Comments on: RAW vs Jpg

By: iffles

iffles — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 00:47:34 +0000

D'oh! Yes, that is what I meant. I've fixed it now – thanks for pointing it out!

By: daisy_dpksh

daisy_dpksh — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 22:15:47 +0000

When you said “…or have a piece of software on your camera that can view RAW files.” do you mean a piece of software on your *computer*?

By: iffles

iffles — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 03:14:50 +0000

I convert every photo that I edit into jpg once I'm done editing, yes.

I don't know how you're converting to jpg, but I don't seem to experience the pixelated problem. Check out whatever options you're using when saving it as jpg - for instance, I use Gimp, and I just do Save As and then save with a .jpg extension - I'll get a second dialog box that asks what Quality I want, and I set it to 100%, there's also a bunch of Advanced options I've never looked at, keeping the default values. Perhaps whatever program you're using has some options, too? And maybe something's set there that's trying to optimize for file size and not image quality.

I've also heard that some programs like Photoshop have a "Save for web" and that you shouldn't use that because it delivers poor results. I don't know if that's true or not, just something I read somewhere once! :)

By: Caitra

Caitra — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 23:22:28 +0000

This is really informative and has helped me a lot. One thing I'm wondering about is do you always convert your raw files to jpg once you've finished editing or just when you intend to print them or post them online? I've just begun to shoot in raw but I've found that once I convert to jpg the pictures are looking very pixelated

By: Stephen321

Stephen321 — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 23:25:49 +0000

Hi. I'm just getting back into photography, collecting many cameras and lenses and starting to seriously shoot. Found your web site and I like what you are doing.

Was going to pick up the latest Rebel and lenses this fall but opted to go with a Mamiya 645 Medium format film camera instead. Just love medium format and am shooting 6×6 and now, 6×4.5 as well. Still have my digital point and click and it's perfect for some situations and has some add-ons like a wide angle converter and a tele-photo converter so it's somewhat flexible for a small digital with a fixed zoom lens.

Well come back in a few weeks and explore your web site a bit more, your gallery shots are interesting. I like the way you have been able to take a common subject where one would be tempted to say there is nothing of interest and you've turned it into something of interest. I've selected a nearby historic village for my first major and long term project and will do the web site thing with it as I start to accumulate images worth publishing.

By: Tony

Tony — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 18:41:02 +0000

Great article! I just made the switch from point-and-shoot to DSLR a little more than a month ago. One of the settings I changed was to shoot primarily in JPEG. I opted to go with this choice primarily for greater number pictures that could be stored vs. RAW or RAW + JPEG options. I just did a comparison for myself and I'm impressed with the results that RAW gave me! Like you, I will most likely stick with JPEG for family gatherings and other general things. However, I will certainly go for RAW for more critical shoots. Looks like I'll need to up my compactflash arsenal – LOL.

I plan to give it a go at a wedding that I'm attending this weekend. I'm not the official photographer (thankfully for the Bride & Groom – I'm still a novice), so I have a chance to experiment and really put my new camera to the test. I expect exposure and lighting to be issues, so shooting in RAW will allow me to fix any of those issues after the fact. Though it won't totally make up for my relative lack of skills… ; )

By: bobwalley

bobwalley — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 13:27:21 +0000

I have been back and forth between shooting in jpg and RAW. I know the process behind each but have not done the side by side comparison that you have done for me. That being said, I've decided to shoot RAW files all the time now based on what I have read and seen here. Thanks for helping me with my decision

By: Kelly

Kelly — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 02:39:59 +0000

I keep meaning to try out RAW some time, but haven’t flipped the switch yet. Thanks for the great comparison between the two. The beauty of digital is that it doesn’t cost anything to do a little experimentation!

By: Luke

Luke — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 00:45:53 +0000

I am really happy I found your site via DPS. Thanks for the info and the comparisons. I feel like such a beginner and hope I can advance as you have over the next year. I bought my first DSLR last month and I am becoming a photo information nut.

Cheers,

Luke

By: iffles

iffles — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 23:17:42 +0000

Dude. I LOVE my drobo. I currently have 2 1TB drives in mine. It's also probably a bad idea because I don't bother doing any cutting back of images and I save every single one. Even ones that should obviously be rejects. But… drobo! I can't help myself!