Genuine Fractals™ |
Review Date: March 2000
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The Road to Digital High-Res
For more than two years, I’ve been exploring the world of digitalphotography using what have become known as 'pro-sumer' cameras.Almost from the beginning, I was convinced that there were waysI could produce images with these modestly priced tools that weresuitable for commercial applications. However, the key to achievingthis goal was 'processing' the raw image through sophisticated softwarethat could take the captured data, enhance it to maximize the qualityof the image so that it could be reproduced, either in the formof a high quality print, or by graphic processes that utilize CMYKcolor separations.
By the time I began my experiments, studio photographers and a handfulof hardy outdoor types were already using higher end digital scanningbacks on medium and large format cameras to produce excellent imagesfor commercial and fine-art applications. Their systems, however,were tethered to computers, and although some were portable in thesense that they required tethering only to a lap-top, I wanted atruly portable system that was as convenient to use as the conventionalcameras I’ve carried into the field for more than forty-fiveyears. I also wanted to be able to produce my images independently.As a photographer/artist, I’ve never been comfortable havingsomeone else process and print my images and then taking personalcredit for the work. I believe the art and the process are inextricablybound together.
Early Experiments Showed Promise
By the end of my first year, I had managed to produce and exhibit8' x 10' digital black and white prints that could be hung side-by-sidewith conventional, chemically processed gelatin silver prints. ButI could not exceed that size without displaying an obvious difference.I did not offer digital prints for sale however, because I was certainthat the life expectancy of these early efforts would be rathershort-probably less than five years.
During this same one-year period, I also succeeded in using my 'megapixel'digital color images in a handful of commercial print projects.In each instances, the reproduction size of all images was heldto 5' x 7' or smaller. By the end of 1999, I had succeeded in producinglarger images that reproduced well in print, but this was accomplishedby upgrading cameras as newer technology became available. Currently,I’m using an Olympus C-2500L that produces a 2.5 megapixelimage file.
Getting back to my earlier comments, however, It is important tosay that my success in using 'pro-sumer' digital images is due largelyto the capabilities of the software I use. No one could use theraw file produced by the camera to achieve the same effects.
My primary processing tool is Adobe® Photoshop®2 5.5. Thisis the industry’s premier photo retouching and image editingprogram, used by every professional graphic designer, commercialpre-press operation, service bureau and photographer I know. I knowonly a few people who use more than half of this powerful program’scapabilities, and although my experience with Photoshop began manyversions ago, I still use it primarily to produce what most of uswould call 'conventional images'where even the most complicatedretouching is not the least bit apparent to viewers who have notseen the original image.
Routinely, by the time an image is ready for reproduction, I havealtered the levels and curves (modifying tonality and contrast),balanced the colors, retouched the picture to eliminate blemishes,minimize reflections, and neutralize obvious distractions, and I’vesharpened the image with the unsharp masking tool.
A Breakthrough from Altamira
Over the years, I have employed a number of plug-ins for Photoshop.For those unfamiliar with the term, 'plug-ins' are compatible additionsthat work from the Photoshop palette even though they’re producedby companies outside Adobe Systems, Inc. They include products likeExtensis Mask Pro and Intellihance, and the remarkable product byAltamira Group that I’m going to describe in a moment GenuineFractals.
Though it is not a newcomer to the software market (Version 1.0won the Macworld 'Eddy Award' as the best graphics plug-in of 1997and Genuine Fractals PrintPro won the 1998 'Eddy Award' as the bestpublishing utility), I didn’t discover it until late in 1999.Moreover, when I inquired about the product among my friends ineducation and the graphics arts industry, I found I wasn’tthe last kid on my block to discover Genuine Fractals.
My first exposure to this plug in was on the recommendation of avisitor to the Imaging Resource Web site. He had written to complimentme on my article about digital landscape photography and closedhis correspondence with the remark, 'I hope you have discoveredGenuine Fractals.'
