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Alan 2 · 08-01-2008, 02:21 PM

Originally Posted by deludel

Did you ever get so confused that you don't know what to ask to clear matters up? That's where I am on this Elements/RAW issue .. let me try to unscramble my question(s) for you ...

I have Elements 6/0 (had 5/0 previously) and just love the Organizer. It's a terrific tool for me. I recently enrolled in an 8-week online course for Elements, because I just didn't understand all those icons in Full Edit! The class is GREAT - I am in my 6th week and have learned tons. It's challenging, I dont find the Full Edit too user-friendly, considering this is supposed to be entry-level .. but I'm up for the challenge.

I saw this thread (K10D w/Adobe Raw 4.2 w/Photoshop Elements 6) from last year, but wanted to expand on the RAW-Elements Questions ....

I've recently shot some RAW files, and noticed they upload to Elements in PEF files. If I try to get them into Full Edit, it brings up a different type of Edit screen ... looks user-friendly, actually.

From what I understand from the attached thread, I need Adobe Camera RAW (ACR) to convert the files .. but ACR is embedded in Elements? So .. does that mean that "different looking full edit" IS ACR? I'm confused by this.

I guess what I need is some workflow understanding .. I've been simply putting my card in, uploading into Elements, and editing from there. It seems there is a more detailed workflow out there I should be aware of. I've heard of things like Bridge and Lightroom, but always assumed I did not need these because of Elements ... am I wrong?

To be clear - I'd like to be able to:
- ORGANIZE .. like the tagging feature
- EDIT .. want creative control when I need it
- CREATE .. am into slideshows and such
- RAW .. work with RAW files, although I have learning to do in this arena

So, is Elements 6.0 all I need?

I'll try and give you a handle on this.

When you shoot RAW elements will open the file in ACR (Adobe Camera Raw). You need this to convert the file into something elements can use as it can't edit PEF files directly. You may need to download the latest version of ACR if you're using a K200D or K20D. From there you can open the file in elements by using the open button at the bottom of ACR.

If you have a Mac then you will have bridge included in elements 6.0. On a PC you will have the organizer. Bridge is included in all versions of CS3. It's a type of organizer. I'm not familiar with the organizer in the PC version of elements 6.0 so I can't compare the two. Lightroom is basically a glorified organizer and an enhanced raw editor (compared to ACR in elements)

If your happy with the organizer in elements you really don't need Lightroom. It's made for High volume Pros who need to deal with many photos in a shoot. I use Aperture (Mac only) which has similarities to Lightroom. It's nice but with the amount I shoot I could get be with just using Bridge.

08-01-2008, 02:21 PM	#14
Alan 2 Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Madison WI U.S.A. Gallery Photos: 0 Posts: 53	Originally Posted by deludel Did you ever get so confused that you don't know what to ask to clear matters up? That's where I am on this Elements/RAW issue .. let me try to unscramble my question(s) for you ... I have Elements 6/0 (had 5/0 previously) and just love the Organizer. It's a terrific tool for me. I recently enrolled in an 8-week online course for Elements, because I just didn't understand all those icons in Full Edit! The class is GREAT - I am in my 6th week and have learned tons. It's challenging, I dont find the Full Edit too user-friendly, considering this is supposed to be entry-level .. but I'm up for the challenge. I saw this thread (K10D w/Adobe Raw 4.2 w/Photoshop Elements 6) from last year, but wanted to expand on the RAW-Elements Questions .... I've recently shot some RAW files, and noticed they upload to Elements in PEF files. If I try to get them into Full Edit, it brings up a different type of Edit screen ... looks user-friendly, actually. From what I understand from the attached thread, I need Adobe Camera RAW (ACR) to convert the files .. but ACR is embedded in Elements? So .. does that mean that "different looking full edit" IS ACR? I'm confused by this. I guess what I need is some workflow understanding .. I've been simply putting my card in, uploading into Elements, and editing from there. It seems there is a more detailed workflow out there I should be aware of. I've heard of things like Bridge and Lightroom, but always assumed I did not need these because of Elements ... am I wrong? To be clear - I'd like to be able to: - ORGANIZE .. like the tagging feature - EDIT .. want creative control when I need it - CREATE .. am into slideshows and such - RAW .. work with RAW files, although I have learning to do in this arena So, is Elements 6.0 all I need? I'll try and give you a handle on this. When you shoot RAW elements will open the file in ACR (Adobe Camera Raw). You need this to convert the file into something elements can use as it can't edit PEF files directly. You may need to download the latest version of ACR if you're using a K200D or K20D. From there you can open the file in elements by using the open button at the bottom of ACR. If you have a Mac then you will have bridge included in elements 6.0. On a PC you will have the organizer. Bridge is included in all versions of CS3. It's a type of organizer. I'm not familiar with the organizer in the PC version of elements 6.0 so I can't compare the two. Lightroom is basically a glorified organizer and an enhanced raw editor (compared to ACR in elements) If your happy with the organizer in elements you really don't need Lightroom. It's made for High volume Pros who need to deal with many photos in a shoot. I use Aperture (Mac only) which has similarities to Lightroom. It's nice but with the amount I shoot I could get be with just using Bridge.