D700, cant open RAW images

i've been using my nikon D200 for a year now... i shoot on RAW, transfer images to a folder on my computer, view

images via BRIDGE and open them by double clicking on an image, which then opens in camera raw, i make

adjustments then continue to CS2.

 

i've recently bought the D700... did a few test shots, transferred the images into a folder , attempted to view

via BRIDGE.. all i can see is the files with no pictures. an icon for each file that says RAW with the number of

the image below. i've tried dragging one to photoshop.. and i get a msg saying.. cant open in photoshop cause it

doesnt recognize this file...i've tried couble clicking, doesnt work either.

 

i then installed the CD that came with the camera.. called SOFTWARE SUITE... i am now able to VIEW images as

thumbnails in VIEW NX (which was installed.) but nothing i can do with them it seems.. never used VIEW NX

before... im still unable to view them in Bridge nor open them for editing, what am i missing?

the camera raw plug-in i currently have states version: 3.7

 

do i perhaps need a later version to open D700 NEF files? is that the problem

 

thanks

this is the worlds most common question ;)

 

your version of Bridge (and Photoshop) is too old to support the D700 raw format. Adobe stops supporting new cameras the moment a new major version of Photoshop/Bridge is released.

 

generally, your choices boil down to:

 

use ViewNX to convert it to TIFF format

use the Adobe DNG converter (free) to convert to DNG format

spend $$$ to upgrade to Bridge/CS4

spend $$ to buy Nikon's CaptureNX (more full featured than ViewNX)

find a 'free' raw converter

find a not so free converter like Bibble (I forget the others)

Or Lightroom 2 ($$).

You need Bridge 2.1.1 and Camera Raw 4.6 for the D700, and they come with CS3. I guess. Or once you have CS3, there are free

upgrades. View NX (lousy program) will let you make basic (and I mean basic) conversions from Nef to Tiff or Jpg. Also, Adobe DNG

Converter vers. 5.1. will convert the D700 Nef fles to DNG format.

 

Not simple, I know. Why hasn't the digital world adopted the DNG format yet (Leica and a couple others did) is beyond me. Adobe is

already the absolute emperor anyway. Then, maybe they could devote their development resources to better image processing, treatment

of noise, dynamic range, etc... instead of wasting them developing each their own little private formats and converters.

right, i've settled for converting the files to TIFF... will i lose a lot of quality by going straight from that to CS2, rather than doing minor editing in Camera RAW?

 

Question is.. when i do hit CONVERT TO TIFF.. i get a box wtih the following options... what should i select upon selecting TIFF (16bit).

 

check or uncheck USE LZW COMPRESSION?

check or uncheck CHANGE IMAGE SIZE?

Remove camera setting information?

Remove XMP/IPTC information?

Remove ICC color profile?

 

 

also my question is, as my working space is ProPhoto RGB.. but my camera can only set sRGB or Adobe RGB 1998... am i better off shooting in RGB1998and working in that space? or shooting RGB1998 and converting to prophoto RGB when opening a file and asked?

 

much thanks

You have several options. (1) NikonView NX is able to open RAW files and/or save them as JPEG's in a batch operation. (2) You can also use Adobe DNG Converter, a free utility which Adobe keeps up to date, then work on the DNG files as you would the native RAW files. (3) Use Lightroom 2.1 to triage and process the RAW files, exporting them to other file formats or Photoshop only for exceptional processing. (4) Update your CS2 version(s) to CS4. Photoshop is your life support system - don't skimp on updates. Lightroom too makes life much easier, and your results more consistent.

hi edward, thanks for your help - i wouldnt want to convert them to JPEGs.. will most likely convert to TIFF to maintain quality. no?

 

is there a link where i can go to upgrade to CS4 and how much does it cost to do that?

 

where do i locate the Adobe DNG Converter.. not familiar with using it...

for the time-being, what i did is view the images in nikon ViewNX... select all, and hit CONVERT to TIFF... but dont know what boxes to check and what to uncheck.

 

will this procedure work until i get hold of CS4?

cant find adobe DNG converter.. did a search on my mac... i am getting a Graphic Converter.. same thing?

dng: http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/16064/adobe-dng-converter-and-camera-raw

 

the upgrade from CS2 -> CS4 is $200

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=cs4+upgrade&x=13&y=12

 

Adobe, Calumet, B&H, Adorama all sell the up grade.

 

Nikon NX2 is a great converter and process program. Put your trial program from the D700 box into your converter

and give it whirl. It will seem a bit counter intiitive at first after photoshop, but it does both global and Local

adjustments. Start with the quck fix regardless if you think you need it. It is a combination levels and curves

adjustment layer. Move the highlight and shadow triangles at the bottom to the edges of the histogram. Now you

did the levels. Move the center triangle for curves or gamma. To change the curve shape, add some anchor points

and move the portion you want, Now close the flippy triangle and that layer is hidden. USE the TRIANGLES. It will

be all screwed up if you start by hand.

 

Next is prepositioned a lens adjust layer. Do anything required. Close the flippy triangle

 

Then do new step and doing other adjustments one new step at a time. They remain editable as you do not flatten

the layers ever. They are just adjustment layers, but work on the raw file.