Well, I had not discovered Genuine Fractals and although I had heardof fractal technology and read a definition, I had no practicalknowledge or experience. I immediately searched the Internet andfound the web site of Altamira Group, Inc., a software developmentcompany located in Burbank, California. The Company describes itselfas a developer of applications for high-resolution graphics utilizingstate-of-the-art digital imaging technology.
I immediately downloaded a trial versions of Genuine Fractals 2.0and GF PrintPro and began a test on one of my raw image files capturedwith the Olympus C-2000Z. It was a photograph of an antique goldpocket watch that can be seen on my web site. I saved it in theGF PrintPro.STN format and enlarged it to 300% of its original size.I was speechless. Not only was the image sharper than I’d seenit before, but I saw on the smooth metal inner surface of the watchface cover a small fingerprint I’d never before detected inworking on the file. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on thefull program and explore the full capability of Genuine Fractals.Meanwhile, being the curious type, I 'needed' to know more aboutfractal technology, so I looked it up.
- OnOne Software Releases Free Genuine Fractals Plug-In Reader for Adobe Photoshop (Press Release) onOne Software today announced the Genuine Fractals Reader plug-in that allows any user of Adobe Photoshop CS or CS2 to open and view an image that was scaled using Genuine Fractals and saved with the.STN file extension.
- Genuine Fractals Professional Edition v.6.0.8. Genuine Fractals 6 Professional Edition is renowned across the photographic and printing industries for its ability to increase image size over 1,000% without the loss of sharpness or detail that you would normally expect. Its patented, fractal based.
- Featuring ON1's industry-leading Genuine Fractals® technology, Resize 2021 is a must-have for image resizing for the highest quality photo enlargements and prints. The 2021 version includes performance enhancements and new features that make it even easier and faster to resize photos without losing sharpness and detail. Try it Free Buy Now.
- The 1.3 version of Fractal for Mac is provided as a free download on our website. The actual developer of this Mac application is Cipher Prime Studios. This Mac download was checked by our antivirus and was rated as malware free. The application lies within Games, more precisely Puzzle. From the developer: From the award-winning team that.
Here’s what Genuine Fractals software does:
After you have optimized your image file in Photoshop, establishing howthe final image will appear, you save the image using the preferred GenuineFractals file extension (FIF or STN). GF transforms the image into 'resolutionindependent-assets' eliminating the relationship between pixels and resolution.The image becomes mathematically encoded as an algorithm and the pixelsof the original raster image are replaced with a new file structure thatstores the entire image and none of the pixels. When you open the imageagain, you can re-scale it to the desired size and the algorithm willgenerate new pixels while maintaining sharpness regardless of image size.
Genuine Fractals lets you save time by allowing you to work in mediumsize original files for high resolution output. What’s more, when youscan images from film, no longer is it necessary to scan images at outputresolution. You need only between 15MB and 40MB of RGB data to capturean image for large format output.
Now, I know some of you are beginning to show your skepticism, but bearwith me. This really works and I can prove it. I’ve actually tested thefollowing statement found in the GF product sheet:
'You can scan a 4' x 5' transparency at 25MB, do all the image editingat that scan resolution, then encode the image. The encoded filewill typically be 2MB to 12MB. Now, if you need to output the imageat 450MB and 60MB, you can generate both resolutions from the sameencoded file.' 'For smaller print-quality output, you can startwith a 4MB-5MB original, encode to less than a megabyte, then renderthe image easily and beautifully to 20MB. For screen resolutionoutput, start even smaller.'
