Raw processing with Linux?

Emacs · 05-06-2011, 06:22 AM

Originally posted by Skog

but it's very slow compared to bibble, and it's not as complete.

Complete? LOL
DT provides much more functionality than bibble )

Marc Sabatella · 05-06-2011, 12:28 PM

I'm still on Windows, but over the last five or so have been gradually moving to open source applications and slowly getting to the point where I might be able to make the switch to Linux in the foreseeable future.

Until recently, there were two major things still tying me to Windows: Finale for music scoring, and ACDSee Pro for photo management/processing. After something like 15 years of being married to Finale - a marriage of convenience at best, as I never really *loved* the program - a viable open source replacement for Finale has finally become available: MuseScore. I've already made that switch on Windows.

So now, ACDSee is really the only thing keeping me on Windows. I'm in no hurry to replace it, as I really *do* love this program, but I figure I might as well at least be checking out what my options will be should a switch to Linux seem right for me. But none of the open source photo management / processing programs have seemed ready for prime time yet, and the leading contenders I see on Linux don't run (well) on Windows, so I can't even easily try them out.

From what I can tell, darktable seems to be the consensus here for a good basic "workflow" type of software (integrated management and image processing) in the open source world. digikam got only one mention that I saw, but that seemed to hold most promise to me when I was looking around a year ago. Is there anyone who has experience with both of these that compare them? I'm interest not just in terms of current capabilities, but also, an assessment of the future directions of these projects, and how they might compare with Lightroom / Aperture / ACDSee / Bibble (which are all quite similar).

Emacs · 05-07-2011, 03:32 AM

Originally posted by Marc Sabatella

I'm still on Windows, but over the last five or so have been gradually moving to open source applications and slowly getting to the point where I might be able to make the switch to Linux in the foreseeable future.

Until recently, there were two major things still tying me to Windows: Finale for music scoring, and ACDSee Pro for photo management/processing. After something like 15 years of being married to Finale - a marriage of convenience at best, as I never really *loved* the program - a viable open source replacement for Finale has finally become available: MuseScore. I've already made that switch on Windows.

So now, ACDSee is really the only thing keeping me on Windows. I'm in no hurry to replace it, as I really *do* love this program, but I figure I might as well at least be checking out what my options will be should a switch to Linux seem right for me. But none of the open source photo management / processing programs have seemed ready for prime time yet, and the leading contenders I see on Linux don't run (well) on Windows, so I can't even easily try them out.

From what I can tell, darktable seems to be the consensus here for a good basic "workflow" type of software (integrated management and image processing) in the open source world. digikam got only one mention that I saw, but that seemed to hold most promise to me when I was looking around a year ago. Is there anyone who has experience with both of these that compare them? I'm interest not just in terms of current capabilities, but also, an assessment of the future directions of these projects, and how they might compare with Lightroom / Aperture / ACDSee / Bibble (which are all quite similar).

IMO you are too late. Lame idiots from Gnome Foundation and stupid M.Shuttlewroth managed to screw the UX completely with their amateurish stuff stolen from iPhone.

Skog · 05-07-2011, 03:48 AM

Originally posted by Emacs

Complete? LOL
DT provides much more functionality than bibble )

Much more gizmo's and doohickeys yes. But it's lacking in important core functionality and ease of use. I can't figure out how to show 2-4 or 6 images at the same time, to compare sharpness or other aspects. This is a simple yet vital function in my workflow. There is no support for working with layers. It's quite slow compared to bibble. And the overall workflow is less intuitive. I am biased towards bibble though, since I know it better. I will be monitoring it closely however, since it is the best open source alternative I have tried so far.

Peter Anson · 05-07-2011, 05:43 AM

"and the leading contenders I see on Linux don't run (well) on Windows, so I can't even easily try them out."
Give Bibble a try Mark. It's cross platform. It works beautifully on Ubuntu and XP. I did use digikam a couple of times but it seemed to be in too many places at once.

Skog · 05-07-2011, 12:42 PM

I found this page with very good video tutorials of darktable: The p-Code Machine Darktable 0.7 Screencast Library

Download these if you want to learn, since the text documentation on the homepage is much harder to follow (and boring). I found these videos very informative, and needed, since the DT gui and workflow is a bit geeky/advanced.

