p.3 #1 · D800 users: Are 36 MP an anchor for your computer
JoeMelzer wrote:
As for C1: wow! Each slider works in real time, you can zoom in and out of the images with almost no delay. If it was not for the very unusual interface ...
Thing with C1 and DXO in comparison to LR is: both use your Graphics Card (i.e. GPU) for many calculation and the speed difference is amazing. You have to see it.
It is worth repeating that C1's GPU support currently only benefits the UI (like Joe says, zooming/panning and slider adjustments). It's much like the way recent versions of Photoshop use the GPU to speed up rotation, pixel grids, 3D transformations, etc. But if you are looking for the GPU to help out with the actual image processing, you'll have to wait for a future version.
Adobe has been looking into this as well, but so far none of the filters are able to take advantage of GPU power. I believe the crux of the issue is that the memory pipeline is designed to send massive amounts of data from the computer to the GPU, but not the other way around. For programs like Photoshop and C1, it has to send a large image to the GPU, and then get a large image back out again. It's the second step that is slow. I don't know if current GPU architecture has addressed that bottleneck.
p.3 #2 · D800 users: Are 36 MP an anchor for your computer
My 8 core AMD with 16GB memory and 6 TB of fast hard drives works great!
I also have a 5 x 1TB USB 3 Raid for back up and burn Blue Ray Discs.
After 3 months of use, I find myself shooting less and keeping more.
At the recent TriAthlon I shot 2200 images and only had to edit two and throw out 3
p.3 #5 · D800 users: Are 36 MP an anchor for your computer
DaveOls wrote:
If you own a D 800, you are able to shoot at 24mp in FX also. This would be a band aid fix until you get a better computer.
How do you do that? I looked for a lower-res raw option when I had a D800E but didn't find one. I didn't need the high-resolution of the D800E and I certainly noticed the performance hit on my computer, so I ended up sticking with my D4.
p.3 #6 · D800 users: Are 36 MP an anchor for your computer
fhammond wrote:
How do you do that? I looked for a lower-res raw option when I had a D800E but didn't find one. I didn't need the high-resolution of the D800E and I certainly noticed the performance hit on my computer, so I ended up sticking with my D4.
I've heard there are 4 modes to take pictures on the D 800. There's normal 36 mp, 1.2 crop at 24mp and one or two modes for dx . It must be in the instruction manual. It should also apply to the D 800E. If not in the instructions manual, do you have a CD of the expanded manual. If all else fails look it up on the internet.
p.3 #7 · D800 users: Are 36 MP an anchor for your computer
I looked up the Nikon D 800 on Wikipedia and it gives a place to click to get the instruction manual. It says you have to turn off the auto dx mode that sets your camera to dx crop with a dx lens. Then you set it to 1.2x crop or 5:4 crop to get a slightly smaller image that is cropped slightly only on the left and right side.
The instructions were for both the D 800 and D 800E models.
p.3 #9 · D800 users: Are 36 MP an anchor for your computer
taob wrote:
I believe the crux of the issue is that the memory pipeline is designed to send massive amounts of data from the computer to the GPU, but not the other way around.
We use GPU accelerated effects in Adobe Premiere Pro for video editing and it makes a MASSIVE difference. Doing the same thing on a single frame may or may not be noticeable for most people. We're processing 100,000 frames at a time, albeit effectively 2MP (1920x1080), but with lots of noise reduction and colour grading.
p.3 #10 · D800 users: Are 36 MP an anchor for your computer
DaveOls wrote:
I looked up the Nikon D 800 on Wikipedia and it gives a place to click to get the instruction manual. It says you have to turn off the auto dx mode that sets your camera to dx crop with a dx lens. Then you set it to 1.2x crop or 5:4 crop to get a slightly smaller image that is cropped slightly only on the left and right side.
The instructions were for both the D 800 and D 800E models.
Ah, ok, that's what I thought. There is no option for a full-frame, same aspect ratio raw with a lower resolution. That'd be nice. I liked the D800 but really didn't need (or want!) the higher resolution. I'd prefer a lower resolution and faster frame rate which, I realized, describes the 5D Mark III!
p.3 #11 · D800 users: Are 36 MP an anchor for your computer
I've wondered about this topic of how the D800 challenges our computers. About six months ago I built a PC with a i7-2600K (3.4 GHz) processor, a 240GB SSD for the OS and programs, a 3TB Seagate Barracuda XT hard drive for media storage, and a 1TB drive for other files. The video card is actually optimized for games primarily because it seems gamer's cards are usually pretty fast on just about everything. Though not a particularly high end card (about $150 or so) I figured that since I don't do games it would be good for photos and everything else I do. Add in Bluray and DVD writers and it is a pretty smokin' machine compared to anything else I've ever owned.
Funny, many people told me I was an idiot for spending that much on a computer. Maybe I was, but while I can't say that the power was really needed at the time I did this, it does sound like the high resolution cameras can challenge lesser machines. I don't know when or if I will buy the D800, but the file size isn't really scaring me at this point. Downloads would be slower, and I would say that I, like many others here, do not need 36Mb of resolution. I do find that I sometimes wish I had more than the 12MB my D300 and D700 provide. For the most part though, 12Mb meets my needs.
My laptop is another matter. A Macbook Pro with just 8GB of RAM and a 500GB drive, I had to move my music and video files off the HD because was full. I don't typically keep photo files on the laptop, preferring to use my desktop, backup drives, and network drives instead. I love the Mac OSX, but I can work with either system and consider them nearly equal. Each system has its plusses and minuses. I think if I was processing D800 files on the laptop, it might become a bottleneck.
