Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Slovenia, probably |
Did not read the whole thread, but here are some things to clear things up:
a) Raw is mostly just the data that the sensor records, with very little interpretation happening. Raw (or rather, dng and pef) is not an image format, its just a container of raw data. This data has to be turned into an image file. Jpeg is the image type that is most easily used and allows compression. Compression makes file size smaller, but it makes image quality go down. Jpeg usually also has smaller bit depth, so there is less nuance than in the raw data. Things like WB can be shifted with a raw image without losing any quality, but jpeg will deteriorate with each edit.
b) Raw data does not look good. You need to develop it, post process it. If the camera makes jpegs for you, it does this on its own. You can change many settings to get the kind of in-camera PP you want. Jpeg mode, WB, lens correction, shadow correction, noise reduction, etc. If you shoot raw, you have to use software (RawTherapee, Lightroom, Faststone, etc.) to do that yourself. You can automate the software to do many of these things on its own. Computers are more powerful than the camera so you can use more advanced algorithms and do more specific edits and raw files contain more data, information, than jpegs
c) Raw is better only if you edit it better. Without any PP it looks grey, unsharp, not great. Once you PP it, it can look exactly the same as in-camera jpegs (if you use the SilkyPix software that came with camera), it can look better (if you know what you are doing or want to do something the in-camera processing cannot), or it can look worse. Skills, software, and artistic taste depend on you.
d) Some people set camera to record raw and also a processed jpeg. This takes a lot of space, but this way they have jpegs to show and send immediately, as well as the raw data to prove its their image and to edit it later if they so please.
e) Raw vs. jpeg has other consequences. For example, burst mode speed will be different depending what you choose. And choosing in-camera PP options like distortion correction will also take more time (even if you shoot raw, because all of the corrections still get applied to the preview thumbnail that gets embedded into the raw container, dng or pef)
What should you do? Shoot jpeg. If you don't like those results or want different results, fiddle with the jpeg settings (you can select film reversal jpeg mode, different sharpening, NR, etc). If you want more control still, you should shoot raw and use software and develop your skills. With raw, you can easily tweak things like brightness, contrast, sharpness, remove dust spots, etc. and you can always reset back to original data. This is why its so attractive. Most people start with jpeg, then learn, and eventually graduate to raw.
Many raw software come with nice cataloging options. Oh, and if you shoot raw, you will have to use the software to export the raw into a jpeg, so you can send the jpeg, use it online, etc. You can resize and choose compression when you do that. When you are finished with the jpeg, you can just delete it and keep the raw data. The software will remember the editing you did on the raw and will always allow you to "reset" back to original.
Most if not all pros shot raw because they want full control. Some pros chose jpeg when they need maximum burst mode speed. Or raw+ when they need to send the jpeg to a client immediately but want to keep raw as well. This is why when it comes to top level cameras, most people just keep it in raw only; but you don't need to.
The choice is yours
|