Marc Sabatella · 05-07-2011, 03:01 PM

Oh, Bibble I know, and I agree, it's great. But part of my move isn't just Windows to Linux, it's proprietary to open source. And let's be straight about this - it's not just the principle, it's the money.

**ashurbanipal** · 05-07-2011, 05:11 PM

Originally posted by Marc Sabatella

Oh, Bibble I know, and I agree, it's great. But part of my move isn't just Windows to Linux, it's proprietary to open source. And let's be straight about this - it's not just the principle, it's the money.

I did the same move a while back. I use Digikam for cataloging/captioning/tagging/geotagging/uploading tasks, and darktable for raw conversion. I'm lazy though--I primarily shoot jpeg, and only fall back on raw conversion when I'm not satisfied with the out-of-the-camera result. I'm interested in seeing how Digikam handles raw conversions once version 2.0 makes it to a stable stage; right now I'm using version 1.4.0 since it's stable on my system (Ubuntu 10.10). For my needs, raw conversion in Digikam is OK, but darktable seems to fit the way I think better, and is easier for me to tweak; it also seems more responsive. I'm looking forward to updating Digikam once the 2.0 version hits a non-beta release.

**jbinpg** · 05-07-2011, 06:47 PM

I expected to be an ubuntu 11.04 Unity hater as well but it is growing on me. It is just an interface.

**newmikey** · 05-07-2011, 06:53 PM

Originally posted by jbinpg

It is just an interface.

I like that approach. You use whatever works best on your machine and allows you to run your favorite apps. I run PCLinuxOS but any flavor of *nix is fine by me.

Did try Darktable and Photivo (both excellent choices) but I'll stick to UFRaw as its batch mode integrates perfectly in my customs built bash scripts. I usually expose right in the camera and know what I want the scripts to do - no need for interactive previews on-screen. However, this IS open source so nobody says you should use only one app, right?

Trojan_Llama · 05-14-2011, 02:39 PM

Another vote for Gimp and UFRaw. Some of the faceplates can be a tad bit tricky to use on my low res Net book (pre-installed with Windows XP, but I blitzed it with Ubuntu), but I use them for my photos.

**newmikey** · 05-15-2011, 02:05 AM

Just as a "by the way" guys: after having run NeatImage under WINE for so long, the new version 7 comes in native Win, Mac and Linux versions. Slowly but surely programs are becoming more and more cross-platform, their market more diverse. So just by having chosen Linux and Open-Source as your mainstay system, that does not mean anymore that you are entirely cut off from non-free software - best of both worlds, really...

raptor · 05-16-2011, 08:48 AM

Hi @all, I´m new in this forum and I´m using Linux too. To convert my RAW-Files I use the attached skript as a batch-workflow. To start the skript in Ubuntu you need to install these packages:
apt-get install ufraw-batch imagemagick hugin libimage-exiftool-perl jhead
Use the skript:
- unpack the ZIP-File
- In a terminal:
cd <directory of unpacked file>
./rawConverter.sh pathOfFile/RAW-File1 pathOfFile/RAW-File2 pathOfFile/RAW-FileN

Tippon · 05-16-2011, 11:41 AM

Originally posted by Marc Sabatella

So now, ACDSee is really the only thing keeping me on Windows. I'm in no hurry to replace it, as I really *do* love this program, but I figure I might as well at least be checking out what my options will be should a switch to Linux seem right for me. But none of the open source photo management / processing programs have seemed ready for prime time yet, and the leading contenders I see on Linux don't run (well) on Windows, so I can't even easily try them out.

Have you tried running ACDSee under Wine in Linux? It's obviously not an open source solution, but it might mean that you can switch to Linux now, rather than holding off until you find another program

rhodopsin · 05-16-2011, 12:24 PM

+1 newmikey suggestions. I use DCRAW with ImageMagick. Both are (scriptable) command-line utilities.

Problem with GIMP is no 16-bit color support (yet) -- import conversion from 16-bit raw to 8-bit GIMP-usable format loses data!

