Save Image“. If the dropdown had not been blocking part of screen, you would also have seen I had pulled the AI slider to the 90% level.

Here are the Before and After Images of my owlet. No other lighting or coloring adjustments have been taken on either photograph. I suggest “right clicking” and saving the two owl images to your own computer … zoom in and really inspect the two images … toggling back and forth. I think you will be amazed. You may also download this zip file which includes the full resolution before and after photographs (54 Megabytes).

Amity Creek Great Horned Owlet

Reduced Resolution Blog Before Image … Straight Out of Camera

Reduced Resolution Blog After Image … Topaz AI Sharpen Motion Blur Adjustment

Here is a ZIp File which you may download. It includes ALL four images (owls and pelicans) … Before and After and Full Resolution. Right click while on a PC and Download Image ZIP File.

Here is the White Pelicans example. The photograph was taken this past Spring at Chambers Grove on the St. Louis River.

Reduced Resolution Blog Image: Before – Original Image

Reduced Resolution Blog Image: After – Topaz AI

As always … here are a few important notes:

  1. Your results may vary!
  2. It makes a difference which Topaz AI Setting is chosen
    • I selected: Motion Blur – Very Blurry
  3. I was using a Super Zoom Canon SX-70 camera. Super zoom cameras have small sensors but high zoom magnification. On bright sunny days “super zoom” cameras work quite well, but not as well in dark conditions (see my full review of the Canon SX70 camera).
    • My camera was set to Aperture Priority
    • I took the owl photograph in heavy shade
      • ISO was hard set to 200
      • Exposure was selected by the camera and set to 1/100 th of a second
    • I took the pelican photograph in very early morning light
      • ISO was hard set to 100
      • Exposure was selected by the camera and set to 1/1000 th of a second
    • A light monopod was used, but not a tripod. This helps me further stabilize the camera and is not too heavy to take along while on hikes.
  4. My camera selection of a Super Zoom Canon SX70 and hard setting the ISO to a very high quality (low number) level dictates that in most conditions my shutter speed may be slower than I might like. Thus, even if an image is in focus, motion blur may occur.
  5. Both of these photographs were taken at some distance from my car. The owl image required a longer hike on forest trails. Thus, I like Super Zoom cameras because they are light and easier to take on a hike.
  6. I also own and use a Sony A6300, but I tested the Topaz product on images I took with the Canon SX70. I often need the Canon’s 65x zoom (1365 mm 35 mm equivalent) to get “close enough” to the owls without spooking them.

I believe it is worth giving Topaz AI a test. The trial version inserts a watermark on top of your image, but has full capabilities. One final note: While saving an image is a time consuming task, once I determined a favorite process I could do batch edits and saves. Thus, I walked away from my computer and came back later to five saved images.

Sax-Zim Bog Ground Fog Raccoons

Year 9

Two mornings ago I drove over to Sax-Zim Bog (only a 45 minute drive) knowing that heavy ground fog was in the offing. I actually love visiting the Bog on mornings with heavy ground, and try to time my arrival to just about when I think the fog will start to burn off. My experience shows that I often find mammals or birds out in the open … hoping to dry off … or just find food that was impossible to see earlier in the dark, damp conditions. In addition days with ground fog tend to have very calm wind conditions.

This morning I found three juvenile Raccoons walking calmly down McDavitt Road. My presence was not concerning. I stopped and turned off my car a long distance off,  and let the youngsters walk towards me (video link for email subscribers).

I normally don’t like to post Northern Lights warnings, but the forecast for tonight, Wednesday August 17th is fantastic. Please note that Northern Lights forecasts are notoriously horrible. Learn more from the Northern Lights page of my blog. The times noted on this screenshot which was taken about 10:30 am are CDT.

Anchor Point Birding on the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska

Year 9

This is my second of two posts about birding on Anchor Point near Homer, Alaska (see the first post … The Shifting Sands of Time). This will be the final post about my recent trip to Alaska. Without some of the tools I use for Shorebird Identification (see post on this subject), I would never had known that this morning of birding at Anchor Point accounted for not one, but two lifers.

I had only seen Black Turnstones once prior in my life. When you examine the four images shown immediately below you should understand how I was fooled. Most shorebirds change over to drab plumage during the winter, and in Alaska in mid August the southern migration is well underway. Anyhow, the dark brown birds in these photographs are Black Turnstones. I thought the rather drab gray birds present in most of these four images were just Turnstones in winter plumage. Wrong. These birds are “Surfbirds“, a new lifer for me!

In addition, I saw Bonaparte’s Gulls and a Short Billed Dowitcher (and many other shorebirds). It was worth the four mile hike from the parking lot along the beach to the kelp bed at Anchor River’s outlet.