Banding on Tablet/Phone

[FrankCPhoto]

Hello,

I have a question on the dreaded banding in images. Image is a headshot on a seamless background.

I see the banding when viewing on tablets/phones only - but not on either of my PC screens (one calibrated, one general purpose). I can make it visible by using an exaggerated curves layer - but it's normally not apparent.

I've tried the "noise" method to try to fix this and another method ("spatter" - from the internet) but neither makes a difference. I've also converted from Raw to JPEG with no editing (except Bridge/PS convert).

So - is this just a limitation of mobile device screens, or is there anything else I can do ?

I've attached an unedited JPEG file and a screenshot from the tablet.

Thanks, Frank

[Damien Symonds]

Hi Frank,

That doesn't look like banding as much as severe jpeg degradation.  Are you sure you're saving at sufficient quality?

[FrankCPhoto]

Hi Damien,

I thought something similar - but it's Quality 10 in PS and also tried 87% in Lightroom which is roughly equivalent.

Since I posted this - I emailed the files to someone else to check on their PC - and it also looks OK to them.

So, I think it has to be something to do with the viewer/screen on the other devices. 

Thanks, Frank

OK - just had an idea. I was looking at the files via the Dropbox viewer. I loaded them into snapseed - and they look just fine. So, it's the viewing software in Dropbox.

Never had problems with it before - but it must be the background.

 

Edited January 3, 2017 by FrankCPhoto
Further info

[Damien Symonds]

Yes, no doubt those device screens aren't the best.  Can you post the link here?

[FrankCPhoto]

They're not online yet.

However, I updated my last post to say I've discovered it's the Dropbox photo viewer - which I never had issues with before. 

I'm looking for some better viewer software (it had the same problem on my phone - because they're both Android/Dropbox/same crappy viewer).

Thanks, Frank

[Damien Symonds]

Nobody is going to use Dropbox photo viewer seriously, are they?  You're not using it as a sales platform or anything like that, are you?

[FrankCPhoto]

Nope - I just use it for quick previews. However, I've never had problems before - probably because of the images I was checking. It's only on the smooth background that I had issues.

However, I've seen people on other forums claim that Dropbox does something to change the quality of your photos. I bet that at least some of those complaints are down to using the Dropbox viewer.

Thanks,  Frank