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Minolta DIMAGE X - SOFTWARE Instruction Manual

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9224-2776-21 H-A112
E

INSTRUCTION MANUAL

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  • Page 1: Instruction Manual

    9224-2776-21 H-A112 INSTRUCTION MANUAL...
  • Page 2 Every precaution has been taken to ensure the accuracy of this material. Contact Minolta if you have any questions. Minolta is not responsible for any loss or damage caused by the use of this software. This instruction manual may not be copied either in part or in its entirety without the prior permission...

  • Page 3: Table Of Contents

    ABLE OF CONTENTS System requirements ..........................5 Installation ............................5 Before installing the DiMAGE Image Viewer Utility..............5 Installing the DiMAGE Image Viewer Utility - Windows ............6 Installing the DiMAGE Image Viewer Utility - Macintosh ............8 Starting up the Image Viewer.......................10 Starting up the Image Viewer Utility - Windows ..............10 Starting up the Image Viewer Utility - Macintosh..............11 Importing images..........................12 Memory card folder organization.....................12...
  • Page 4 ABLE OF CONTENTS Advanced image processing ........................30 The tone curve / histogram palette..................31 Using the tone curve .......................32 Drawing tone curves by freehand....................33 A short guide to tone-curve corrections...................34 White, black, and gray-point corrections .................36 Setting the white and black-point values.................38 Tone-curve / histogram auto setting ..................39 Displaying the color histograms ....................39 Histogram corrections......................40...

  • Page 5: System Requirements

    YSTEM REQUIREMENTS IBM PC/AT compatible computers Apple Macintosh series computers 133MHz Pentium processor or higher PowerPC 100MHz or higher Windows 95, Windows 98/98 Second Edition, Windows Me, Windows 2000 Mac OS 8.6 - Mac OS 9.1 Professional, Windows XP, Windows NT4.0 (Service Pack 6 or later) 64MB or more of RAM 64MB or more of available RAM...

  • Page 6: Installing The Dimage Image Viewer Utility - Windows

    NSTALLATION Installing the DiMAGE Image Viewer Utility - Windows In the example below, the hard disk drive is drive C, and the CD-ROM drive is drive D. The letters designating the drives will vary between computers. With Windows 2000, NT4.0, or XP, the software should be installed with the Administrator privilege.
  • Page 7 To install the software in the default location - C:\Program Files\DiMAGE Image Viewer Utility, click “Next >.” • To install the software in a different location, click browse button to display the folder selection window. Specify the directory in which to install the software. The name of the default program folder is displayed.

  • Page 8: Installing The Dimage Image Viewer Utility - Macintosh

    NSTALLATION Installing the DiMAGE Image Viewer Utility - Macintosh Turn on the computer to start the operating system. When the desktop appears, insert the DiMAGE Software CD-ROM into the CD-ROM drive. • The contents of the CD-ROM appear automatically. If the contents do not appear, double-click the CD-ROM icon to open it.
  • Page 9 The location for the DiMAGE Image Viewer Utility files must be specified. Click the reference button. Using the folder-selection dialog box, select the location where the software should be installed. Click “Choose.” Confirm the installation location on the installer screen. Click “Next >>”...

  • Page 10: Starting Up The Image Viewer

    TARTING UP THE IMAGE VIEWER Starting up the Image Viewer Utility - Windows Select the DiMAGE Image Viewer Utility from the DiMAGE Image Viewer Utility folder in the program option of the start menu. The utility will start up and the main window will be displayed.

  • Page 11: Starting Up The Image Viewer Utility - Macintosh

    Starting up the Image Viewer Utility - Macintosh Open the DiMAGE Image Viewer Utility folder. Double-click the DiMAGE Image Viewer Utility icon to start up the application. The main window of the utility will be displayed.

  • Page 12: Importing Images

    MPORTING IMAGES Memory card folder organization When the camera is connected to a computer, a drive icon representing the camera will be displayed. Double- clicking on the icon will reveal two folders; the Dcim fold- er contains the camera images, and the misc. folder con- Drive Icon tains DPOF print files (see camera manual).

  • Page 13: Loading All The Still-Image Files In A Folder

    Loading all the still-image files in a folder Confirm the camera is connected to the computer and a memory card is inserted. Click the load-all-images button in the main window. The operating system’s folder selection dialog box appears. Select the folder where image files are stored. Click the select or choose button to load all the JPEG and TIFF files in the folder.