 

Save as raw which I would not do without a retitle, tiff, or JPEG. The TIFF or JPEG can be opened in CS2 if you

need to do further work.

 

What is missing? Perspective control. Panorama Stitch, . But it is easy to do once you get your head fixed.

Upgrades are cheaper than CS upgrades. Usually $100 at Amazon.

 

The latest Phtoshop Elements will support ACR that converts D700 files. I think it will do the same thing as CS or

LightRoom ACR. Cost is $99.

 

The best free option is convert to DNG with Adobe`s free converter and bring into CS2 raw. It will look just like your

D200 raw files. But now is the best time to upgrade CS 2 to 4. There may be no upgrade to CS5 from 2 and you will

have to buy the whole program again from scratch. If you want to stay with complete PS, this is the most cost

effective way to keep up.

 

This question does get asked at least once a week, maybe more.

"Nikon NX2 is a great converter and process program. "

 

Nikon Capture NX2 is great but if you are doing work for clients (as PG is) Capture NX2 is too slow and cumbersome.

 

Get Lightroom 2.1. If you somehow qualify for academic pricing (And there is no difference between the academic and full priced versions) it will cost $99.00

 

And then go to http://labs.adobe.com/wiki/index.php/DNG_Profiles

 

and download and install the new profiles and DNG profile editor ( you need a X-Rite/ Gretag-Macbeth 24 patch color checker to build your own profile.)

 

"There may be no upgrade to CS5 from 2 and you will have to buy the whole program again from scratch."

 

Adobe policy is you can upgrade from 3 versions back so yes you will be able to upgrade from PsCS2 to PsCS5. (Which if Adobe keeps on schedule won't be in the wild for another 18 months to two years.) But I agree with Ronald about now being the best time to update Photoshop to version CS4 as that way you'll get the most value out of it.

right, bingo - thanks guys for all your help - i just downloaded the DNG Converter and all sorted... im not able to edit my DNG files in my native Camera raw programe and continue as i always have been...

 

now that this is working fine - do i HAVE to upgrade to CS4? :)

right just when i thought i sorted the problem out :) im confused again, what are the DNG Profiles?! do i HAVE to download them?

 

what i just did now was open my DNG Converter by double-clicking on it - accessing the folder that has my RAW images and converting the files ... then further processing in Camera Raw and then CS2....

 

do i still need the Profiles?!? :(

PhotoGirl, are your converted DNGs smaller than

TIFF with LZW compression from ViewNX?

 

The DNG Profiles are to make colors more accurate

based on Adobe standards and specific camera models.

They are still in beta, not officially supported.

Whether you need them depends on how picky you are.

In DSLR reviews on dpreview.com, it's often easy to see

how in-camera JPEG is more color accurate then Adobe Raw conversion.

Let me make sure I understand your workflow: 1) You convert the D700 Nef files to DNGs using Adbe's DNG Converter. 2) You convert

the DNGs to Tiff using Camera Raw. 3) You then edit your images in PS CS2. Am I correct?

 

The profiles are there to make sure the converter reads the files correctly according to the camera. I think :) They always bear some

strange undecipherable names like «Standard Camera 2» and what not. You can fine tune them using the «Profle editor», but don't

bother. This is serious experience stuff, Don't even bother with the profiles themselves.As long as you're happy with the results you get,

before or after editing in CS2, everything is fine. And no, you don't need CS4 if you can work on Tiff files in your image editing program

(CS2?)

 

YMMV. Have fun.

I know this is a competing website.... but take a look at NAPP's website http://www.photoshopuser.com before you buy additional

software, they have some useful info and the cost of admission is relatively cheep when you consider the savings available when you

purchase soft and hardware.

michel, yes you're right - just to make sure.

 

i shoot in RAW (adobe rgb 1998)... i then open the NEF images via my DNG converter and convert them to DNG. i am then able to browse them as i used to via Bridge... open a certain image by double-clicking on it via camera raw, making adjustments and THEN continuing in CS2 ... thats exactly what im doing..... is it correct?

 

but my questoin is... my working space in camera raw and CS2 is set to ProPhoto RGB..... yet, the only 2 options in my camera are sRGB and Adobe rgb 1998. am i better setting up my work space as RGB 1998.. so that it matches my camera setting? or does it not matter when one is shooting in RAW?

PG - it doesn't matter when shooting in RAW - only at time of conversion does the colorspace get applied.

On Nikon web download "Nikon NEFCDC-110WF-ALLIN.exe" (codec ?). In windows Vista work perfect.

On Nikon web download "Nikon NEFCDC-110WF-ALLIN.exe" (codec ?). In windows Vista work perfect.

For those of you using Apple computers, just buy Aperture. It has a fantastic raw converter as well as being superior to

and cheaper than Lightroom. Really, it's Apple's quasi-free gift for buying one of their computers. I do not know about your

specific camera, but the only files it would not decode so far for me are from a Nikon bridge camera (5700) that I got about

seven years ago.

 

By the way, if you have kids in school, have them buy it for you. Apple has an extremely generous education discount.