A Test: Getting the Most from Photoshop
Battle realms mac. Here’s another experiment you can try, comparing the best methodof Photoshop image enlargement against Genuine Fractals. The Photoshopmethod was recommended by an instructor friend some time ago and it doesproduce a pretty good result. Download the JPEG or TIFF image from yourdigital camera and open it in Photoshop (see figure. 1) . Open the actionspalette under the Window menu by clicking on Show Actions. Begin a newset of actions following instructions in your Photoshop user guide andenlarge your image to the desired size by just a few percentage pointsat a time. For 'speed,' you can enlarge the image in 5% increments, althoughyou’ll get a far better result resizing the image just 1% at a time.Let’s go over this step-by-step.
Though this process is rather time consuming, you will get a much betterresult that you would if you simply resized your image in a single step(Image Size under the Image menu).
Step Number 1:
First, I downloaded a JPEG image file from my Olympus C-2500L and made a copy of the file. (It’s a good idea to make a copy to work from the first time you try this, so that you can preserve the original for future use in the event you make a major mistake and damage the file you’re working on.)My objective was to end up with a 300 ppi file at 8 x 10 inches.
Step Number 2:
I then resized the original image without resampling (that would have altered the original file size) to 300 ppi (4.56' x 5.7' for this particular file).
Step Number 3:
My next step was to begin enlarging the image in steps, 5% at a time, resampling to keep the image at 300 ppi, until the final image size was just over 8' x 10'. You’d expect this to take some time, but using the actions palette speeds the process substantially.
Step Number 4:
I saved the enlarged image in TIFF format.
Continuing the Test: Enlarging the Image with GenuineFractals
I reopened the original image file and again resized it to 300 ppi withoutresampling. This time, however, I simply saved the original file withGenuine Fractals using the STN extension (see figure 2).
Fig. 2: The Photoshop Save As dialog box showing theSTN extension
I then opened the STN file at exactly the same size as my first enlargementand in two side-by-side windows made a direct comparison of portions ofthe images at 100% magnification.
The Comparison Results
Without question, the GF image won this comparison test. The GF imagewas reasonably free of artifacts, was smoother, and had better color qualitythan the image enlarged in increments. At 200%, the differences becameeven more obvious. Photoshop’s bicubic interpolation method producesgood results, but a side-by-side comparison with fractal technology isa bit like comparing apples and oranges, if you’ll excuse my useof a tired cliche.
Fig 3: The portion of the image used for thiscomparison at 200% shows the brass ring on the puppy’s collar (whichalso may be seen in Fig 1). On the left is the image enlarged in 1%increments in Photoshop. On the right is the identical image enlargedusing Genuine Fractals.
One also should consider, that even if you have the time to use the incrementalmethod of enlarging images (though I can’t imagine why you wouldwant to), you still may have to store multiple copies of your files fordifferent uses. I’ll address that issue further as we continue.
Using Genuine Fractals: Two Options
Currently, there are two available GF products: Genuine Fractals 2.0 andGenuine Fractals PrintPro. GF 2.0 is designed for digital artists, photographersand photo service bureaus that output digitized photographs or computergenerated images. It also is ideal for photographers and web designerswho want to optimize their capabilities for producing web images, providing50 web graphics options and encoding for 10:1 compression.
I chose the PrintPro version because I work with commercial printers andgraphic designers and need the capability to scale images that are separatedinto CMYK color channels for traditional four-color printing. (GF 2.0doesn’t offer that option.)
Fig.4: The Genuine Fractals 'Save As' dialog box showing the Losslessand Visually Lossless options.
With Genuine Fractals PrintPro, there are two 'Save As' options availablewhen you encode your optimized image from Photoshop: Lossless and NearLossless (See figure 4). Both use the STN (STiNG4 ) file extension. [GF2.0 offers these plus 2 more options for FIF (Fractal Image File) extensionweb graphics.] When you choose lossless encoding, GF produces a file ofapproximately 2:1 compression that renders the image exactly when openedat 100%. This option produces the highest quality enlargements. When youchoose near lossless encoding, GF produces a file of approximately 5:1compression yet still enables you to render an image well beyond 100%with excellent quality. Inasmuch as I am not strapped for storage capacityand normally save my images to CD-ROM, I prefer to use lossless encoding,but if you are storing snapshots that probably will never be reproducedas large size images, near lossless encoding is a wonderful space-savingoption.
