Shooting Raw?

[Serena Thomas]

Do you do it? IF os why? What are the benefits? I haven't tried it yet and am wondering if it's something worth trying.

TIA

[number 1 blinger]

hi there \
I dont but am contemplating it !!! My dh will freek cos the files are bigger _-again !!!!

but a friend was showin me how easy they are to manipulate with another ps program ( cant remeber name !will get it fot you )

I am a professional photographer and I suppose I should be shooting on raw .

it is easier to fix photos and better quality ?

[lcbannon]

I have started shooting in RAW and I use Adobe Lightroom - it is currently a beta program-free for now. You can do so much more manipulation to photos in post processing and it works so much better. It does take a lot of space but there are upload places to store. I am trying to learn to only keep the best of the photos not all of them. Give it try.

[Angela]

I shooot almost exclusively in RAW. Only time I don't is when I have limited room on my card and no place to offload my images. I love the flexibility I have when editing. I can adjust exposure, which is important sometimes. I can also tweak white balance if I have to. You never know when that one shot needs to be salvaged. RAW gives me a better chance to fix something that goes awry.

[mamakimberly]

I hate RAW. I hate the extra grain.

I hate the pp time-- I hate the way they load-- I hate everything about it.

I take a ton of pics and a lot of them are throwaways because I'm taking pics of 2 and 3 year olds. And that's fine with me, but I don't want to have to go through 10,000 steps before I even see my picture.

No thanks! Cooked for me! No raw!

[meggan]

I hate RAW. I hate the extra grain.



the extra grain is not due to shooting raw. That is either an ISO problem or under exposure that is then "corrected" in RAW (under exposed images have more grain showing than properly exposed images - but hey, we all under expose periodically!)

RAW has it's benefits - being able to adjust white balance post shooting is one of them, tweaking exposure is another. Yes, it does add an extra step to your post processing workflow, but when you NEED the shots to come out, RAW can save your butt. I shoot RAW outdoors or when I am in a situation when the light/color variables are constantly changing. If I'm just shooting for fun (like my kids at the park) I pop in in AV mode with AWB and shoot away!

[Kim2002]

I just started shooting RAW last month. I hate post-processing with JPGs but the RAW editor makes it a breeze. And yes, the extra noise is a result of the exposure not being correct. You can only make so many adjustments before you get some grain/noise.

[Theresa Hernandez]

I worked with a professional photographer over the weekend at my daughter's harvest festival. She took the photos and then I cropped and printed them. She shot in RAW and the files were freakishly huge, took forever to load, but once they were loaded, they looked great and Kim is right, the post-processing was easy.

[mamakimberly]

Well, according to the photography manual I read on RAW vs. JPG, RAW increases grain.

And based on the pictures I took-- and yes I know exposure affects that-- but I took pics in both .jpg and RAW on the same day, same kids, same lighting--- and the RAW pics have more grain.

I could be wrong though.

[dreamscrapper]

Perhaps the grain is in how you processed the RAW files? RAW definitely does not increase grain!

[Kim2002]

Here's an idea for ya.....before putting any adjustments to your CRW file, just open it up in the editor and select OPEN. This will open your image exactly the way it was shot without any post-processing. Save this with a new name like "original CRW".

Now go back and open up the CRW file in the editor again and do your post-processing. Select OPEN and then save it as a new document with the name "processed CRW".

Now open up both images side-by-side and compare them. Which has more grain?

[Serena Thomas]

I just started shooting RAW last month. I hate post-processing with JPGs but the RAW editor makes it a breeze. And yes, the extra noise is a result of the exposure not being correct. You can only make so many adjustments before you get some grain/noise.

What RAW editor do you use Kim? Anyone have any suggestions to add to Adobe Lightroom? Any books?

[Hom74]

Hmmmm....I'm just able to edit it in PSCS2. though I just started trying out RAW recently. I was concerned about the noise too...but I thought it depended on the photo viewer I was using. I noticed that it looked noiser in Adobe PhotoShop Album Started looked like there was noise on it while opening it up in PSCS2 or ACDSee produced different results.

[Kim2002]

What RAW editor do you use Kim? Anyone have any suggestions to add to Adobe Lightroom? Any books?

I use the editor that came with my camera. It was on the Canon disc.

[Deanna]

i shoot raw mostly esp on shoots..it can be such a life saver, in times when you goof on things...I hate how much room it takes on the card, and the time to upload, but I love how fast I can post process things..

[Angela]

Hmm...I've never had an issue with grain and RAW, unless I underexposed the shot.

[Kim_Weiss]

I just started shooting RAW a couple months ago, and I don't know why I waited so long!! I don't find it's any more time consuming than normal post processing... and I love being able to adjust white balance after the fact. In changing light situations, it's not always ideal to use a grey card over and over. And it's nice to be able to fix *minor* exposure problems.

I've just been using the RAW converter that comes with PS CS2.

