K7 RAW Support in MacOS 10.6?

potatolicious · 09-02-2009, 10:27 PM

Hey all,

New to the forum, and to Pentax cameras in general. I got a K7 today and I'm dying to get the pictures off the SD card.

Lo and behold, none of the apps on my Mac want anything to do with it. Preview refuses to load the PEFs, and Aperture sees thumbnails but can't load the files themselves. The K7 isn't listed on the RAW support page for Snow Leopard, but the K20D is - surely they didn't change the RAW format between these cameras?

Any Mac users here able to help? Am I stuck using slow, pokey Photoshop?

kjellhar · 09-03-2009, 12:18 AM

How about shooting dng instead. The dng compresses just the same as pef on the K-7, so there is no real drawback. I havent tried Aperture, but the preview works fine.

schmik · 09-03-2009, 01:18 AM

Yeah.... Use DNG. I had my little tanty about this when k7 was released. THat was with 10.5. Been using DNG ever since.

You'd think they'd work together (the companies that is) wouldn't you.

mike

nostatic · 09-03-2009, 03:40 PM

Apple is becoming notoriously pokey about supporting new cameras that are not Canikon. And some that support lens correction are still not (and may never be) supported (eg LX3/DLux4, G1, EP1, etc).

Frustrating. I still like Aperture otherwise...

The answer is to shoot DNG and then figure out a profile that is close.

potatolicious · 09-03-2009, 03:50 PM

Yeah, in the end I used the free Adobe DNG converter and wisely switched the camera to shoot DNG from this point forward.

infosyn · 09-03-2009, 04:30 PM

Originally posted by potatolicious

I got a K7 today and I'm dying to get the pictures off the SD card. ...Lo and behold, none of the apps on my Mac want anything to do with it. Preview refuses to load the PEFs, and Aperture sees thumbnails but can't load the files themselves.

I'm still running Tiger (Mac OS X 10.4.11), so I can't help you with Leopard or Snow Leopard, but Tiger works just fine with K-7 PEFs. Same with DNGs, incidentally. Preview 3.0.9 (2007 version) shows the files quickly and well, without any complaint.

As well, the new RAW Developer 1.8.5 reads, displays, and works with the PEFs perfectly. I can't tell you about Adobe Camera Raw, nor Lightroom, as I gave up on those awkward pieces of junk over a year ago.

I don't know what else to say except, "Golly, Tiger works OK for me!"

**mtngal** · 09-03-2009, 07:47 PM

I've been shooting DNG for a long time. Lightroom and ACR both recognize the K-7 PEF files, but I still use DNG.

What do you think of Snow Leopard? I keep seeing the ads about it and it's not expensive to upgrade (I'm currently running Leopard). Is it worth upgrading?

potatolicious · 09-03-2009, 09:52 PM

Snow Leopard is fast. Startup, shutdown are both way faster than Leopard, at least for me. Apps also quit faster (kill -9 is now the default for "clean" apps if that means anything to you).

Overall the whole thing feels just like Leopard, but much, much faster. For $30 that's a pretty big win.

PolishMike · 09-04-2009, 02:22 PM

Get it. It's a lovely update.

I especially like the Expose-in-Dock feature and that you can default Spotlight to search the current folder. And stacks are actually useful now. Nice little touches - not much, but nice. That's speaking as an end-user. For developers, it's a rather different story - the XCode update, OpenCL and Grand Central Dispatch look to be great. The latter two might really change the way sofware is written!

*****END POST****

*****BEGIN UNRELATED RANT*****
I have a real love-hate relationship with Apple. On the one hand, they design their computer systems to be open and extensible, with a real sense of direction - they realise that for Mac OS to thrive, they must make it easier for developers to code for their system, and they go out of their way to provide brilliant frameworks and tools for the dev. They really do things well - networking, backup, indexed search, the .plist system for preferences - Mac OS X's solutions are flexible and clean, implemented from the ground up and really put Microsoft's "let's staple another .dll onto this mess" approach look ridiculous.

But then the fascist bastards reject an App store submission because of "shiny chat bubbles", introduce a new proprietary display socket with every new notebook and they stop you from copying music off of your iPod or watching the movie you bought on your external screen because of DRM (all real, recent examples). Oh Apple, if only you were a non-profit organization.

davemdsn · 09-04-2009, 07:56 PM

I just picked up a K-7 last weekend, forgetting that Apple probably hadn't added it yet. Good thing I like DNG anyway. One thing about the DNGs though, and this was true with K10 and K20 in both Aperture and in Lightroom, once actual raw support was added the white balances changed. This means that I can work with my K-7 images in Aperture now, but when Apple does add raw support for it I will need to readjust the white balance sliders. Not a big deal as long as I don't have anything too terribly pressing, and Apple doesn't take too terribly long.

As for Snow Leopard.... for $30 you just can't go wrong. I find my system to be snappier, some of the tools more useful, and I have found very few bumps in the road so far. It may be one of the smoothest OS upgrades I've done, on PC or Mac.

09-02-2009, 10:27 PM	#1
potatolicious Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Seattle Posts: 44	K7 RAW Support in MacOS 10.6? Hey all, New to the forum, and to Pentax cameras in general. I got a K7 today and I'm dying to get the pictures off the SD card. Lo and behold, none of the apps on my Mac want anything to do with it. Preview refuses to load the PEFs, and Aperture sees thumbnails but can't load the files themselves. The K7 isn't listed on the RAW support page for Snow Leopard, but the K20D is - surely they didn't change the RAW format between these cameras? Any Mac users here able to help? Am I stuck using slow, pokey Photoshop?

