PL not reading distance from Sony ARW

DxO PhotoLab
32

so what you need to do is

  1. generate .DOP files for your .ARW raw files

  2. run a batch script using exiftool to get something like a value of “FocusDistance2” tag from each .ARW and

  3. correct .DOP files to have

Overrides = {
DistortionFocus = <value obtained from “FocusDistance2” tag>,
}

  1. profit !!!

PS: or just modify the existing line DistortionFocus = 128 to be DistortionFocus = <value obtained from “FocusDistance2” tag>

PS2: make sure that DxO PL6 database does not interfere w/ your .DOP manipulations - in my case as I do not use it at all - I delete it each time I start PL6 ( before starting PL6 - I have a script that runs it from FRV )

33

here is a command file for windows for .arw raw files in a current directory, assuming you generated all .DOP files ( do back your .DOPs just in case )

for %%f in (*.arw) do call :work %%f

goto :EOF

:work

FOR /F “tokens=*” %%v IN (‘exiftool -b -FocusDistance2 %1’ ) do ( SET VAR=%%v )

powershell -Command “(gc %1.dop) -replace ‘DistortionFocus = 128’, ‘DistortionFocus = %VAR%’ | Out-File -encoding ASCII %1.dop”

goto :EOF

34

Thank you for your helpful reply’s and the work in coming up with a work round. I will give it a go when I have more time, grandchildren coming for a few days and the joys of getting ready and with the ever plentiful medical appointments clutter the next few days but then I hope to try it. Again thanks.

35

…which is normal. Please check this out:

36

Probably doing some thing wrong but didn’t work. Copied exiftool to windows and ran command file and it apeared to wok but no change, no distance there. Deleted PL database befor running on a test folder and after befor running the command file. It been many years since doing anthing like this.

37

Checked with another ILCE-6400 file from preview.com and found that it does not read distance either. Testing this, I found the following

  • The distance slider has no handle
  • No matter the distance range I select in the distance tool, DPL cannot fully correct distortions
  • Distance is initially set to 128m, but will not exceed 60m, even when I select the deepest range offered.
38

With my 90mm macro lense as you move the slider ther is a lot of correction but no idea if the
right correction.

39

That one is bad clearly somthing wrong with the lense modual and the distortion is all over the place, some of my ones change a lot as you move the slider on the diffrent lenses but nothing like that! exiftool gives it a distance of 1.365m.

40

I’ve seen this too. Considering that the capture was rather taken from a short distance, there might be a possibility of a false entry, be it due accidental or systematic errors.

41

it is working on my side (with my A7R2)… once you have .DOP files generated quit PL6 run the script (you can open DOP files in any plain text editor and see if the change is in there), delete DxO database, start PL6… what is your Sony camera model so that I can download raw files from dpreview and test it myself

42

DxO just like anybody else is offering crude optics corrections that is you have just few sets of parameters corresponding to few limited focusing distance ranges… apparently the assumption is that practically no optics needs different set of corrections past that focusing distance (128m = infinity in DxO opinion), so when theY (DxO) can’t get ( don’t want in case of .ARW, can’t in case or .RAF, etc ) focusing distance from a raw file they put 128m in DOP file … and it seems that in real life DxO does not supply any different optics correction parameters past something well below 128m ( can be like 20m-infinity, or 40m-infinity, etc )

43

A6400 and a6000

44

see my notes in the other topic about the raws from those 2 cameras

45

I downloaded A6400 raw files from dpreview and everything is working , except indeed for some camera + lenses combos DxO PL6 does not show “Focusing Distance” tool ( for example A6400 + Sigma 30/1.4 “Focusing Distance” tool is shown – but for Zony E24/1.8 or for FE24/1.4 GM it is not - DxO modules exist for all lenses in this example )

But the script does correctly fixes DOP files and for combos where the tool is shown you will see the updated correct focusing distance when you open DxO PL6 again in “Focusing Distance” tool

I suggest you file a case with DxO PL6 to fix the matter

  1. get them to use available actual focusing distance from .ARW always instead of defaulting to infinity
  2. make it possible for users to opt to see “Focusing Distance” tool always ( if so users wish to see )
  3. challenge them why their optics correction defaults to using only the infinity distance for a number of supported lenses w/o any option for a user to correct manually in DxO PL6 UI
  4. stop being stupid and let people opt to use manufacturers optics correction data if they can’t get focusing distance from Fuji Raw files
47

Sorry not working for me errers
t line:7 char:4

  • FOR /F “tokens=*” %%v IN (‘exiftool -b -FocusDistance2 %1’ ) do ( SET …
  • ~
    Missing opening ‘(’ after keyword ‘for’.
    + CategoryInfo : ParserError: (:slight_smile: , ParentContainsErrorRecordException
    + FullyQualifiedErrorId : MissingOpenParenthesisAfterKeyword
    strong text
48

This has been going on since 2020 I have found when DXO cut the distance reading without telling Sony lens users. Though from what you have found what distance they were reading before is unknown.

In this it emerged “Focusing distance is in ‘Focus Distance 2’ entry (which is a calculation, not a real tag) but we don’t use it for now on this camera.
When we will use it we will announce it.”
At that stage V3 still read distance but they changed modules latter and V3 lost distance as well thereafter.