  • Page 14: Loading Individual Still-Image Files

    MPORTING IMAGES Loading individual still-image files Click the load button in the main window. Use the open dialog box to locate the desired image file. Click “open” to load the image and thumbnail. • The color-matching function can be activated in this window.

  • Page 15: Rotate, Flip, And Sort Thumbnails

    Rotate, flip, and sort thumbnails Sorting-target specification list box Sorting-order switch button Flip-vertical button Flip-horizontal button Rotate-right button Rotate-left button Rotate - Click on the thumbnail frame; the frame will darken to indicate it is selected. Click on the appropriate rotate button. The rotate-right button rotates the thumbnail 90° clockwise and the rotate- left button rotates the thumbnail 90°...

  • Page 16: Basic Image Processing

    ASIC IMAGE PROCESSING Color-correction window Clicking the color-correction tab in the main window displays the utility’s image-processing tools. Adjustments to color, contrast, brightness, and saturation can be made. Color-correction tab Status bar Reset-all button (p. 24) Thumbnail number display (p. 17) Redo button (p.

  • Page 17: Displaying Images In The Color-Correction Window

    Displaying images in the color-correction window In the thumbnail display, an image can automatically be loaded into the color-correction window. Simply double-click on a thumbnail to display the image in the color-correction window. The color-correction window will display the thumbnail number and the total number of thumbnails loaded into the image viewer.

  • Page 18: Variation Palette

    ASIC IMAGE PROCESSING Variation palette The variation palette allows an image to be corrected by comparing it to other slightly corrected images surrounding it. This is an easy method to correct images for individuals who are inexperi- enced in image processing or photofinishing. Click the variation button to display the palette.

  • Page 19: Color-Balance Variation

    Color-balance variation Six images with a slight color correction are displayed around a thumbnail of the original image. For more about color, see page 23. Drag the variation-step slide bar, or enter the correc- Variation-step slider and text box tion level into the text box to set the degree of correc- Display-limit check box tion.

  • Page 20: Brightness & Contrast Variation

    ASIC IMAGE PROCESSING Brightness & contrast variation Eight images with a slight correction to brightness and contrast are displayed around a thumbnail of the original image. Brightness controls how light or dark the image is. Contrast controls the difference between the tones of the image; as the contrast is increased the dark tones will become darker and the light tone will become brighter.

  • Page 21: Saturation Variation

    Saturation variation Two images with a slight saturation correction are displayed on each side of a thumbnail of the origi- nal image. Saturation affects the vividness of the colors Drag the variation-step slide bar, or enter the correc- Variation-step slider bar and text box tion level into the text box to set the degree of correc- Display-limit check box tion.

  • Page 22: Brightness, Contrast, And Color-Balance Corrections

    ASIC IMAGE PROCESSING Brightness, contrast, and color-balance corrections Click on the brightness, contrast, color-balance button to open the correction palette. Drag the brightness, contrast, or color sliders, or enter specific values in the corresponding text box to make corrections. • Dragging each slider to the right or inputting a positive number in the text box increases the brightness, contrast, and color.

  • Page 23: An Introduction To Color

    An introduction to color In photography, red, green, and blue are the primary colors. The secondary colors, cyan, magenta, and yellow, are made from combining the primary colors: cyan = blue + green, magenta = blue + red, and yellow = red + green. The primary and secondary colors are grouped in complementary pairs: red and cyan, green and magenta, and blue and yellow.

  • Page 24: Undoing An Image Correction

    ASIC IMAGE PROCESSING Undoing an image correction Click the undo button to cancel the last image correc- tion applied to the image. You can continue to undo image corrections as the computer memory capacity allows. Redoing a canceled image correction Click the redo button to reapply the last image correc- tion canceled with the undo button.

  • Page 25: The Image Display Area

    The image display area Fit-to-window button Normally, an image is displayed based on its size and resolution. When the image is too large for the display area, clicking the fit-to-window button will automatically resize the image to fit the display area.

  • Page 26: Saving Images

    AVING IMAGES Resizing an image to be saved With the image to be resized displayed in the color-correc- tion window or the thumbnail selected in the thumbnail window, click the image-size button. Enter the new width or height value in the text boxes. •...