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Genuine Fractals Print Pro speeds the process of transmitting images andeliminates the need to rescan or store several copies of a single imagefor multiple output requirements. For example, a photograph that is usedfor the cover of a publication might also be used on a poster, an insidepage and in a cropped thumbnail version as a complement to the table ofcontents. Traditionally this would require as many as four scans and thestorage requirements would be significant. Moreover, Internet transmissionof such files can be very time consuming. But, with GF, a single fileof medium size could be transmitted to serve all intended uses—froma magazine illustration to a billboard.Fig, 5: The Genuine Fractals Print Pro image opening screen
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When you open your files, GF’s on-screen menu (see figure 5) displaysimage dimensions in inches, pixels, picas, points, lines or dpi. It alsodisplays the original image’s bitmap file size, width, height and theencoded file size. It gives you the option to constrain image proportionsto maintain the aspect ratio or to unconstrain to distort the dimensions.It provides a thumbnail image with a cropping tool that lets you defineand render only a portion of the original image, and it gives you threerendering options from highest quality to fastest rendering. GF also willdisplay the image on your desktop for quick launch and easy recognition.Conclusion
It may be a slight exaggeration to say that Genuine Fractals is the greatestthing since sliced bread, but it is a truly remarkable plug-in for users ofPhotoshop. It’s given me a way to produce 16' x 20' and larger reproductionsof my pro-sumer digital photographs and that’s something that would havebeen called wishful thinking a very short time ago. Nikon now includes GF2.0LE in the software package for its Coolscan® 2000 and Coolscan®III film scanners and Epson bundles it with its Stylus Photo 1200 printer.
For more information on Genuine Fractals and a free trial download, go to theAltamira Group Web site. The complete version of Genuine Fractals 2.0 may bepurchased for $159, while genuine Fractals PrintPro is priced at $299.00. (Ownersof the full version of GF 2.0 can upgrade to PrintPro for $139) Both productsare available for Mac or Windows 95/98/NT platforms.
UPDATE : The Genuine Fractals products were acquired by LizardTech in 2001 and were eventually acquired by ON1 Software in 2005. ON1's Perfect Resize product still uses the technology. Their contact info is available here.
Note to readers: Uponpublishing our review, we received a large amount of email concerningour perceived bias towards Genuine Fractals. In actuality, we try ourbest to keep our reviews free of bias, therefore, an addendum has beenadded to this review to clear up any problems or misunderstandings thatour readers may have encountered. Please read our addendumfor full details..
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From the August, 2002issue of PC Alamode Magazine
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| GenuineFractals is an Adobe PhotoShop plug-in that breaks the connection betweenpixels and resolution by saving files in a format that is independent ofresolution. This is a program for serious graphic artists and photographers,or others who work with a lot of files that need to be printed at exceptionalquality. Here’s how it works. You can create a graphic (typically with a scanneror digital camera) at a relatively low resolution and save it in a fractalfile format. If you need to make it bigger, you can expand it without thedistortion and jaggies that occurs when you mess with a regular RGB fileusing bicubic interpolation formulas. If technical jargon like “bicubicinterpolation” makes your hair hurt, this is probably a more sophisticatedprogram than you need or want. One constituency for this program is digital photographers. I read throughsome Internet discussions about Genuine Fractals. Users seem to be ableto print crisp photos, relatively indistinguishable from traditionallyprocessed photos, at 8” x 10” or even 20”x30”. My Nikon 990 has a maximum output of 3.3 megapixels, or 2048 x 1536resolution. If I snapped all of my photos at this size we’d need a secondmortgage to pay for memory cards. Depending on the anticipated end useof the photos, I’m most apt to shoot at XGA size (1024x768). As you cansee in the chart below, at this resolution the biggest size good-lookingprint I could produce is 3”x5”.