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Linux: batch raw conversion script w/ ISO-dependent processing	Quicksand	Digital Processing, Software, and Printing	8	07-14-2016 11:53 AM
Processing RAW files in Linux (Ubuntu)	krishna	Troubleshooting and Beginner Help	9	04-23-2010 10:58 PM
K-7 Raw processing on linux; dull colors	K7er	Digital Processing, Software, and Printing	10	03-08-2010 07:45 PM
Linux -- Ubuntu Karmic 9.10, libraw 0.8.5, Raw file processing	K7er	Digital Processing, Software, and Printing	4	01-13-2010 08:35 PM
RAW Processing in Linux	soprano	Digital Processing, Software, and Printing	21	07-20-2009 03:43 PM

05-06-2011, 06:22 AM	#31
Emacs Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Moscow Posts: 1,223	Originally posted by Skog but it's very slow compared to bibble, and it's not as complete. Complete? LOL DT provides much more functionality than bibble )

05-06-2011, 12:28 PM	#32
Marc Sabatella Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Denver, CO Photos: Gallery Posts: 10,685	I'm still on Windows, but over the last five or so have been gradually moving to open source applications and slowly getting to the point where I might be able to make the switch to Linux in the foreseeable future. Until recently, there were two major things still tying me to Windows: Finale for music scoring, and ACDSee Pro for photo management/processing. After something like 15 years of being married to Finale - a marriage of convenience at best, as I never really loved the program - a viable open source replacement for Finale has finally become available: MuseScore. I've already made that switch on Windows. So now, ACDSee is really the only thing keeping me on Windows. I'm in no hurry to replace it, as I really do love this program, but I figure I might as well at least be checking out what my options will be should a switch to Linux seem right for me. But none of the open source photo management / processing programs have seemed ready for prime time yet, and the leading contenders I see on Linux don't run (well) on Windows, so I can't even easily try them out. From what I can tell, darktable seems to be the consensus here for a good basic "workflow" type of software (integrated management and image processing) in the open source world. digikam got only one mention that I saw, but that seemed to hold most promise to me when I was looking around a year ago. Is there anyone who has experience with both of these that compare them? I'm interest not just in terms of current capabilities, but also, an assessment of the future directions of these projects, and how they might compare with Lightroom / Aperture / ACDSee / Bibble (which are all quite similar).

05-07-2011, 03:32 AM	#33
Emacs Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Moscow Posts: 1,223	Originally posted by Marc Sabatella I'm still on Windows, but over the last five or so have been gradually moving to open source applications and slowly getting to the point where I might be able to make the switch to Linux in the foreseeable future. Until recently, there were two major things still tying me to Windows: Finale for music scoring, and ACDSee Pro for photo management/processing. After something like 15 years of being married to Finale - a marriage of convenience at best, as I never really loved the program - a viable open source replacement for Finale has finally become available: MuseScore. I've already made that switch on Windows. So now, ACDSee is really the only thing keeping me on Windows. I'm in no hurry to replace it, as I really do love this program, but I figure I might as well at least be checking out what my options will be should a switch to Linux seem right for me. But none of the open source photo management / processing programs have seemed ready for prime time yet, and the leading contenders I see on Linux don't run (well) on Windows, so I can't even easily try them out. From what I can tell, darktable seems to be the consensus here for a good basic "workflow" type of software (integrated management and image processing) in the open source world. digikam got only one mention that I saw, but that seemed to hold most promise to me when I was looking around a year ago. Is there anyone who has experience with both of these that compare them? I'm interest not just in terms of current capabilities, but also, an assessment of the future directions of these projects, and how they might compare with Lightroom / Aperture / ACDSee / Bibble (which are all quite similar). IMO you are too late. Lame idiots from Gnome Foundation and stupid M.Shuttlewroth managed to screw the UX completely with their amateurish stuff stolen from iPhone.

05-07-2011, 03:48 AM	#34
Skog Inactive Account Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 167	Originally posted by Emacs Complete? LOL DT provides much more functionality than bibble ) Much more gizmo's and doohickeys yes. But it's lacking in important core functionality and ease of use. I can't figure out how to show 2-4 or 6 images at the same time, to compare sharpness or other aspects. This is a simple yet vital function in my workflow. There is no support for working with layers. It's quite slow compared to bibble. And the overall workflow is less intuitive. I am biased towards bibble though, since I know it better. I will be monitoring it closely however, since it is the best open source alternative I have tried so far.

05-07-2011, 05:43 AM	#35
Peter Anson Inactive Account Join Date: May 2010 Location: Sydney Photos: Albums Posts: 211	"and the leading contenders I see on Linux don't run (well) on Windows, so I can't even easily try them out." Give Bibble a try Mark. It's cross platform. It works beautifully on Ubuntu and XP. I did use digikam a couple of times but it seemed to be in too many places at once.