  • Page 27: Saving Single Images

    Saving single images With the image to be saved displayed in the color-correc- tion window or the thumbnail selected in the thumbnail window, click the save button. In the save dialog box, specify the location to save the file (1). Enter the file name without an extension (2).

  • Page 28: Saving Multiple Images

    AVING IMAGES Saving multiple images Select the thumbnails of the images to be saved. • To select multiple images, press and hold the control key (Windows) or command key (Macintosh) and then click on each image to be saved; the selected frames will have a dark border. To deselect an image, click on the thumbnail a second time while holding the control key (Windows) or command key (Macintosh).

  • Page 29: Closing The Dimage Image Viewer Utility

    Specify the file format of the saved images from the drop-down menu (1). • The files do not need to be saved in the original file format. • If JPEG is selected, the compression rate must be fixed using the slide bar in the dialog box (2). The higher the compression rate, the smaller the file size, and the lower the image quality.

  • Page 30: Advanced Image Processing

    DVANCED IMAGE PROCESSING This section covers the advanced image-processing tools in the image viewer utility. Adjustments to color, contrast, brightness, hue, and saturation can be made. Functions to view and save image cor- rections are also available. The basic image-processing section on pages 16 through 25 should be read before continuing.

  • Page 31: The Tone Curve / Histogram Palette

    The tone curve / histogram palette Click the tone-curve/histogram button to display the palette. Channel list box Color-histogram button Smooth curve button Freehand curve button Tone curve White, gray, and black- point buttons Apply button Histogram Input shadow, gamma, and highlight text boxes Input shadow, gamma, and highlight sliders Output shadow and high-...

  • Page 32: Using The Tone Curve

    DVANCED IMAGE PROCESSING Using the tone curve Click the arrow next to the channel box to select the channel from the drop-down menu. • To make adjustments to the color balance of the image, select the appropriate color channel. To adjust the contrast or brightness of the image without affecting the color, select the RGB channel.

  • Page 33: Drawing Tone Curves By Freehand

    Drawing tone curves by freehand Click the freehand-curve button (1). • The mouse pointer changes to the pencil tool when placed in the tone-curve box. Click and drag the pointer to draw a new curve. • Extreme image manipulations are possible with the freehand curve tool.

  • Page 34: A Short Guide To Tone-Curve Corrections

    DVANCED IMAGE PROCESSING A short guide to tone-curve corrections The tone curve is a graphic representation of the brightness and color levels of the image. The bottom axis is the 256 levels of the original Highlights image (input data) from black to white. The vertical axis is the correct- ed image (output data) with the same scale from top to bottom.
  • Page 35 The contrast of an image can be changed. The light blue 45° line on the tone-curve graph represents the original contrast of the image. Making the angle of the tone curve greater than 45° will increase the contrast of the image. Making the angle less than 45°...

  • Page 36: White, Black, And Gray-Point Corrections

    DVANCED IMAGE PROCESSING White, black, and gray-point corrections Advanced image corrections can be made by specifying a white, black, and gray point within the image. Locating an appropriate neutral area within the image is critical to correctly calibrate the soft- ware.
  • Page 37 Click the gray-point button. • The grey point controls the color of the image. Click a neutral area of the image to be defined as the gray point. • The area used to calibrate the gray point must be neutral. The brightness level of the area is not important, but if the area has a definite color, the image will not be color balanced correctly.

  • Page 38: Setting The White And Black-Point Values

    DVANCED IMAGE PROCESSING Setting the white and black-point values The white and black-point values are set to 255 and 0 for each RGB level. Changing these values allow the calibration of an image with no true white or black. This is an advanced image-processing tool.

  • Page 39: Tone-Curve / Histogram Auto Setting

    Tone curve / histogram auto setting Click the auto-setting button. • The change is immediately reflected in the displayed image. • The auto-setting function automatically adjusts the tone curve and histogram to optimise image data. The darkest pixels in the image are set to a black level for 0, the brightest pixels are set to a white level of 255, and the rest of the pixels are distributed between them equally.

  • Page 40: Histogram Corrections

    DVANCED IMAGE PROCESSING Histogram corrections The histogram indicates the distribution of pixels with specific brightness and color values of the dis- played image. Using the histogram can optimise the output of the image data. Changes made with the histogram are also displayed on the tone curve. Input shadow slider Input highlight slider Input gamma slider...
  • Page 41 The highlight level, shadow level, and gamma can be set manually. The histogram can be used to optimise the distribution of the pixels in the image. All the levels on the histogram are displayed numerically to the right of the sliders. These numbers can be changed with the keyboard. The gamma slider defines the mid-tones of the image.

