Numpty's Guide to Raw Please? (1 Viewer)

Well i finally did it! i switched the camera to Raw Mode and stood back:eek!:
Oh is that it? Oh well:-C, i took a few shots of a Robin and then loaded it onto the PC.
Right open Elements 4 and set to work processing the Raw files.
1: Where are all the tools to crop/clone etc?
2: When you process the Raw it changed to something called a dng?
3: No thumbnail pictures in the browser?:C
4: Oh dear what do i do now?
5: Switch the damn camera back to JPEG Fine:t:
seriously guys what do you do when you copy Raws onto PC? I have Elements + Canon thingy that process's Raws but being a total numpty i haven't a clue:-C i spent all last night telling my missus that your photo's were all brilliant and nearly everyone was using RAW and then...........Nothing today.
Ah well at least digital doesn't cost you nowt!
Cheers
Brian
Any tips are most welcome especially if they use short words and are aimed at the village idiot

This explains it better than I can:
http://www.thedigitaldawn.com/articles_techniques/getting_to_grips/how_to_convert.html

Hope that helps. RAW really does make a difference to how your finished images look, and gives you a lot more control over colour balance, exposure, contrast etc - dont give up yet!

:'D

Brian,

I loved your "workflow" - especially point 5:


Well, seriously - try to find someone to design a good macro for you that does the first JPEG-conversion automatically. Keep the RAWs as backups. Life is too short to process all the pics individually. RAW is great to have if the pics have white balance issues, slightly "blown highlights" or dark shadows that don't look good even after Photoshopping.

Best regards,

Ilkka

The thing to do is to shoot RAW + Jpeg if your camera allows it. If you are happy with the cameras Jpeg then just archive (or discard) the RAW. If you aren't happy with the Jpeg then you can process the RAW yourself.

Thanks guys for the tips, i will persevere as i'm not a quiter! ok i may throw the PC through the window but at least i will feel better
Today is tried it again setting it to RAW+JPEG it was a nice bright day so i will give it another go at converting later tonight fingers crossed i will end up with at least one good shot.
I understand now that the Adobe Raw processor does its bit and converts to digital negative file? i can then open this in Elements and crop etc and then save as a JpEG? (if i save the finished photo to JPEG will i ruin the work previously done)?
Thanks again
Brian in a wait for it! Beautiful Sunny Warm no wind Scotland!!!!! YeeHHaa Spring has Sprung

If I remember correctly, ACR can convert to TIFF files as well, which may be more widely recognisable by editing programmes (I use lightroom or capture 1 for my RAW comversion, so I'm not 100% on the detail with ACR). The principles are the same, though. Use the RAW convertor to correct white balance, black and white points, exposure, contrast, lighten shadows etc. In some (certainly the 2 I use), you can crop, in lightroom you can also clean up dust spots, and resize on conversion. Then convert to your chosen format (dng, TIFF, JPEG are the usual options). I personally dont use jpeg until I have the final version, to prevent multiple saves degrading the image. Photoshop/elements may be necessary for further retouching, but to be honest I find very little need for it now - just a little sharpening for most images.
Glad you had the weather - we had some sun on the Pennines today too, typical when I am stuck at work!

Claymore said:

Well i finally did it! i switched the camera to Raw Mode and stood back:eek!:
Oh is that it? Oh well:-C, i took a few shots of a Robin and then loaded it onto the PC.
Right open Elements 4 and set to work processing the Raw files.
1: Where are all the tools to crop/clone etc?
2: When you process the Raw it changed to something called a dng?
3: No thumbnail pictures in the browser?:C
4: Oh dear what do i do now?
5: Switch the damn camera back to JPEG Fine:t:
seriously guys what do you do when you copy Raws onto PC? I have Elements + Canon thingy that process's Raws but being a total numpty i haven't a clue:-C i spent all last night telling my missus that your photo's were all brilliant and nearly everyone was using RAW and then...........Nothing today.
Ah well at least digital doesn't cost you nowt!
Cheers
Brian
Any tips are most welcome especially if they use short words and are aimed at the village idiot

Click to expand...

Your in luck in this months digital photographer there is a separate guide on RAW and the various things you can do with it, based on PS / elements well worth a read.

Thanks again guys, i will get a copy of the magazine tomorrow and have a good read.
I had a bit more luck today with a sparrowhawk sat on my wall.
As they say practice makes perfect! i will be happy with good LoL
Cheers
Brian

Your camera's software can do the RAW conversions. Use it to do brightness corrections then convert the images you want to edit further to tiff, then open the tiff in PSE4

If you are Canon, you can use Zoombrowser to view the thumbnails. Other viewers which work with the newer cameras RAW files are XNview and FastStone.