Raw vs. Jpeg

Raw vs. Jpeg

 Upon talking to two friends of mine the other day, I was asked about Raw formats, what’s good or bad about them and should they be using the Raw when they shoot.

 

What is Raw Format?

Raw means that not all of the information associated with the image is compressed. In the Raw format you can adjust some of the information and have minimal loss of quality. You can adjust exposure, colors and contrast, etc.

 Have you ever cropped a Jpeg and it becomes pixilated? Yes, limited! Enough said because I’m sure you all have done this at least once! I know I have.

 The drawback is that these files are extremely huge and will eat up your space on the storage card. Also when your files are loaded to your computer, you will NOT be able to see any of the images until you use a Raw Conversion Software.

 There are many free conversion only software and you can find those by a general search. I think its better to find software that has Raw conversion and gives you tools to make adjustments.

 I prefer Lightroom to Photoshop for this process. This will be a decision only you can make and according to how you want your workflow to go.

 If you want to convert the files to a Jpeg format , then use another program to make adjustments, you will begin to lose data and freedom you would have had if you had chosen a program that will let you see the file as it is raw, adjust what you like, then convert.

 When to use Raw? I can not answer this for you. You know what your knowledge and skills are, I do not.

 

If you have not learned basics… use Raw to save yourself and a few photos that you really want to keep! Then go back to my Basics portion of the blog and LEARN what Shutter, Aperture, and ISO ARE!!  Please do not be photographing for people and not have a clear understanding of these. You are not giving your clients/friends/family what they deserve. You are not going to become a good photographer winging it!

Still needing photos for my Photo of the Week portion for my blog.
Criteria:
Small bio
Watermarked Image
Image Settings
Equipment
Software
Story behind the photo
Send to : Laymanphotography@windstream.net

Thank you all for your continued participation and support.