05-07-2011, 12:42 PM	#36
Skog Inactive Account Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 167	I found this page with very good video tutorials of darktable: The p-Code Machine Darktable 0.7 Screencast Library Download these if you want to learn, since the text documentation on the homepage is much harder to follow (and boring). I found these videos very informative, and needed, since the DT gui and workflow is a bit geeky/advanced.

05-07-2011, 03:01 PM	#37
Marc Sabatella Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Denver, CO Photos: Gallery Posts: 10,685	Oh, Bibble I know, and I agree, it's great. But part of my move isn't just Windows to Linux, it's proprietary to open source. And let's be straight about this - it's not just the principle, it's the money.

05-07-2011, 05:11 PM	#38
ashurbanipal Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Lincoln, Nebraska Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 515	Originally posted by Marc Sabatella Oh, Bibble I know, and I agree, it's great. But part of my move isn't just Windows to Linux, it's proprietary to open source. And let's be straight about this - it's not just the principle, it's the money. I did the same move a while back. I use Digikam for cataloging/captioning/tagging/geotagging/uploading tasks, and darktable for raw conversion. I'm lazy though--I primarily shoot jpeg, and only fall back on raw conversion when I'm not satisfied with the out-of-the-camera result. I'm interested in seeing how Digikam handles raw conversions once version 2.0 makes it to a stable stage; right now I'm using version 1.4.0 since it's stable on my system (Ubuntu 10.10). For my needs, raw conversion in Digikam is OK, but darktable seems to fit the way I think better, and is easier for me to tweak; it also seems more responsive. I'm looking forward to updating Digikam once the 2.0 version hits a non-beta release.

05-07-2011, 06:47 PM	#39
jbinpg Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Prince George, BC Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 3,546	I expected to be an ubuntu 11.04 Unity hater as well but it is growing on me. It is just an interface.

05-07-2011, 06:53 PM	#40
newmikey Site Supporter Join Date: May 2007 Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,287	Originally posted by jbinpg It is just an interface. I like that approach. You use whatever works best on your machine and allows you to run your favorite apps. I run PCLinuxOS but any flavor of *nix is fine by me. Did try Darktable and Photivo (both excellent choices) but I'll stick to UFRaw as its batch mode integrates perfectly in my customs built bash scripts. I usually expose right in the camera and know what I want the scripts to do - no need for interactive previews on-screen. However, this IS open source so nobody says you should use only one app, right?

05-14-2011, 02:39 PM	#41
Trojan_Llama Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Wisbech, The Fens, UK Posts: 111	Another vote for Gimp and UFRaw. Some of the faceplates can be a tad bit tricky to use on my low res Net book (pre-installed with Windows XP, but I blitzed it with Ubuntu), but I use them for my photos.

05-15-2011, 02:05 AM	#42
newmikey Site Supporter Join Date: May 2007 Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,287	Just as a "by the way" guys: after having run NeatImage under WINE for so long, the new version 7 comes in native Win, Mac and Linux versions. Slowly but surely programs are becoming more and more cross-platform, their market more diverse. So just by having chosen Linux and Open-Source as your mainstay system, that does not mean anymore that you are entirely cut off from non-free software - best of both worlds, really...

05-16-2011, 11:41 AM	#44
Tippon Forum Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Photos: Gallery Posts: 92	Originally posted by Marc Sabatella So now, ACDSee is really the only thing keeping me on Windows. I'm in no hurry to replace it, as I really do love this program, but I figure I might as well at least be checking out what my options will be should a switch to Linux seem right for me. But none of the open source photo management / processing programs have seemed ready for prime time yet, and the leading contenders I see on Linux don't run (well) on Windows, so I can't even easily try them out. Have you tried running ACDSee under Wine in Linux? It's obviously not an open source solution, but it might mean that you can switch to Linux now, rather than holding off until you find another program

05-16-2011, 12:24 PM	#45
rhodopsin Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Deep Forest Posts: 643	+1 newmikey suggestions. I use DCRAW with ImageMagick. Both are (scriptable) command-line utilities. Problem with GIMP is no 16-bit color support (yet) -- import conversion from 16-bit raw to 8-bit GIMP-usable format loses data!