Banding: A query to nikon can you fix short banding?

Posted: Sat Mar 11, 2006 12:01 am

My intitial Question (02/26/2006 09:03 PM) :

Quote:

Hello,

Please see attached data. If you look at it you will see banding at 100% magnification around the flame. I would like to know if I send this to Nikon repair if in fact the amount of banding evident will be removed if I were to take another photo at the same settings would this be decreased? I have included both the original .NEF file as well as a 100% sized cropping of the affected area. I look forward to any information you can provide to me.

Best regards,
Tom

Nikon's Response (03/01/2006 03:05 PM):

Quote:

Tom:

The long banding through an entire image that effected a small number of the earliest D200 cameras that shipped is plainly evident across the entire length of the image file and present in normally exposed images. There is no need to set an artificial set of very specific settings to boost contrast and exposure to show this type of banding. However, short banding around high contrast areas in overexposed images, like other artifacts such as chromatic aberration, high ISO noise, long exposure noise, etc. is simply an inherent characteristic that may be seen in very rare instances due a combination of very specific settings and conditions. In your NEF sample you've had to set the exposure compensation to +1.7, ISO to 400, tone compensation to High, and sharpening to medium high in order to make it appear. Any camera on the market today or in the last few years can be made to produce an image that would not be considered ideal with a very specific combination of settings and conditions.

If you do have well exposed normal contrast images that are exhibiting long banding across the entire image please send them to us and we will evaluate them.

Sincerely,

Frank
Nikon Technical Support

My images:

Banding 100% crop with a Nikkor 18-70mm

Banding 100% crop enlarged to 200% (or 2x) with a Nikkor 18-70mm

(full size image of 200% Crop here)
http://www.photosbytom.com/gallery/d/72-2/D200_2006_02_24_01050016_enlargedx2.jpg

Banding 100% crop with a Nikkor 18-70mm Image with Exposure Comp, Sharpening, Tone, and Saturation set to Default levels:

Exif:

Date and time: 2006:02:26 00:02:07
Date and time Digitized: 2006:02:24 01:05:00
Date and time Original: 2006:02:24 01:05:00
Orientation: top/left
35 mm Focal Length: 105 mm
Bits per sample: 8 8 8
CFA pattern: Binary Object
Colorspace: sRGB
Compression: Uncompressed
Contrast: Hard
Custom rendered: Normal process
Digital Zoom: 1.00 X
Distance Range: Unknown
Exposure Mode: Auto exposure
Exposure bias value: EV 1.67
Exposure program: Aperture priority
Exposure time: 1/15 s
F Number: F 10.00
File source: DSC
Flash: Flash did not fire
Focal length: 70.00 mm
Gain Control: Low gain up
ISO speed ratings: 400
Image length: 320
Image width: 214
Light source: Unidentified
Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Maker Note: Binary Object
Max. Aperture value: F 4.44
Metering mode: Center Weighted Average
Model: NIKON D200
Photometric interpretation: 2
Planar configuration: 1
Reference black/white: 0.00 255.00 0.00 255.00 0.00 255.00
Resolution unit: Inches
Rows per strip: 320
Samples per pixel: 3
Saturation: Low
Scene Capture Type: Standard
Scene type: A directly photographed image
Sensing method: One-chip color area sensor
Sharpness: Hard
Software: Nikon Capture Editor 4.4.0 W
Strip byte counts: 205,440
Strip offsets: 21,254
Subsec time: 16
Subsec time Digitized: 16
Subsec time Original: 16
Unknown (14A): 9,780 9,910 10,040
Unknown (83BB): <Binary Value>
Unknown (8773): Binary Object
Unknown (9216): 0 138 59 180
User Comment: Photo by Thomas Adams
White Balance: Auto
X Resolution: 300.00
Y Resolution: 300.00
GPS Version ID: 0 77 74 180
nik Autofocus area: 16,777,216
nik Bracketing & shooting mode: 32
nik Color Mode: MODE3
nik Color Mode: COLOR
nik Exposure Bracket Value: 0.00
nik Flash Type: NATURAL
nik Flash used: 0
nik Focus Mode: AF-C
nik Hue Adjustment: 65533Ã‚Â°
nik ISO Setting: 400
nik Image Sharpening: MED.H
nik Lens Data: Unknown ID 111
nik Lens F Stop:
nik Lens Information: 18-70 mm 3.5-4.5 D
nik Lens Type: AF-D G
nik Noise Reduction: OFF
nik Quality: RAW
nik Serial Number:
nik Tone Compensation: HIGH
nik Total Number of shutter actuations: 328
nik Unknown (1): Binary Data
nik Unknown (1B): 0.00
nik Unknown (1C): Binary Data
nik Unknown (1E): 1.00
nik Unknown (8A): 2.00
nik Unknown (8C): Binary Data
nik Unknown (91): Binary Data
nik Unknown (93): 1.00
nik Unknown (96): Binary Data
nik Unknown (9A): 6.05
nik Unknown (A3): 0.00
nik Unknown (A4): Binary Data
nik Unknown (A5): 325.00
nik Unknown (A6): 3.00
nik Unknown (A9): CUSTOM
nik Unknown (AA): MODERATE
nik Unknown (B0): Binary Data
nik Unknown (B1): 0.00
nik Unknown (C): 1.28
nik Unknown (D): Binary Data
nik Unknown (E): Binary Data
nik Unknown (E01): Binary Data
nik Unknown (E05): 2.00
nik Unknown (E0E): Binary Data
nik Unknown (E10): 10,930.00
nik Unknown (E1C): Unknown ID 111
nik White Balance: AUTO
nik White Balance Tuning: 0