What Genuine Fractals will do is take my puny file and using fractalgeometry make it scalable so that I can enlarge it for printing. Imagescan be scaled down to ¼ of their original size and up to 100 timestheir original size. Genuine Fractals was used to create the world's largestprint of a digital camera image. Measuring 73' by 43' and totaling 3,200-square-feet,it was shot with the Nikon Coolpix 990 and digitally re-sized from a 4”x 6” to a billboard with little loss in image quality. The second purpose of Genuine Fractals is to make it possible to workwith and store smaller files. Do you remember the painting of St. Isidoretapping away on his laptop on the cover of April’s Third, Genuine Fractals makes it possible to store or archive a graphicor photo at one mid-size resolution and then re-purpose it for varioususes. For example, you might need one size for a poster, another size fora printed brochure and yet another for a Web site. With Genuine Fractals,you save the file once, and change it to the size, resolution and ultimatefile format as needed. Finally, you can “create tiny encoded files that quickly display full-colorphotos on the Web.” But don’t do this. I was having trouble displayingthe FIF file format on a Web page and e-mailed customer support. They responded,
Genuine Fractals exports graphics in two file formats. The STN fileformat produces lossless encoding. It also lets you crop, rotate and changethe color and zoom in on a your images from a preview screen. This formatgives you maximum flexibility and maximum print quality. The FIF file format,used for Web graphics, is being phased out. Besides Adobe Photoshop, Genuine Fractals is compatible with PhotoDeluxe,Corel Photo-Paint 9-9.02, and Jasc Paint Shop Pro 5.03-6.02. I tried itwith PhotoShop 6.5 and PaintShopPro 5.01 and it worked fine with both. One of the drawbacks to Genuine Fractals is that you need the programto read the native STN and FIF files. You can also revert to a TIF, JPGor whatever to send to others who need to work with them but the end userwill not get any benefit from the technology. Another drawback is thatyou have to flatten your file before you export it to Genuine Fractals– if you used layers you will lose them. It also cannot create color separations– for that you need their PrintPro Software. The documentation is lousy. The manual is only 15 pages long and leavesgreat gaps. For the FIF format you can save images on a scale from 1 (smallphotographic) to 50 (tiny impressionistic.) Now you tell me: which oneis the larger, better quality file? I had to guess. The answer is 1. WhenI saved my Paris picture, the original JPG file was 147KB The level 1 FIFfile was actually slightly larger, 155KB. The Level 50 FIF was only 41KBand I couldn’t tell the difference among the three formats. There is slightlymore information in the program’s help file, and a little more on the company’sWeb site, but not enough. I never thought I’d complain that a manual wastoo short but this is a case where I needed more guidance and couldn’tfind it. There do not appear to be any local retailers who carry Genuine Fractalsbut you can buy it directly from the company, Altamira, either by downloadingit from their Website or by calling them at (800) 913-3391. Their mailing address is1827 West Verdugo Ave., Burbank, CA 91506. It comes in both Windows andMac versions, $159 apiece. Nikon is now bundling Genuine Fractals withtheir scanners, so the technology might start taking off with professionals(the cheapest Nikon scanner retails for $825 so you’re not going to findit on my desktop until I win the lottery.) There is also a LE version fordigital camera enthusiasts which retails for $49.95. This gives you onlythe ability to enhance the size of your digital photos. For example, a1.3 megapixel camera with a maximum resolution of 1280x960 would normallyonly produce a crisp 3”x4” print; Genuine Fractals LE will let you pushit up to an 8”x10”. The more I played around with Genuine Fractals the more I grew to likeit. If I printed more of my photographs or worked more often with professionalprinters I might be more excited. If you’re a graphics pro, this seemsto be an essential addition to your bag o’ tricks. If you play around withdigital photos, the LE version will probably do everything you need. |