FocusFixer FAQ

FocusFixer FAQ

FocusFixer Questions Answered
With any new product as innovative and potentially revolutionary as FocusFixer and its complementary software, you are certain to have many questions. We have noted below many of the common questions we have been asked, together with our replies. If there is an issue or query which is not covered here, please e-mail us. For details cheek the contact page.
Please select another FAQ category:

What does FocusFixer do? So FocusFixer is like un-sharp masking? What does the "blur amount" slider do? Is there a "default amount" for the deblur slider? What is "LensFIT"? Why is my camera Make and Model "Unknown" even though FocusFixer says "LensFIT; on"? Should I turn in-camera sharpening off if I am using FocusFixer? What image formats does FocusFixer work with? What's a sensible machine to use FocusFixer on? Which image editing software programmes will FixerLabs plug-ins work with? Does FocusFixer work with my version of PhotoShop? Can I use FocusFixer with a program other than PhotoShop? How can I focus the whole of my picture at once? FocusFixer doesn't seem to work as well at the very edges of my picture. The final result looks better than the preview, why is that? My picture goes bizarre when I put the blur control up too high. Are FixerLabs interested in a spiffy idea I've had for a PhotoShop plugin?

What does FocusFixer do? FocusFixer restores out of focus images. back to top ^ So FocusFixer is like un-sharp masking? No! It is the ultimate sharpening tool and produces far superior results. Although FocusFixer is simple to use, the techniques it uses to sharpen photos and correct for focus blur are extremely sophisticated. They are derived from a scientific model of how blur is formed in a photo, and use modern computationally intensive signal processing techniques derived from some scary mathematics. FocusFixer uses its model of the camera and optics to put light back where it belongs. By contrast un-sharp masking (USM) uses a naive model of blur formation, it simply blurs your photo some more and then subtracts an amount of this away from the original. FocusFixer has other advantages - it generates less noise than USM, whilst USM amplifies noise, it can sharpen soft images and remove focus blur producing far sharper results than USM. FocusFixer implements the most powerful sharpening filter available as a PhotoShop plugin. back to top ^ What does the "blur amount" slider do? The slider tells FocusFixer how blurred your images are. It's rather like the focusing ring on a conventional camera. You should adjust the slider until you are happy that FocusFixer has brought your image back in to focus. You can overdo things - if you start to see artifacts around high-contrast edges reduce the deblur slider a little. back to top ^ Is there a "default amount" for the deblur slider? No! The deblur slider on FocusFixer will remember the last value you used. The first time you use it the setting is arbitrary. You do need to adjust this slider to get the best result - without taking it too far. back to top ^ What is "LensFIT"? The patented LensFIT technology in FocusFixer reads the exif data most modern digital cameras attach to your photos and uses this information to build an accurate model of how your camera blurs a photo (even when in focus). This model is then used to correct the blur. Some camera manufacturers do not include everything in the exif data that FocusFixer needs - in these cases it is often possible to supply this missing information simply by telling FocusFixer which camera you have. If this is not possible email us at lensfit@fixerlabs.com and tell us about your camera - it will be included in the next service upgrade of FocusFixer. back to top ^ Why is my camera Make and Model "Unknown" even though FocusFixer says "LensFIT; on"? If you see the message "LensFIT: on" but also that the camera Make and Model appear to be "Unknown/Not Listed" - rest assured that LensFIT is working. This is a part (the only part) of the user interface that we are not proud of. The "Unknown/Not Listed" are greyed out when LensFit is working and will in the next service update be changed to report your camera make and model correctly. back to top ^ Should I turn in-camera sharpening off if I am using FocusFixer? Yes, if you can. Any form of sharpening before FocusFixer is a mistake. In-camera sharpening is usually crude - it is always better to do this kind of processing in a more controlled way with sophisticated tools outside of the camera. Crude sharpening produces artifacts that will make later correction (using any software) very much more difficult. back to top ^ What image formats does FocusFixer work with? FocusFixer works with all image formats produced by a digital camera, ie:,tiff, raw, jpeg (if used at the highest quality), etc. We suggest you use tiff or raw if you can and avoid jpeg if possible. If you cannot avoid jpeg use the best setting (highest quality) you can. back to top ^ What's a sensible machine to use FocusFixer on? Pentium 3 at 1 GHz or Power Mac G4 with at least 256 MBytes of RAM. Adding memory to your computer system could help. back to top ^ Which image editing software programmes will FixerLabs plug-ins work with? FixerLabs plug-ins are designed to work in Adobe's Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, Jasc's Paint Shop Pro and other Photoshop compatible image editing programs. back to top ^ Does FocusFixer work with my version of PhotoShop? On Apple computers, FocusFixer will work with PhotoShop 7 and up. Under Windows, FocusFixer will work with Photoshop 7 and up. back to top ^ Can I use FocusFixer with a program other than PhotoShop? The PhotoShop plugin standard is used by other programs such as PhotoShop Elements 2 (which we have tested) In theory, FocusFixer ought to work with any program that accepts PhotoShop plug-ins. However, some programs do not support a full plug-ins interface. back to top ^ How can I focus the whole of my picture at once? Like your camera, FocusFixer has one focus control that it applies to the whole image. If you bring one part of the image in to focus, you may find that other parts of the image have their focus compromised. The best approach here is to focus fix your picture in parts, and use PhotoShop's tools to blend the parts together. back to top ^ FocusFixer doesn't seem to work as well at the very edges of my picture. To focus a small patch of your photo, FocusFixer looks for blur not just in the patch, but also in the neighborhood around the patch. At the very edges of the photo, much of the neighborhood is missing, so FocusFixer cannot do such a good job. With anything but very extreme blur, this effect isn't noticeable. back to top ^ The final result looks better than the preview, why is that? The complex processing used by FocusFixer can take a while, even on a fast computer. To keep the preview interactive, a slightly simpler algorithm is used. While the preview serves as a proof, and allows you to set the focus control to the best posiiton, it does not reach the quality of FocusFixer's final output. back to top ^ My picture goes bizarre when I put the blur control up too high. It certainly does. If you wish, feel free to use it for artistic effect. back to top ^ Are FixerLabs interested in a spiffy idea I've had for a PhotoShop plugin? Yes we are always interested in hearing from our customers. back to top ^