digital noise question

i'm looking at the panasonic dmc-lx1. it seems to have an issue with noise. is this because panasonic chooses to let the user process the noise in post? or is this because of a low quality sensor?
is it possible to process the noise at 200 or 400 ISO, in a program like noise ninja, to the point where it is acceptable. preferably printing on a tabloid size.

Hot & Saucy-
First of all, I wonder if anyone here will get my joke?

To some extent, digital noise is hype. Back when we shot film, we had grain. And when we shot in low light we used fast film. And it was grainy. And that was that. But digital cameras have attracted techy nerds who like to compare things and tabulate. So now we look at our images at 100% and look for problems that will be invisible at normal print sizes.

That said, noise does exist and it's nice to have as little of it as possible. If people are saying there's a noise issue with the Pansonic dmc-lx, then it probably has more noise than comparable cameras. The question is - will it make any practical difference to you? I would recommend you look for samples you can view at 100% and maybe even make some prints from. That way you'll know. If you like the camera specs and the print quality works for you, then don't worry about it.

Isn't that the meaning of the users name Photo-John.

Wonder if the Panasonic dmc-lx is one of the camera companies and models that is involved in the recalls at present.

I use Noise Ninja in photos that I take with the Canon 10D and G3 all the time, it certainly helps where I have done an oops with the photo.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Photo-John

Back when we shot film, we had grain. And when we shot in low light we used fast film. And it was grainy. And that was that.

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good point.
i was checking out some full size samples, and there does seem to be a film like grain quality to the noise exemplified by the LX1, especially when flipped to black and white.
i really like the 28mm lense and the 16:9 ratio.
apperantly the leica lense is sharp. and it's supposedly a fast camera, low shutter lag.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Peter_AUS

I use Noise Ninja in photos that I take with the Canon 10D and G3 all the time, it certainly helps where I have done an oops with the photo.

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don't most cameras, in this class, apply noise reduction, in camera?
could you get similar results turning off the camera noise reduction, and then using noise ninja in post?
isn't noise reduction a comprimise with sharpness?

I have a Panasonic DMC FZ20 and find it extremely noisy and use it only on the 80 ISO setting. I find it real limiting in low light shots.

I find the same with our FZ20B, but managed to persuade it to get some fairly good photos.
I bought it for my wife because the shutter lag is small enough for her to actually get a racing car in the frame !
I now have to teach her how to turn on the flash :)

The picture of my 20D is at 400iso with a single 60watt incandescent lamp.
Sir Stirling Moss in the Lotus is a full resolution crop at ISO100

You don't get something for free though.
One of the side effects of noise reduction is going to be a loss of sharpness.
If you smooth out the noise, then you also smooth out fine detail that's meant to be there.

#1 the full image
#2 1:1 crop unadjusted
#3 1:1 crop after noise ninja
#4 what I finally used