Fix hot pixel noise in a photo or image with Gimp
This tutorial is a manual for fixing the noise of pixels with Gimp.
Some woman are using Gimp to remove, adjust, fix and correct
the hot pixel noise in an digital image or photo portrait.
Author Moris Garon for Gimps.de with Photo Editing Software Gimp.
Translation Ramar Wolfenstein.
« Gimp tutorials for photos
Pixels make Errors too
The Gimps.de definition for pixel defines a graphic pixel
as the smallest spot, point or unit of an digital image.
Even the best digital camera can not prevent pixel errors.
The hot pixel noise in a digital photo can be caused by
the dark lighting, dead pixels of the matrix or
hot temperatures during the photo taking.
A LCD TV, a digital photo camera, a TFT monitor or a display
sometimes suffer from the dead pixel disease.
Dead Pixel Test
You can make a dead pixel test by viewing a gray color area
on a TFT display, LCD TV or a photo picture from a digital camera.
The gray area should not contain white, black or colored pixels.
Black pixels on the gray color area are dead, white pixels are stuck,
colored pixels are defect.
Try to return the TFT monitor, the LCD TV display or the photo camera
back to the store, if the digital device has too many defect pixels,
because only a lottery winner can repair dead, stuck or defect pixel.
Gimp for pixel art
Talented woman are using Gimp as a free pixel software,
a program and a graphic tool for pixel art.
You can use Gimp for photo editing and retouching.
Gimp can help you to fix, correct, remove, reduce and
retouch the dark, white or hot pixel noise in an photo image.
Manual for removal of pixel noise
Correct hot pixels manually
Use Gimp's magic pencil
to retouch small pixel errors or hot pixels.
You can also use Gimp's smudge tool
to blur hot pixels manually.
Choose a small brush for retouching bad pixels in the image.
Hold the Ctrl button and click on the spot near the
pixel that you have to retouch, to choose the color of that spot.
Paint over the bad pixel with the color that you have chosen.
remove pixel noise automatically
The hot glowing pixel is a common illness of the photo,
if the lighting is too dark for the photo exposure.
Only Master Yoda can manually fix a photo with hundreds
of hot pixels. As a good photo editing software, Gimp can
correct, fix and remove hot pixel noise automatically.
reduce noise pollution
Duplicate the original layer of the image.
Change the layer mode of the duplicated layer to Value mode,
to use this layer for the retouching of pixel noise in the image.
Use the Filters » Enhance » Despeckle -filter to
remove the noisy pixels automatically.
I used the following despeckle filter settings
to remove the noise in my image:
Type: Adaptive ; Radius: 1 ; Black level: 0 ; White level: 256.
Tip: You can erase areas, like eyes, nose, lips, on the retouching
layer to prevent their change in the original layer.
Sharpen image
The editing of an image with the Despeckle -filter makes the
details and contours of the image blurred. You should adjust sharpness
of the image after editing it with the Despeckle -filter.
Use the Filters » Enhance » Unsharp Mask -filter
or the Filters » Enhance » Sharpen -filter
to sharpen details and contours of the image, picture or photo portrait.
A photo before and after fixing of hot dead pixels with Gimp.
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