Comparing Images with FastStone Image Viewer

[xpatUSA]

I have several apps that allow viewing of images, an activity oft used to weed out the ones you'd rather not keep. Probably the absolute worstest "app" is your brain when comparing your memory of the scene to the screen or print before your very eyes. Then next might be an app where you open one, close it, open another, close it, ad nauseam. Or opening images in tabs and flipping back and forth, back and forth . . or Windows pix and fax Viewer, clicking those two arrows at the bottom. A bit better is my version of PSE where more than one pic can be opened on-screen and you can size their windows to see them all at once. However, only one can be active at a time so, to 'zoom in' to four pics, you get to click and zoom four separate times.

Enter FastStone Viewer (FSV):



Anything you do, zoom, move, etc applies to all the images. Simultaneous viewing gives the best comparison. If a pic fails to pass muster it can deleted while still in the comparison mode. An action can be made to apply to one pic only by simply pressing the ctrl key. For raw images, they are opened without post-processing - making the comparison quite rigorous. The histogram or EXIF can be shown or not. You'll need a screen color picker to compare colors, see right of above image.

FSV uses DCraw to open raw files, OK - in fact better for the purposes of comparison.

I like the rigor and the speed. For example, the best of 16 images is selected in 5 steps if done four at a time. It can also compare two or three, if you so desire, pero no más que cuatro.

FSV is 'free' but they do like a donation which is well worth it. An excellent comparator.

Warning: if you edit an image, it will strip out any embedded ICC profile.

[Shadowman]

Olympus has a similar function called Lightbox with its Master 2 software. It is listed as free but usually asks for a camera model number to download.

[dje]

Ted I use FSV as my default viewer for jpegs. I think it's pretty good and the image comparison tool is very useful for me. I usually use it in full view mode where you can toggle quickly between different full view images.

Dave

[Bobobird]

Same here - been using it for many years usually for pron but now for pics.

One thing that is disconcerting is that the view of the same RAW file in FSV and in Adobe RAW is not the same.

[xpatUSA]

Same here - been using it for many years usually for pron but now for pics.

One thing that is disconcerting is that the view of the same RAW file in FSV and in Adobe RAW is not the same.

Yes indeed, that difference is highly evident for my early Sigma raw files. DCraw, which is used by FSV, does very little processing to Foveon X3F files, and a good few of Coffin's options do nothing at all to X3Fs. Opening the same files in ACR reveals a lot of preprocessing, even with all sliders at zero, especially in the noise reduction department but also in color rendition. In FSV, my skies do gain a touch of 'red shift'.

TTFN,

[xpatUSA]

Same here - been using it for many years usually for pron but now for pics.

One thing that is disconcerting is that the view of the same RAW file in FSV and in Adobe RAW is not the same.

Many years later, this might be of interest:

https://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/66076663
.