RAW and DNG

[dugarner]

I know this has been discussed before, but I am wondering . . . since I shoot exclusively in RAW, I've found that I have no need to convert to JPEG at any point in my post-processing workflow. I can open the RAW file and do almost everything I need to do in the PSE RAW plug-in. If I can't, I use my camera's converter software. I don't save the changes to my RAW files, since I don't want to edit the "negatives." It's just an extra step to save the JPEG and it takes up space.

When I open the RAW file in PSE, it creates a temporary file and I delete those every couple of weeks. I don't usually save the imported xmp files when I'm done putting them on my layouts. Should I go ahead and save them as DNGs? Is DNG a universal "negative" format that can be read anywhere? I guess I don't want to get down the road 20 years and have a format that no software can read or convert, since each RAW format is proprietary. And I've already found as the months go on, my post-processing is improving and JPEGs that I thought were well-processed are overblown, underexposed, etc. So I throw them away and wait until I use the photo again before I do any more editing.

What is the safest thing to do in terms of 1) future compatibility, and 2) backup practicality?

[DonnaNJ]

Don't have an answer for you put it is a very interesting question

[DesignerDigitals]

I convert all me best to DNG's for backup and then process them to JPG's

[dugarner]

Originally Posted by Randy Pertiet

I convert all me best to DNG's for backup and then process them to JPG's

So after you convert to DNGs do you throw away your RAW files, or put them somewhere else?

[DesignerDigitals]

Originally Posted by dugarner

So after you convert to DNGs do you throw away your RAW files, or put them somewhere else?

Never. I keep the raw's on a different drive just in case.

[dugarner]

Originally Posted by Randy Pertiet

Never. I keep the raw's on a different drive just in case.

OK, thanks! I need to buy another drive. Ugh. I was hoping to streamline, I guess redundancy is safer! Thank you for the advice.

[sarahorton]

Sarah,
Scott Kelby addressed this in the last class I attended. He suggests converting to DNG and saving somewhere because DNG is standardized where RAW is not. He said that 20 years from now, you may not have any programs that can read your Sony RAW (or Canon RAW or whatever) files.

[dugarner]

Originally Posted by sarahorton

Sarah,
Scott Kelby addressed this in the last class I attended. He suggests converting to DNG and saving somewhere because DNG is standardized where RAW is not. He said that 20 years from now, you may not have any programs that can read your Sony RAW (or Canon RAW or whatever) files.

Sara and Randy, thanks! I often wondered about that. Even though Photoshop is the standard and they keep current plug-ins, I have this suspicion in the back of my head that it could be possible to be stuck. Though it wouldn't happen overnight; for instance, computers with 3 1/2" drives didn't just go away; for a decade or so I was able to find one that still had a slot. I had plenty of time to pull off all the weird information from my college days before I had to throw the media away.

But I know the data protection mantra is "keep your data moving." From place to place, and from format to format. So it would probably be a good idea to convert and archive those files in a couple places.

There is push in the digital imaging world to let the standard of lossy JPEG go by the wayside in favor of lossless file formats---tiff, raw, gif. Even though those exist, they are not as popular or compatible because they are huge. But since data storage and processing are exponentially increasing in capacity and capability, size will soon not be such an issue.

So I think it would be wise to even make sure that my jpegs are stored in another format, somewhere else. Did I just take on a summer project?

[TU_Jenn]

Sarah - on your processing flow - do you just use the raw file that you processed in camera raw, open it in the editor and then drag it to your layout? After resizing to 300dpi if necessary? I've just shot some photos in raw (they were indoor at a dance recital), and I'm just starting to play with them, not sure the best method.

Thanks - Jennifer

[dugarner]

Originally Posted by TU_Jenn

Sarah - on your processing flow - do you just use the raw file that you processed in camera raw, open it in the editor and then drag it to your layout? After resizing to 300dpi if necessary? I've just shot some photos in raw (they were indoor at a dance recital), and I'm just starting to play with them, not sure the best method.

Thanks - Jennifer

Jennifer, the workflow is really a personal preference. The raw processor in Elements is okay, but kind of weak. So sometimes I will open the software that came with my camera, and will tweak the photos I know I want to use, and save them as JPEGs.

Sometimes I will not convert a file, I will just open the raw file in Elements, work with it on the layout, and then close it without saving it as a JPEG.

Sometimes, when I have time, I will batch process the raw files and output them as JPEGs.

Confusing, isn't it? If you have 100 good shots from the recital, I'd pick the ones you want to use on your layout and process those. Then go back later and work on ones you might want to use. For me, without Lightroom, my processing is very time consuming, so I pick and choose which shots I want to convert.

I never keep a raw file that isn't good enough to put in a scrapbook. So I always clean off my card at the end of every day, go through the raw files, and delete the ones I won't use. It saves me from wasting time in the end.

You won't need to resize to 300ppi; if you've created a 300ppi document, Elements will resize it for you.

I would say if you're just starting to work with raw, then open the shots in the Elements raw converter, play with the exposure and white balance (that's all I usually do; you can sharpen, increase/decrease contrast, etc. in the Editor), and work with just the ones you want to scrapbook for now. It might keep you from getting overwhelmed with the amount of processing you'll need to do.

HTH!

Sarah

[TU_Jenn]

Thank Sarah - appreciate all the tips on using raw files :-)