Hydra JPG Degrader is a photoshop plugin that adds JPG compression,
noise and chromatic aberration to an image. This plugin helps
dramatically speed up the process of compositing a CG rendering into an
existing jpg background. Typically CG renderings look too sharp and
clean compared to a jpg background, you need to subtly degrade the CG
rendering to match the look of the background you are compositing it
into.
Currently the only way to do this is to save off part of a layer with
strong jpg compression and then reimport that layer and mask off the
areas outside of the CG rendering layer. This is a tedious process and
the best you can do is guess at what level of jpg compression you need
to match the background. Hydra JPG Degrader lets you see the new layer
composited on top of your other layers as you see in realtime the amount
of compression you are adding to get a flawless transition. In addition
to jpg compression this plugin also lets you ad noise and chromatic
aberration, which is the subtle hue shifting that can occur when you are
taking a photograph.
On the technical side of the plugin there are also 2 fine tuning sliders
for horizontal and vertical phase. Jpg compression in an image is
created on a grid layout. By adjusting the horizontal and vertical phase
of your new layer you can subtly shift this grid around to match the
grid used in the background you are trying to match. This plugin also
utilizes a new Adobe SDK feature for plugins that allows better handling
of layers. With this plugin you are now able to see your target layer
composed on top of all other visible layers of your document. This is
extremely useful when you are trying to match the jpg compression of
your target layer to an existing composition of layers.
Hydra JPG Degrader is compatible with the following versions of Photoshop.
Windows XP, Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8 and above 32 + 64 bit CS3, CS4, CS5, CS5.1, CS6, and CC