  • Page 42: Hue, Saturation, And Lightness Palette

    DVANCED IMAGE PROCESSING Hue, saturation, and lightness palette This palette adjusts the image in reference to the HSB color model. These controls can be used to manipulate the color image rather than producing a realistic representation. The HSB color model defines color based upon human perception rather than photographic process- es.

  • Page 43: Auto-Setting Button

    Drag the hue, saturation, or lightness slider, or enter specific values in the corresponding text box to make corrections. • Dragging each slider to the right or inputting a positive number in the text box increases the saturation, and lightness. The hue slider rotates the colors in the image through the color space;...

  • Page 44: Comparing Pre- And Post Correction Images

    DVANCED IMAGE PROCESSING Comparing pre- and post correction images Clicking the comparison display button divides the image display area in two. The original image is on the left and the corrected images is on the right. Using the fit-to-window button automatically resizes both images to fit the display area.

  • Page 45: Tracking Image Corrections - Snapshot Button

    Tracking image corrections - snapshot button Image corrections can be stored temporarily as a thumbnail next to the displayed image. Simply click the snapshot button to create a thumbnail with the current image corrections. Snapshot display area To return to a previous image correction, click on the corresponding thumbnail. The thumbnail image will replace the displayed image.

  • Page 46: Saving Image Corrections

    DVANCED IMAGE PROCESSING Saving image corrections All corrections applied to an image can be saved as a color-correction Job. The Job can be loaded into the utility at any time and applied to different images. This is a time-saving function when a large number of images need to be processed with the same correction settings.

  • Page 47: Loading Color-Correction Jobs

    Loading color-correction Jobs Display the image to be corrected in the color-cor- rection tab. Click the load color-correction-Job button to import a color-correction Job. Click on the color-correction Job thumbnail to select it. Click “OK” to apply it to the displayed image. •...

  • Page 48: Sharpness

    DVANCED IMAGE PROCESSING Sharpness The apparent sharpness of the image can be increased. Sharpness control is very subtle, but can have a powerful affect on overall image quality. Clicking the sharpness tab will display the image selected in the thumbnail or color-correction window. Frequency slider Degree slider Preview check box...
  • Page 49 Frequency slider - affects the sharpness of image details. The high frequency setting maximizes resolution, and the low-frequency setting maximizes contrast. The optimal frequency setting will vary from image to image. It is recommended to view the image at various magnifications to judge the results.

  • Page 50: Color Matching

    OLOR MATCHING Each output device (monitor or printer) defines color and contrast differently. To ensure accurate reproduction, the output color space must be defined. Color matching is used for professional color management. It is not needed for normal personal use. The DiMAGE Image Viewer utility color-matching function matches the loaded image’s color with specified color spaces.
  • Page 51 The choice of output color space is dependent on how the image will be reproduced. sRGB - the color space promoted by Hewlett Packard and Microsoft. Since it reflects the average PC monitor characteristics, it is widely used around the world, and is considered to be the standard for multi-media and Internet usage.

  • Page 52: Using The Monitor's Icc Profile

    OLOR MATCHING Using the monitor’s ICC profile Click one of the load-images buttons to display the open or select dialog box. In the dialog box, click the color-matching-on check box. Select the use-ICC-profile option from the drop-down list. Click the load button. Open the ICC profile for the monitor in use.
  • Page 53 Load the image file(s) to set the color space. ICC profiles for specific monitors are available from the manufacturer. These may be downloaded from the manufacturer’s web site. See the monitor’s instruction manual on how to install the ICC pro- file.

  • Page 54: Appendix

    PPENDIX Displaying the recording data of an image With an image selected in the thumbnail or color correction win- dow, click the image-information button. • If more than one thumbnail image is selected, one window for each image will open. To close the window, click “OK.”...

  • Page 55: About The Raw Button

    About the RAW button Certain digital cameras, such as the DiMAGE 7 or DiMAGE 5, use a special file format called RAW. This file can only be read and processed by the DiMAGE Image Viewer software. The button is only active when a RAW file is loaded into the utility.
  • Page 56 ©2001 Minolta Co., Ltd. under the Berne Convention and the Universal Copyright Convention. Printed in Japan...

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Dimage image viewer utility

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