If I shot a picture in RAW

BethC · 10-01-2009, 08:44 AM

and the girls white dress is overexposed...is there a way to fix that?

netuser · 10-01-2009, 08:53 AM

it might

Open in adobe camera raw for instance and use the available slide tools to recover your image.

Quite pretty easy since is very user friendly.

BethC · 10-01-2009, 09:02 AM

I wish I had adobe camera Raw. I hear great things about it. I'm just using the Pentax software that came with my camera for Raw images. I'm not having much luck fixing it. So I wasn't sure if it was a lost cause, or if I just don't know what I'm doing.

bymy141 · 10-01-2009, 09:52 AM

Originally Posted by BethC

I wish I had adobe camera Raw. I hear great things about it. I'm just using the Pentax software that came with my camera for Raw images. I'm not having much luck fixing it. So I wasn't sure if it was a lost cause, or if I just don't know what I'm doing.

You can download Adobe trial versions of their website.
Check out Adobe's Lightroom trail version as well: import the picture in Lightroom, click on develop, drag the recovery slider to the right.

- Bert

atupdate · 10-01-2009, 11:10 AM

Here is a forum post on a free Raw converter. It allows adjusting the exposure level.

Raw Therapee: free RAW converter/photo editor

If you read through the post, you will find a couple of other freeware possiblities.

Tim

tlwyse · 10-01-2009, 11:30 AM

Originally Posted by BethC

and the girls white dress is overexposed...is there a way to fix that?

If it were Lightroom or Adobe Camera Raw, one might reduce the exposure until the highlight detail was revealed and then possibly use a curve move to brighten up the now-underexposed midtones...

...or reduce the contrast slider to recover the detail and readjust brightness slider....

...or use the newer (highlight) Recovery slider (it will darken things slightly but not like the exposure adjustment slider) and then come back with Fill Light to brighten things back up again.....lots of ways to skin that cat!

In any raw convertor, you should at least have the basic option of applying negative exposure compensation until you see the highlights recover (or not) and then come back with a curve move or similar to brighten up the too-dark midtone areas while still retaining the highlight detail.

Regards,
Terry

BethC · 10-01-2009, 12:12 PM

Thanks for the responses guys! I will definetly try a couple things that were suggested. I did have one of the free RAW converters, but had trouble with both freezing up. That's why I just stuck with the Pentax one. I may go try one on that list again.

**Marc Sabatella** · 10-01-2009, 02:35 PM

If with the Pentax software you reduce exposure (called "sensitivity" and you don't gain any detail - it just turns flat gray - then it is probably too overexposed to fix. But if turning exposure down in the Pentax software does reveal detail, you can then apply a curve there to brighten the rest of the image (drag center of curve upwards), and that might do a decent job. Other programs have more controls to recover the detail in highlgihts without affecting the rest of the images so much in the first place, and can probabyl give somewhat better results. But they'll only work if there is detail there to work with, and if there is detail there, then PPL can work with it too.

rfortson · 10-02-2009, 02:54 PM

Originally Posted by Marc Sabatella

If with the Pentax software you reduce exposure (called "sensitivity" and you don't gain any detail - it just turns flat gray - then it is probably too overexposed to fix. But if turning exposure down in the Pentax software does reveal detail, you can then apply a curve there to brighten the rest of the image (drag center of curve upwards), and that might do a decent job. Other programs have more controls to recover the detail in highlgihts without affecting the rest of the images so much in the first place, and can probabyl give somewhat better results. But they'll only work if there is detail there to work with, and if there is detail there, then PPL can work with it too.

Yes, what Marc said. You don't need any other photo editor to do this (though you can get more features/controls with some others, no doubt). Just adjust the sensitivity in the Pentax software and see if there's still detail in the dress. If so, then you can work from there. If not, then convert it to some sort of an "artsy" black and white high key image.

*janosh* · 10-02-2009, 03:12 PM

If you have Photoshop or something with similar brushes you might dodge/burn to save detail in the white while not changing anything else...if it's not totally blown out. Traditional darkroom technique :-) I love Lightroom but I don't like its dodge/burn brushes as well as Photoshop's.

davemdsn · 10-02-2009, 03:52 PM

In some cultures shooting in the raw can get you arrested.

BethC · 10-02-2009, 05:23 PM

LOL @ davemdsn...

Thanks so much for the suggestion to reduce the sensitivity! It worked. There was details left and I think it looks pretty good. I don't know if the picture was worth saving, but I'm very excited to know how to save a picture like this!

*FHPhotographer* · 10-02-2009, 08:57 PM

Originally Posted by davemdsn

In some cultures shooting in the raw can get you arrested.

Ah, ain't it the truth. As my old pappy use to say, it's crazy to be sober in a world gone drunk,
Brian

David Glazebrook · 10-03-2009, 03:37 PM

Originally Posted by davemdsn

In some cultures shooting in the raw can get you arrested.

Thats why I shoot DNG. I use to shoot PEF but it sounded like somethning else offensive.

clmonk · 10-06-2009, 09:41 AM

DaveMDSN wote: In some cultures shooting in the raw can get you arrested.

In my opinion in this situation they just need to adjust sensitivity levels.