I prefer to use the LrC lens correction (Even saw that was best here…somewhere).
Here’s what I’ve noticed in my workflow…I do a lens correction in LrC first, then I send the raw image to Photo AI. When it comes back as a DNG, the lens correction values in the develop panel are now gone.
Is that just a metadata issue where the lens correction is really there but the info was dropped
Was the lens correction actually removed from the image?
I don’t want to accidentally apply it twice…or not at all. What’s happening to the LrC lens corrections during the Topaz AI pass?
The easy workflow change (in the future) given the unknowns above would be to wait and apply the lens correction in LrC on the post-Topaz DNG, but I’m still curious…I’ve already processed a significant number of pictures with this workflow where I probably reapplied the lens correction in both steps…before and after. Granted, the lens correction is subtle and probably not worth the effort to re-process but the OCD in me wants to know if I applied it correctly or doubled down on the correction.
You are correct it’s better to apply Lightroom’s Lens Correction than, the one in Photo AI.
To disable the Lens Correction in Photo AI goto the Preferences Menu or the keyboard shortcut Command / Control plus the , comma key, once the Preferences window has opened you’ll see on the right under the Application heading and the third option down, is Lens Correction with a toggle switch to the right, next click on the toggle switch BLUE for ON and GRAY for OFF to turn it off.
The current recommend RAW workflow for Topaz Photo AI within Lightroom is to send your images from Lightroom to Photo AI via the Plug in Extras option before applying any Lightroom adjustments that includes Lens Correction.
Once you have applied your Enhancements to the image in Photo AI click on Export back to Lightroom and a new DNG will be created for you without affecting your original.
Finally fill free to apply any Lightroom Adjustments including Lens Correction, to the newly created DNG.
I fully understand the recommended flow, but I do some quick “Auto” tweaks to every picture BEFORE I send it to Topaz (old habit from when I had a slow computer and the sloooow nature of Topaz Photo AI kept me from using it until after I concluded that the picture was of sufficient quality to press on). It’s my understanding (by observation) that LrC creates an XMP file to save the edits of the original when it sends the raw file to Topaz. When Topaz returns the DNG, LrC then applies the XMP file to the DNG to match the edits from the original RAW file. I would assume the lens correction would be included, but I’ve observed however that crops are NOT applied and lens corrections don’t appear to be.
You are correct about reading XMP files and DNG’s however, Photo AI doesn’t read that information basically, ignoring it and that’s why Topaz Recommends sending the unedited RAW file to Photo AI first which, works best for example Denoiseing then creating a new noiseless DNG for you to continue editing within Lightroom.
XMP’s are more a trait of Camera RAW files, where as DNG’s create the same information as a XMP then, incorporates/embeds that information within the DNG makeing, it easier for archiving or moving the files basically, with less chance of the RAW and XMP files getting separated thus, avoiding losing the RAW files data information.
For absolute best nitty-gritty workflow edit your RAW files in the Standalone version of Photo AI before importing them into Lightroom. Having said that, I never do this much preferring to import into Lightroom then sending to Photo AI.
Here’s the Topaz information about the RAW Plugin
RAW Plugin
The RAW plugin provides the best image quality results for your RAW photos. Sending a RAW image to Topaz Photo AI enables the RAW denoise enhancement, which improves detail and decreases noise.
We recommend using unedited RAW files with this plugin because Topaz Photo AI does not read RAW edits. If you change the crop size of an image, it is not reflected in the application preview. All edits except for crop are copied.
Processing a RAW or DNG file with Adjust Lighting or Balance Color outputs a TIFF file.
As a quick amendment you can carry on with your current workflow with applying Lightroom adjustments first if, you use the Edit In option because, Lightroom creates a higher quality 16bit file you won’t loose any image details when sending the image to Photo AI applying Enhancements and Exporting back to Lightroom