Then there was thread I started

and contribution’s made it clear as with the earlier thread there was a wide range of problem Sony cameras and lenses.
In here Marie admitted “we don’t read focus for all Sony A, we have some retrofit to do for A7 of generation I, II and III.
We haven’t done it yet because it require to modify DxO Optic modules as well and everything is a bandwidth question.”
It was this thread you join at but clearly it’s a known issue that DXO are ignoring (as I fear they do with too many problems). Since this thread was started they have effectively withdrawn all real interaction with users via the forum. Support appears to be no more knowledgeable than us as to what’s going on. They asked me if the distance issue had been resolved and just passed it back to the developers again. I fear the people who make the effective decisions in DXO have fully removed themselves from the users which again I fear could create problems for the products. But the distance issue for CR3 and Sony A is an example of this refusal to deal with old isues but add new marketing layers, the old Corel Draw strategy.

49

Tested a few files written by a Canon EOS M6 using the (old) Canon EF 100mm Macro lens and found, that these files had FocusDistance tag values with 1cm (0.01m) precision, at close-up and macro distances.

As far as I’ve tested, distance entries do depend on body/lens combination and more.

Let’s consider a zoom lens. It should also report focal length in addition to distance. I did not expect the values to be precise to 0.01, but rather to show ranges instead…and I also found individual files that had no entry for FL, even though other files of a series of photos taken with the same body and lens had. Welcome to the metadata desert of the real!

50

the formula to calculate ‘Focus Distance 2’ from a “real” tag ‘Focus Position 2’ and focal length and sensor format was / is known, so that was a lame excuse !

1 Like
51

Its a mess they have created a product based on lense corections but failed to creat the needed way of geting the basic data from the RAW imiges to always use the correction data. As noname just pointed out the excuse originnly given for droping Sony A distance was “a lame excuse” PL not reading distance from Sony ARW - #50 by noname

52

According to the manual found on DXO website, it says this:

Focal length and focusing distance

The lens focal length and focusing distance of a photo are recorded in the EXIF data of your images. However, this information is not always accurate. For example, different but close positions of the focal length ring (say, 17 and 18 mm) could result in the same value (say 18 mm) being recorded in the EXIF data. In this case, the distortion correction may be less than optimal. In the same manner, the focusing distance might be recorded in the EXIF data with insufficient precision, and similarly lead to an imprecise correction. In both cases, to improve the effectiveness of the optical corrections, you can provide more accurate values in one (or both) of the sliders that appear in the Geometry palette:

Focal length: Use the slider to specify the lens focal length.
Focusing distance: Select a range for the focusing distance in the drop-down menu, then fine-tune with the slider.
The Focal Distance and Distance focusing sliders are permanently displayed in the Mac version, and appear automatically in the PC version.

https://userguides.dxo.com/photolab/en/general-image-corrections/#fine-tuning_lens_corrections___geometry

I would imagine the tool is there in case the results are not accurate or you want to manually change it.

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This is what I get in PhotoLab 6.7 with the correct optical module applied, but despite this I don’t see a problem of sharpness, only possibly a bit of diffraction, since its shot at f14 at telephoto end of 350mm.

sshot-3267

I checked in Adobe Bridge “file info” for raw metadata and I could not find any info on distance either. Only one reference to “focal”

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ACDSee on PC also only lists some things from Sony in metadata.

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Only thing that is curious is this anti-blur feature.

sshot-3269

I don’t know what anti blur is, but Sony website lists this:

How to use the Anti Motion Blur function

The Anti Motion Blur feature reduces the camera shake when shooting a slightly dark scene or when using telephoto. In addition, the camera combines six shots at high sensitivity into one still image, so camera shake is reduced while preventing picture noise. This feature is also suitable for indoor shots without using the flash.

Follow the steps below to turn on the Anti Motion Blur feature.

Turn on the camera.
Press the Menu button.
Turn the control wheel to select the Shoot Mode displayed on the LCD screen.
Press the center button on the control wheel.
Turn the control wheel to select Anti Motion Blur.
Press the center button on the control wheel.

NOTES:

If you select Anti Motion Blur with RAW or RAW & JPEG, the image quality becomes Fine temporarily.
The shutter clicks six times and an image is recorded.
Reducing blur is less effective when shooting:

Subjects with erratic movement.
Subjects too close to the camera.
Subjects with a repeating pattern such as tiles, and subjects with little contrast such as sky, sandy beach, or lawn.
Subjects with constant change, such as waves or water falls.

When using a light source that flickers, such as fluorescent lighting, block noise may occur.

Maybe try to experiment shooting an image without OSS (Optical Stabilization) and check metadata to see if there is any difference.

Personally I would not worry about it too much, just see how the image looks. If its satisfactory sharp, keep it as is, if its not try to play with the sliders, but I would not worry about it much.

If its a bug, maybe it can be reported and confirmed and eventually fixed, but for now I would just shoot and see how it looks.

The image you shot does appear a bit softer than I would like to see. It is possibly a copy of the lens that is a problem, I don’t know, sometimes you can get a copy of the lens that is less sharp than it should be. Either way its usable . And you can further tweak it with other tools if you really need to.

It could be just that focal length and aperture. But with the help of lens sharpness and DeepPrime XD, you could get it to be sharp enough probably, even if its shot at 2500 ISO with a smaller APS-C sensor on Sony a6400.

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