[StephMPow]

I shooot almost exclusively in RAW. Only time I don't is when I have limited room on my card and no place to offload my images. I love the flexibility I have when editing. I can adjust exposure, which is important sometimes. I can also tweak white balance if I have to. You never know when that one shot needs to be salvaged. RAW gives me a better chance to fix something that goes awry.

exactly what she sad
as an aspiring digi photographer, its the only way togo

[rebecca]

I shoot in RAW for the most part. Sure it takes up more space so I invested in bigger cards! I have never had an issue with noise not unless it was a photo that was underexposed but then regardless of what format it was there would be noise. Honestly to me my photos seem cleaner and clearer. I noticed the difference the first time I shot in RAW and never went back. It is however a personal preference thing. Try it you might like it!

[LauraKaye]

Scott Kelby's book "The Photoshop Elements 4 book for Digital Photographers" has great instructions for using RAW. His book just might convince you! He has one for CS2 as well.

[StephMPow]

the extra grain is not due to shooting raw. That is either an ISO problem or under exposure that is then "corrected" in RAW (under exposed images have more grain showing than properly exposed images - but hey, we all under expose periodically!)

RAW has it's benefits - being able to adjust white balance post shooting is one of them, tweaking exposure is another. Yes, it does add an extra step to your post processing workflow, but when you NEED the shots to come out, RAW can save your butt. I shoot RAW outdoors or when I am in a situation when the light/color variables are constantly changing. If I'm just shooting for fun (like my kids at the park) I pop in in AV mode with AWB and shoot away!

what she said,

you need to be shooting 100 or 200 ISO
400+ is for the birds

[StephMPow]

I'll also add that when i first got my 30D i shot in raw+jpeg format and my raws looked way better than my others.

check out my blog (scroll past the sbpages) and you'll see my pictures taken in RAW

[KristinCB]

I love RAW and can't imagine going back. I forgot that I reset my camera and forgot to change back to raw.

For those who want to try raw a really good program is photoshop lightroom, its a free beta program available :D :D:D

[Serena Thomas]

Thanks for all the input. I think I will give it a try but not until after Halloween. Don't want to risk missing those pictures.

[lcbannon]

I am so glad i saw the grain comments been having that same prob myself will check my iso. Thanks all

[GingerT]

I love RAW -- I do notice grain more -- but it is just because I underexposed a tad and thus the noise. If it is really noisey I just use Neat Image to clean it up a bit.

[karah]

I LOVE RAW! It's a PAIn when looking through to pick and choose which to get rid of before I begin my post-processing, but it's worth it. I use it for any professional shoots I do. For my family photos and everyday pics, I just shoot in jpg. (largest).

Another thing about RAW and grain - some settings you choose in the RAW dialogue can mess with the grain. I've noticed that peoples faces can get speckled looking if I increase the sharpness. I usually lower that all the way and just run an unsharp mask over the image when I'm done editing.

I have to tell you too - RAW has saved my butt. I did one engagement shoot where the couple chose a location I had never been. We picked a great time of day - plenty of light. Lo and behold, the location was on the backside of a mountain and it was really dark. The pics look terrible SOOC but after processing the RAW images, they really turned out awesome and my clients completely loved them. I could have never made that big of an adjustment with a jpg without making the image completely grainy or pixelated.

:)

[Plucky]

When shooting in any lighting situation and with almost any camera, the benefits of using a light meter. Setting your custom white balance and getting a correct exposure setting on your camera with a gray card or zebra card would be most benefitial... EVEN when shooting in RAW. You CANNOT get great results without getting great exposure, and being as much as half a stop off in exposure will introduce noise into the images shot, and this is regardless of ISO. I've seen some of the best photography in the world and it was shot at 400, getting the exposure correct is key, they can be virtually grain free.

Digital shooting, is much like slide film shooting, exposure is everything, sure... you can fix a ton of issues in photoshop, but you cant get a GREAT image from a poorly or even slightly under/overexposed image.

I'd suggest a class or two for anyone interested in improving their photo skills. They're offered at most universities and some community colleges across the US and I'm sure are available in other countries.

The majority of professionals and a lot of amateurs are shooting in RAW and getting superb results. My understanding is that how you process these files ...ie which program you use, has a TON to do with the results. I'm currently researching this ATM and will come back and post when I find easy to comprehend research and share.

~Katy

[bethwillis]

I have to chime in here with my opinion too :) the grain people are getting has NOTHING to do with RAW images. And some things have already been addressed, like underexposure, and high ISO's that contribute to grain but shooting RAW nope not going to increase grain.

I shoot RAW ALL THE TIME and LOVE it! Yes they are WAY bigger files then JPG and take up more space on your memory cards so you can't shoot as many pictures and take up more space on your computer and are slower to open, especially if you don't have a great computer, BUT a RAW image is a non-compressed image so it's all the original file detail, you don't loose anything like you do when the camera compresses a jpg. You can also make major changees on a RAW image if you need to, for instance White Balance adjustments. If you can set the white balance on your camera and accidently shoot outside with it set on flash then you can just open up your images in a RAW program (I use Nikon Capture- and LOVE it) and switch your white balance to what you need it to be, in this case I would change it to a daylight setting or use a picture of a gray card I took in the same setting and do a custom white balance. Then you can "batch" your images and change all the settings at once with a click of the button, you CAN'T do this with jpg images. In my opinion you shoot JPG if you're settings are PERFECT, your exposure, white balance, lighting, etc. You shoot RAW if you want to be able to make some changes.

That's why I LOVE RAW. :)