SharpCap .tif files do no open in Sequator

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Watcher
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SharpCap .tif files do no open in Sequator

#1

Post by Watcher »

If this is a repeat I apologize.
Saved single frame shots saved in .tif format from SharpCap do not open in Sequator, Puzzled, I ran the files through Lightroom and download them into a new folder in .tif format. I ran the files in and out and did not do any editing.These files opened in Sequator The files were also five times larger then the SharpCap files. I'm assuming the .tif files from SharpCap are highly compressed. The question is how much data is lost with that much compressing?
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Re: SharpCap .tif files do no open in Sequator

#2

Post by admin »

Hi,

SharpCap does use compression when saving TIFF files by default, but you can turn this off in the settings window. The compression is the lossless sort, meaning that it is not going to have any impact on the image quality, but it can cause compatibility issues like the ones you've noticed with some applications.

Cheers, Robin
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Re: SharpCap .tif files do no open in Sequator

#3

Post by Watcher »

Excellent!!!
Does using uncompressed TIFF slow down the capture rate?
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Re: SharpCap .tif files do no open in Sequator

#4

Post by admin »

Hi,

it might do – the files will certainly be bigger which means they will take longer to write to disk. If you are using an SSD you might not notice, and if you are taking fairly long exposures (more than a few seconds) then you probably won't notice even if you are using an old-fashioned hard disk.

Cheers, Robin
brenski
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Re: SharpCap .tif files do no open in Sequator

#5

Post by brenski »

apols for hijacking an old thread, but I've just encountered this same error:
Loading base image failed. Unsupported file format or invalid file.
Sequator only supports RAW(of some cameras), JPEG, and uncompressed TIFF.

my files from a zwo asi 183Pro Cooled
Tif format
5496x3672
16 bit
and all are around 35MB in size.

Is there a way to get Sequator to stack these files?
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Re: SharpCap .tif files do no open in Sequator

#6

Post by admin »

Hi,

your best bet would be to load the files into some application that supports compressed TIFF files and then re-save them in uncompressed format. GIMP (Gnu Image Manipulation Program) will open compressed TIFF, but not sure if there is a way to automate the conversion.

cheers,

Robin
fgbarr
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Re: SharpCap .tif files do no open in Sequator

#7

Post by fgbarr »

I went to a Dark site july 2021 and get some TIFF files images using my ASI071MC and Sharpcap PRO. I can not open many(I can open Just a few off the same sequence) of thats images using programs like GIMP, DSS or other programs I try. Need help because it is valuable for me. I do not have problem with FITS, but to my fault I keepd a TIFF in configuration. Using GIMP it appear as corrupted. (It is not a TIFF image or it is corrupted).

Thanks
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Re: SharpCap .tif files do no open in Sequator

#8

Post by admin »

Hi,

SharpCap uses 'Deflate' compression in TIFF files when the option to compress is turned on - this is the most common cause of problems opening the files in other applications. You should be able to load the TIFF files back into SharpCap using the folder monitor camera and 're capture' into an alternate format or into TIFF with no compression.

If you still have problems please share one of the problem files via onedrive/google drive/etc and I will investigate to see what can be done.

thanks,

Robin
fgbarr
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Re: SharpCap .tif files do no open in Sequator

#9

Post by fgbarr »

Hi Robin!

Use the folder monitor Camera is a good tool to convert from TIFF to FITS, I Like it. But it do not solve problems with hundrets of images I capture in July 2021. This link to Onedrive You can see the print of a folder where I save a sequence of 30 images of the center of Eta Carinae. I can see and load just two using SharpCap(Folder), Gimp, Dss etc, 29 and 30, all the others I can not read. The same to the others Foldres, many of then all images can't be read. I put in the folder 4 images, 2 ok and 2 not ok.


https://1drv.ms/u/s!AgN8ev4_RuKWgm96SuP ... D?e=fOTa1L

Thank you for your help.

Francisco
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Re: SharpCap .tif files do no open in Sequator

#10

Post by admin »

Hi Francisco,

I did a quick comparison with a hex editor on the good and bad files. A TIFF file should work like this

2 bytes : byte order - MM or II
2 bytes : magic number (42)
4 bytes : offset of metadata information in file (IFD in TIFF terms)
... image data ...
somewhere further on
IFD and other metadata (pointed to by the bytes above)

The good files are like that. The bad ones are missing the IFD/metadata after the image data. This is stopping any image tool from opening the image.

In theory, the image data is there in the bad files - presuming it matches the good files then it is 4944x3284x2 bytes per pixel and is compressed with the 'Deflate' algorithm. It may be recoverable by discarding the first 8 bytes of the file and then applying the 'inflate' algorithm to get back the raw pixel values. I will investigate whether this is possible and report back.

cheers,

Robin
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