Luminance Noise Reduction
Processing that smooths brightness variation between neighbouring pixels to reduce the appearance of grain.
Measured in
%
In depth
Luminance noise is the less objectionable kind — it resembles film grain and a little of it preserves the impression of detail. Aggressive smoothing removes fine texture along with the noise, producing waxy skin and plastic foliage, so it is usually applied more lightly than colour noise reduction and paired with a detail slider that protects edges.
Examples in practice
Luminance noise reduction at 25 cleans an ISO 6400 frame while leaving fabric weave visible.