Backscatter Xterminator review + tips for processing multiple photos in one go

[Nicool]

Hi Scubaboard,
I've just published my review of Backscatter Xterminator (BSXT). I know it's not the first opinion piece on this software, but I like to take a little more time to give products & services a workout before sharing my thoughts publicly
https://theunderwaterclub.com/blog/backscatter-xterminator-plugin-review/

For those who don't know, it's a photoshop plugin that lets you automatically delete loads of particles from your underwater shots, and it does a near perfect job most of the time.

It does however increase your photos' storage footprint a fair bit and takes a while to run (you can process them in batch though). So I'd recommend still working on those strobes positioning techniques to get good photos in-camera. When things don't work out though, it's great to have a "joker" option.

 

[ReadyDiverOne]

Thanks, very helpful review.

 

[BoltSnap]

Thank you for the review!!

The only drawback I see is that it dramatically increases the file's size.

Question: Does it have to return a TIFF file only? Do you recommend doing the backscatter removal with this app before or after LR edits?

 

[davehicks]

Thank you for the review!!

The only drawback I see is that it dramatically increases the file's size.

Question: Does it have to return a TIFF file only? Do you recommend doing the backscatter removal with this app before or after LR edits?

It is best to do this processing before other edits, except maybe any cropping you want. That will help reduce file sizes slightly.

 

[hilljo88]

I've run the demo version and been pretty happy with it. Massive time saver. I'm curious to go back a few years to run it on silted out wreck shots and other images that I left for dead. I plan to buy the production version shortly. As for file size, I usually elect to "Flatten Image" when I have a final version in PS.

 

[WS007]

Thank you for the review!!

The only drawback I see is that it dramatically increases the file's size.

Question: Does it have to return a TIFF file only? Do you recommend doing the backscatter removal with this app before or after LR edits?

According to the video by Erin the sequence is to adjust first (in LR) global tone/color and denoise (if required). Then import into PS and run Backscatter exterminator. All other adjustments in LR are done afterwards...

Wolfgang

 

[Nicool]

According to the video by Erin the sequence is to adjust first (in LR) global tone/color and denoise (if required). Then import into PS and run Backscatter exterminator. All other adjustments in LR are done afterwards...

Wolfgang

Hi @BoltSnap, like Wolfgang mentioned, that's Erin's recommendation and mostly what I've followed.
That said, I have occasionally done all my edits in Lightroom Classic, only to decide late that I wanted to run BSXT on the image, which I did, and didn't face major issues this way either.

It only returns TIFF files indeed, and that's why I recommend flattening them before going back to Lightroom classic.