Daniel D. Teoli Jr. Posted November 30, 2022 Share Posted November 30, 2022 (edited) I'm not a big practitioner of applied digital grain. But every once in a while, I use it. Maybe things have changed with the fake grain, but this is the formula I had settled on a few years ago. I'm not up to date with the new AI software options, so maybe other options now. If you know you will be trying digital grain then you plan that in your shoot. A lot of the old, grainy film photography was not that sharp. This is the issue with digital. Too sharp and too much midtones or dynamic range. Shoot wide open for low depth of field. Normal or short tele lens. Don't use a wide angle. Make it contrasty with less midtones. Have some areas burned out. Try out different digital grain formulas. They make a big difference. Do your testing to settle on what you like. Fake grain is not organic like real film grain, so it applies an even amount of grain all over. This is the issue with fake grain...nonorganic. If you burn areas out, then there is no / lower fake grain there. But that may not be possible with cine' software. With still software you can do it with contrast grading tools. Sometimes you can achieve the film look with a wide angle, but it is harder. Here is an example of how not to shoot. Wide angle, lots of depth of field and the dreaded plasticky, digital look. Jersey City Campsite Here is another example of applied digital grain for the film look... All photos: D.D. Teoli Jr. Click on photos to magnify views Edited November 30, 2022 by Daniel D. Teoli Jr. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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