Raw ?

[terri]

I just changed my camera setting to take pics in RAW. I noticed it did take in RAW & JPEG. I have Corel Paint Shop Pro XI but when I tried to open the pics in it it only opened the jpeg and had a file named CR2 beside it. Whats this? I know Corel is supposed to open RAW pics. Also, in one of my cheaper editing programs it opened both files, jpeg & raw but for some reason the jpeg looked better than the raw. Whats up with this???
Thanks for any help!
Terri

[LensBaby]

What kind of camera do you have? That sounds like Camera Raw to me. Did you try your camera software to open up the photo? Raw is great....If you have a canon I can help you out. You open the photos in your zoom browser, if you have a canon, and then go to where it says process RAW. (it is under edit) Let me know if you have a Canon or not. I have a Canon 40D

[jerryph]

This is normal.

A JPG will initially look better than a RAW file becuase it has internal post processing done to it, whereas the RAW file is just that... a file that has had no additional processing done to it. The superior quality of the RAW file comes out when you post process it. Thing of a JPG as the finished product, and the RAW as your negative.

RAW has many advantages over JPG... if you do a search on the internet, you fill find hundreds of articles that discuss them in detail. One is ease of white balance adjustment, greater latitude of exposure adjustments and no generational losses of details if saved over and over.

[terri]

Lensbaby & Jerryph, I have a Canon 40d too. Well that makes sense now.
I didn't realize I still had to process the RAW pic... By processing do you mean adjusting the color or exposure etc...or is it "processed" once it is opened up.

I guess I'm wondering...if a pic is good, color,exposure,white balance and all I wouldn't want to have to go through the trouble to process it. I mean, I'm not that great about judging color & exposure. Do you HAVE to work on a RAW pic to make it look better or does it automatically "process" once you open it through a program?

Hope this made sense, LOL

[dkippen]

Terry -

I have a Canon as well.

You don't "have to" process a RAW file. What RAW does is give you more creativity in changing the white balance, tweaking colors/curves, changing exposure etc. In your RAW converter, such as Camera Raw or Canon's DPP, you can choose to have the program "automatically" adjust the color, exposure, etc. or you can adjust those settings yourself. If you think the picture is good, WB is correct, and exposure looks good, then you don't have to do anything except save as a jpeg. The downside to "processing" is that if you think it looks good or you make changes that look good to you, ten different people may have done something totally different. Bottom line - it's your view that matters and how you want to apply your style. Hope all this makes sense.

[jerryph]

RAW is the basic file that you modify and then "save as" a JPG because printers, the web and other places do not view/use RAW files. RAW to JPG gives me pictures much better than if I let the camera give me a JPG picture.

Thats about as simply as I can put it.

[LensBaby]

I actually save my raws as a tiff, and a jpeg. Jpeg for sites like this forum etc. I also keep a digital negative of all of my raws.