Digital Photographer's Software Guide - Bertemes - Net

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The Digital Photographer's Software Guide
BlowUp
Vendor: Alien Skin
Purpose: Image rescaling to 3,600 percent (six times) with no noticeable artifacts
Description
BlowUp is an “up-rezzer” that enlarges digital images in preparation for printing. It is
effective at enlarging images containing clear outlines, such as those taken by a fast lens
to blur the background and isolate the subject. BlowUp detects these edges and then
scales the areas bounded by them using vector-style techniques, eliminating jagged artifacts
in 6x enlargements.
The vendor is so confident about BlowUp’s capabilities, it claims that graphic designers
can scale Web graphics up to print resolution. BlowUp has a 30,000-pixel size limitation,
which fortunately is not total pixels but refers to the maximum number of pixels
in width or height (billboards and buses are out). Features include photo grain controls,
enlargement-specific sharpening, and support for several image modes, including
CMYK.
Comments
Alien Skin maintains its reputation for great plug-ins with BlowUp; all reviewers find
it the winner in comparative tests with standard Photoshop techniques. However, it is
hard to say whether output is better or worse than that of its great rival Genuine Fractals
because subjective taste is a factor. Images upscaled in Genuine Fractals tend to have
sharper outlines but more geometric artifacts in areas of color. Take a look at samples
from both packages before purchasing.
Version: BlowUp 1.1.1 (2008)
Plugs into: Windows Photoshop CS or later and Photoshop Elements 3 or later, Mac CS2 9.0.2
or later and Photoshop Elements 4.0.1 or later
OS: Windows 2000, XP, and Vista; Mac OS X 10.4.0 or later
RAM: 512MB
Supported file formats: Those of host program
Price level: Approx. $200
Address: Alien Skin, 1111 Haynes Street, Suite 113, Raleigh, NC 27604, United States
www.alienskin.com
Genuine Fractals
Vendor: onOne Software
Purpose: Image rescaler for creating high-quality, print-ready enlargements