| What
will Asiva Photo do that other applications cannot? |
Asiva
Photo was not designed to replace your favorite graphics application.
It was designed to be a companion tool. As far as color correction
goes, it does what other applications can't do and makes many other
effects much easier. It puts more power and flexibility into the
hands of the artist.
• Asiva
Photo works in full 16-bit per component giving you 256 times the
bandwidth and precision of 8-bit, which most other applications
work in.
• Asiva Photo lets you control the color, detail and special effects in
an image without constructing time-consuming masks. Also, it lets you see changes
to large images quickly without waiting for the entire image to render. Final
rendering is done after the creative process is finished, letting you work more
quickly and efficiently.
• Open any TIFF, PICT or JPEG image from any source and you'll have all
of Asiva Photo's powerful tools available for use.
• You can apply any Operation (effects) to your image with a brush, painting-in
where you want to change the color, detail, softness, brightness, saturation,
etc.
• You can apply Operations to your image in such a smooth manner, making
it look so natural the eye is not aware the image has been altered.
• You never have to commit to an Operation until you are ready to render
the final image. So you can create and save as many Operations and Sequences
as you like, and use any of them for final rendering.
• All Operations or Sequences of Operations can be saved and used on other
images or when you want to continue working on an image. Also, they can be altered
any time while you are working.
These are just a few of the unique and special qualities of Asiva® Photo. As
you read on and check out the rest of this site, such as the gallery and QuickTime® Video
Tutorials, you will discover more features of Asiva® Photo not found in other
programs. |
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|
| What
are the hardware requirements for running Asiva Photo? |
Mac
Requirements:
PPC Mac OS 8.6 to OSX 10.4.8, 32MB or available RAM, color monitor with 24-bit card,
CD-ROM drive.
PC Requirements:
PC with Pentium-Class or AMD-K6 processor, 128 MB of RAM, 24-bit display adapter,
Microsoft Windows® 2000/XP, approximately 80 MB of hard disk space, CD-ROM drive. |
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|
| Is
Asiva Photo available as a plug-in? |
Asiva Photo’s schema for applying effects as
vector, along with its 16-bit per component native processing
does not fit conventional methods, so we decided to make it a stand-alone
application. As such, we are not burdened by the operational metaphor
and limited bandwidth of the host application. There are, however,
filters (Operations) from Asiva Photo that are now available as plug-ins. |
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|
| I
need natural-looking results when I retouch a photo. Can Asiva
Photo deliver that? |
Absolutely.
Asiva produces natural-looking color changes. This is not only because
16-bit per component gives you greater bandwidth to work with, but
you can also control the roll-off of Operations for natural looking
transitions and blending. |
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|
| I
want to change the color of the outfit that a model is wearing.
Can Asiva really do that without using a mask? |
Yes,
simply sample the color you wish to change, and pick the color you
want to change it to. Then apply the color to the area, either globally
to the whole image, or use a Region Tool such as the brush. This
process is remarkably quick and simple. |
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|
| I
want to sharpen only one area of a photo. How is that done? |
You
can apply any Operation, including sharpen or soften, with
Asiva’s Region Tools: Rectangle, Ellipse and Brush. Associated
maps control how the Operation is applied, so you can be fairly sloppy. |
|
|
| Is
Asiva Photo compatible with other graphic programs, such as Adobe
Photoshop®, etc.? |
Yes.
Asiva Photo is a stand-alone program, not a plug-in. You can open
a PICT, TIFF or JPEG file from any source. |
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|
| Is
Asiva Photo Compatible with Intel Macs? |
Asiva® Photo currently works with PPC Macs, OS 8.6 to OS X 10.4.8.
A Universal Binary version is planned. |
|
|
| What
file formats does Asiva Photo support? |
Asiva
Photo supports PICT (Mac version only), TIFF and JPEG files at this
time. For TIFF, RGB or CMYK, 8 or 16-bit per component. |
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|
| Will
I be able to print from within the application? |
Yes.
Asiva Photo allows you to print a working resolution image if the
source file is large, or a full-sized image. Currently, Asiva Photo
for Mac uses Quickdraw Printing, which limits the output to 8-bits
per component. |
|
|
| Tell
me more about how Asiva Photo will handle Color Management? |
Asiva® Photo
Mac works with Apple’s “ColorSync” 3, to provide
consistent color from input to output. |
|
|
| Is
Asiva Photo very difficult to learn? |
If
you are not willing to learn something new, then yes. Once you understand
how effects (Operations) are applied to an image, you will “get
it” for all Operations. We don’t do things ten different
ways. If you watch the ten QuickTime® video tutorials, you should
be well on your way to understanding and using Asiva ® Photo. With
practice on sample images and Sequences and further reading of the
manual, you'll become proficient in the sophisticated abilities of
the application. We recommend new users read the chapter about color
spaces and color models. Once you have fully grasped the concept
of color spaces and the operational metaphor of Asiva® Photo, you
will find that the possibilities for color correction and image enhancement
are vast. |
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|
| How
many Operations can I stack in a Sequence? |
More
than you will ever use, limited only by memory. |
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|
| What
size image files am I able to open in Asiva Photo? |
Asiva® Photo
can handle image files of any size and resolution, limited by file
format only. It looks at your image file and the configuration of
your computer and opens a working representation (Working Resolution)
of your original image file. You can then create and apply whatever
Operations you choose and see the results efficiently as you work.
When all the Operations are complete, you can render to a full-sized
image file. |
|
|
| How
do I use the Brush Tool? |
Deselect
the 'Full Screen' check box in any Operation window. Make sure the
Master Render Bolt is enabled. Click on the Brush Tool to select
it and double click on the Brush Tool to invoke the brush setting.
Use the brush to paint Operations onto the image. |
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|
| Why
am I not seeing any change to the image when I create an Operation? |
Make
sure the Master Render Bolt as well as the Operation Render Bolt
are enabled.
Power tips:
• When using the any Region Tool, holding down the ‘Option’ (right
mouse button – PC) key changes the tool to an 'Undo Operation.'
• The Eye-dropper Tool allows you to sample the properties in the region
of the image to which you want to apply the Operation. Holding the ‘Option’ (right
mouse button – PC) key while making a sample maps everything EXCEPT the
region you click/dragged on. Holding the ‘Shift’ key down allows
for multiple and cumulative samples. Holding down the ‘Command’ key
(apple key) will allow you to affect all three maps at once (hold down the ‘Control’ key – PC).
• You can click on the Operation Map, copy the attributes of that map and
paste it into a different operation. Very handy if you are making several different
versions of one Operation or want to effect the same color with another Operation.
• You can drag and drop Operations in a Sequence to reorder them. Remember,
every Operation is dependent on the results of the one above it, so reordering
them can create unexpected results.
• You can copy and paste regions from one Operation to another. Regions
can also be moved and resized within an image.
• You can turn Operations on and off at will by enabling or disabling the
small render lightning bolt icons associated with individual Operations in the
Sequence.
• Smooth out your curves to give your Operations a more gradual transition.
• Use the 'Preferences' option in the 'Edit' menu to customize Asiva® Photo
for you and your unique way of working. |
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| I
have had trouble with extension conflicts that cause my computer
to crash. How do I know that Asiva's extension won't cause me problems? |
Asiva® Photo
does not use any extensions. Therefore, no conflicts should arise. |
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