[AquilaEagle]

I've not yet shot in RAW but I am going to start having seen some of the things that can be done having shot RAW.

However, I am not clear what I have to do to 'process' the images.

I have Photoshop CS so am equipped I think, but wouldn't mind some pointers before I try it.

[MyPix]

in theory the ' perfect ' shot doesnt require any post processing,

however, none of us are ' perfect' so we have to tweek the image to get as close as possible, RAW allows us to do this as the image captured has had no in camera alterations made to it, compared to jpg's which have been compressed from the original image capture size, and some cameras even alter exposure and colour ballance as well,

post processing a RAW image will not make it perfect, it will however make a good shot better if the right things are done to it, this can go from a simple selective crop to full on alteration , or anything in between,

the most comon use you will start out with is exposure compensation/alteration, as RAW gives you some latitude to do this, and then the colour alteration along with cropping, the more you do the more you will become used to using the tools within the programs,

hope this helps

MyPix

[AquilaEagle]

Right, so if i don't need to post process, i open the RAW file in PS and just save as a .jpg?

Is there a quick way to sort through and select the pics i want to work with?

How do you guys do it, say if you take 500 shots and are looking for the 5 good ones?

[Marianne]

another tip is to only take a few in RAW and the rest in jpg when you first start, just in case the session turns out to be a good one and you want to quickly edit one of the pics. Get to know the programme you are using by 'playing' with it. I found that to be the best way to learn. And never be afraid to ask questions I couldn't get over the 'wow' factor of editing a RAW image, you'll soon be hooked!

[MyPix]

Originally Posted by AquilaEagle

Right, so if i don't need to post process, i open the RAW file in PS and just save as a .jpg?

Is there a quick way to sort through and select the pics i want to work with?

How do you guys do it, say if you take 500 shots and are looking for the 5 good ones?

yup, you got it, and the advantage is that you always have the raw version should you wish to ' enhance ' it later,
i personally upload all my picures, and then open them with microsoft photo editor, it gives me full screen viewing of the jpg version with no progrms taking ages to launch, simple to close down to, then if i like the image and wish to work on it, i turn to the raw version sat next to it in the folder and use PS, i do however take a raw and jpg for every picture taken,

its just the way i do it,

and then as you say , you can save as jpg in PS , but give it a different title , as you will over-wright the original raw ( so if the raw was....img 1 , the jpg could be.... img 1a ....etc)

MyPix

[Arkady]

Use Adobe Bridge to select the image(s) you want then double click to open. You then get a RAW interface with loads of options.
You can alter the white balance (very useful - either by the camera pre-sets or by moving a slider back and forth - the image gets warmer or colder), exposure, hue/tint, curves - pretty much anything you want.
Once you're satisfied, click open and the image now opens into Photoshop. You can now do any other editing - layers etc before you save. I always save as a TIFF - every time you open and re-save a JPEG it loses some information, which is a BAD THING. Save the image as an uncompressed TIFF and then save it again as a JPEG for web use, re-sizing it accordingly.

I use seperate folders for RAW Images, TIFFs and JPEGs - RAW, Best and Transmission accordingly.

When you go to the next RAW image you can apply all the previous image's corrections automatically by selecting 'apply previous' in the drop-down menu.
You can even apply those values to a whole batch of images if they were all shot with the same exposure under the same conditions. Useful for studio work, but less applicable to photojournalism.

The best thing is if you bollox it all up, the original RAW file remains untouched so you can always go back to the start and try again.

[Boon]

I shot 40 RAW pictures the other day, first time i have ever done it, i haven't converted all of them yet, as it seems to be a very long winded job. I find that once you have the images, you tend to play with them, re-convert the original one time and time again, thus taking up loads of memory for just a few pictures, so treat them with care.
have fun
stevannie

[Arkady]

Once you start thinking of your RAW files as digital 'negatives' it makes more sense.
And yes it does take up space - that's what external hard-drives are for.

No-one said this was cheap.

[MyPix]

Originally Posted by Arkady

No-one said this was cheap.

no....but it can be done on a budget , which most of us have to live with,

unlike the military...


only joshing m8, i know the military waste lots more money on things like guns n stuff

but when you see 100gig HD's in pc world for £60 , there is never goin to be a problem with space...

MyPix

[Arkady]

...or 250Gb ones for £80... Bargain

[digitalfailure]

If your happy with the way they've come out, or you want to apply the same processing to them all, it can be done as a batch action (very easy in RSE/p). convert a set to Jpeg and go from there, all done in less time than it takes to drink a brew

I burn all my raw's to disc to reduce the space on my pooters.....i've had 2 Hdd's fail taking everything on them in to the next world

[AquilaEagle]

Thanks folks 2 q's:

Adobe Bridge? Is that part of Photoshop CS?

RSE/p ?? that is that?

Can it be done batch in PS?

[Steve]

RSE/p is RawShooter Essentials or the pay version RawShooter Premium. Both are available as free downloads for trial purposes. They also offer batch processing and the ability to split your images into different classes (best/good/ok or bin for example) then you can work on whichever you want to.

[digitalfailure]

Raw shooter essentials was a free program on one of digital photo magazines cover discs a few months ago.

Adobe bridge comes as part of CS2

[Boon]

Originally Posted by digitalfailure

Raw shooter essentials was a free program on one of digital photo magazines cover discs a few months ago.

Adobe bridge comes as part of CS2

i use CS2 but i cant say i've seen bridge before, Image ready yes, but cant remember seeing the other. Do you have to turn it on from within CS2 or export to it?
stevannie

[AquilaEagle]

ah CS2 - I still have to install that, job for tonight!

[Arkady]

It comes bundled together with Photoshop - or should - check you program list within the Adobe folder.
Alternatively you can open it from within Photoshop - little button top centre, next to the drop-down pallettes.

[Boon]

Originally Posted by Arkady

It comes bundled together with Photoshop - or should - check you program list within the Adobe folder.
Alternatively you can open it from within Photoshop - little button top centre, next to the drop-down pallettes.

had a look in the folder, not there, had a look for the little button, not there, in File , the File/close and go to Bridge is greyed out, so i obviously dont have it.
stevannie