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
ACDSee to support K-7 RAW format?	bymy141	Digital Processing, Software, and Printing	4	11-03-2009 03:47 PM
K20D/K200D RAW Support in Lightzone 3.6	MrApollinax	Digital Processing, Software, and Printing	0	09-02-2008 06:02 AM
Adobe camera raw 4.4 K20D support	Torphoto	Pentax DSLR Discussion	2	03-13-2008 10:59 PM
Pentax RAW IPTC support...NOT	baw	Pentax DSLR Discussion	3	03-06-2007 02:35 PM
full photoshop raw support for K10 on Feb 19	slip	Pentax DSLR Discussion	32	02-09-2007 05:23 PM

09-03-2009, 12:18 AM	#2
kjellhar Inactive Account Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Oslo, Norway Posts: 29	How about shooting dng instead. The dng compresses just the same as pef on the K-7, so there is no real drawback. I havent tried Aperture, but the preview works fine.

09-03-2009, 01:18 AM	#3
schmik Veteran Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Sydney Aus Photos: Gallery Posts: 527	Yeah.... Use DNG. I had my little tanty about this when k7 was released. THat was with 10.5. Been using DNG ever since. You'd think they'd work together (the companies that is) wouldn't you. mike

09-03-2009, 03:40 PM	#4
nostatic Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: socal Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,575	Apple is becoming notoriously pokey about supporting new cameras that are not Canikon. And some that support lens correction are still not (and may never be) supported (eg LX3/DLux4, G1, EP1, etc). Frustrating. I still like Aperture otherwise... The answer is to shoot DNG and then figure out a profile that is close.

09-03-2009, 03:50 PM	#5
potatolicious Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Seattle Posts: 44 Original Poster	Yeah, in the end I used the free Adobe DNG converter and wisely switched the camera to shoot DNG from this point forward.

09-03-2009, 04:30 PM	#6
infosyn Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Eugene, Oregon, US Posts: 97	Originally posted by potatolicious I got a K7 today and I'm dying to get the pictures off the SD card. ...Lo and behold, none of the apps on my Mac want anything to do with it. Preview refuses to load the PEFs, and Aperture sees thumbnails but can't load the files themselves. I'm still running Tiger (Mac OS X 10.4.11), so I can't help you with Leopard or Snow Leopard, but Tiger works just fine with K-7 PEFs. Same with DNGs, incidentally. Preview 3.0.9 (2007 version) shows the files quickly and well, without any complaint. As well, the new RAW Developer 1.8.5 reads, displays, and works with the PEFs perfectly. I can't tell you about Adobe Camera Raw, nor Lightroom, as I gave up on those awkward pieces of junk over a year ago. I don't know what else to say except, "Golly, Tiger works OK for me!"

09-03-2009, 07:47 PM	#7
mtngal Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Wherever I’m Parked Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,003	I've been shooting DNG for a long time. Lightroom and ACR both recognize the K-7 PEF files, but I still use DNG. What do you think of Snow Leopard? I keep seeing the ads about it and it's not expensive to upgrade (I'm currently running Leopard). Is it worth upgrading?

09-03-2009, 09:52 PM	#8
potatolicious Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Seattle Posts: 44 Original Poster	Snow Leopard is fast. Startup, shutdown are both way faster than Leopard, at least for me. Apps also quit faster (kill -9 is now the default for "clean" apps if that means anything to you). Overall the whole thing feels just like Leopard, but much, much faster. For $30 that's a pretty big win.

09-04-2009, 02:22 PM	#9
PolishMike Senior Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 150	Get it. It's a lovely update. I especially like the Expose-in-Dock feature and that you can default Spotlight to search the current folder. And stacks are actually useful now. Nice little touches - not much, but nice. That's speaking as an end-user. For developers, it's a rather different story - the XCode update, OpenCL and Grand Central Dispatch look to be great. The latter two might really change the way sofware is written! ***END POST *BEGIN UNRELATED RANT*** I have a real love-hate relationship with Apple. On the one hand, they design their computer systems to be open and extensible, with a real sense of direction - they realise that for Mac OS to thrive, they must make it easier for developers to code for their system, and they go out of their way to provide brilliant frameworks and tools for the dev. They really do things well - networking, backup, indexed search, the .plist system for preferences - Mac OS X's solutions are flexible and clean, implemented from the ground up and really put Microsoft's "let's staple another .dll onto this mess" approach look ridiculous. But then the fascist bastards reject an App store submission because of "shiny chat bubbles", introduce a new proprietary display socket with every new notebook and they stop you from copying music off of your iPod or watching the movie you bought on your external screen because of DRM (all real, recent examples). Oh Apple, if only you were a non-profit organization.

09-04-2009, 07:56 PM	#10
davemdsn Inactive Account Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Boise, Idaho Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,413	I just picked up a K-7 last weekend, forgetting that Apple probably hadn't added it yet. Good thing I like DNG anyway. One thing about the DNGs though, and this was true with K10 and K20 in both Aperture and in Lightroom, once actual raw support was added the white balances changed. This means that I can work with my K-7 images in Aperture now, but when Apple does add raw support for it I will need to readjust the white balance sliders. Not a big deal as long as I don't have anything too terribly pressing, and Apple doesn't take too terribly long. As for Snow Leopard.... for $30 you just can't go wrong. I find my system to be snappier, some of the tools more useful, and I have found very few bumps in the road so far. It may be one of the smoothest OS upgrades I've done, on PC or Mac.