DXO Optics Pro 10: interesting new features

DXO Optics Pro 10 released

Introduction

French camera sensor testing and software correction company DXO announced the immediate release of DXO Optics Pro 10 today.  This latest version of their software features more advanced integration of their Optical correction software DXO Viewpoint and a new Filmpack 5 with even more film emulations.

Besides this advanced level of integration, there are many new features like DNG and JPEG compatibility, up to 4 times faster processing and a new de-hazing tool. The new De-hazing tool reduces atmospheric haze, restoring contrast and sharpness. It works very well, have a look at this image, first without De-hazing, second with.

Other new features in DxO OpticsPro 10

• DxO OpticsPro’s Essential and Elite versions now have the same camera model support. And only differ in terms of the number of characteristics they offer (like de-hazing and removing Moiré are now Elite features).
• The rendering of the DxO Smart Lighting tool has been improved (better contrast, greater reliability when in automatic mode).
  The rendering of the Selective tone tool has been improved (the effect for each slider is more localized, and each slider has been readjusted).
• The quality of the Lens softness has been improved (in particular with respect to preserving colored fine details), and its default intensity has been slightly increased. The slider range has also been increased.
• The Horizon tool now works in the same way as in DxO ViewPoint. It is still possible to directly trace a line on the image when using the tool.
• The While Balance eyedropper and the Dust correction tool work in single-image mode.
• The effects of dust correction are visible at all levels of zoom.
• The maximum size of the dust tool has been increased to 100 pixels.
• DNG files originating from a conversion from Adobe Lightroom or Adobe DNG Converter are supported, so long as the original RAW file is also supported.
• A new default workspace groups together the tools into four palettes (Light, Color, Detail, Geometry). The Essential Tools palette, which offers a selection of instruments from the four palettes, is always available to provide quick access to the most frequently-used corrections.
• The presets delivered with DxO OpticsPro no longer include the geometric corrections or white balance, except for the DxO Standard (default) and No Correction Presets.
• The icons on the image browser thumbnails have changed. The statuses “DxO Optics Module available” and “To process” are no longer displayed so as not to clutter the display when in default mode.
• The denoising preview loupe has been enlarged.
• The alignment of all of the sliders has been harmonized among the different palettes.
• The dimensions of the images are displayed in pixels during cropping.
• During a crop with set proportions, it is possible to change the proportions free-hand by holding down the Ctrl key.
• During free-hand cropping, it is possible to preserve the current proportions by holding down the Shift key.
• The GPS coordinates of images are displayed in the EXIF palette.
• When uploading of a folder, the first image is automatically selected.
• PRIME denoising runs about 4x faster.
• Folders and projects load about 10x faster.
• DXO Optics Pro 10 launches about 1.5x faster.
• Compatibility with high-resolutions screens has been improved.
• The DxO FilmPack 5 plugin provides access to the same tools as in the standalone version. A DxO FilmPack 5 license is required to be able to use the plugin.
• The DxO ViewPoint plugin provides access to the same perspective and volume deformation correction tools as in the standalone application. A DxO ViewPoint license is required to be able to use the plugin.
• Support for three new cameras: Nikon D750, Panasonic FZ1000, and the Sony A5100.

Conclusion

You might know I’m already a big fan of DXO Optics Pro, especially for Sony cameras and lenses. Some features like Smart Lighting and Selective Tone where however sometimes unreliable, and better done in Adobe Lightroom. Also simple corrections like Horizon Straightening and Cropping where somewhat difficult to apply. It seems all these issues were addressed and are far more comfortable to use now. The new De-hazing tools works well for almost all images, restoring contrast and selective sharpness on dull images as well as improving pictures taken through glass. DXO Optics Pro 10 is now available at a 30% discount on new purchases as well as upgrades, so now would be an excellent time to get into the DXO magic.