Canon 10D RAW conversion Software.

[david_boily]

I shoot weddings with a 10D in RAW mode. I'm finding that I spend

way too much time processing the RAW images using the Canon software.

 

does anyone use something better and why is it better?

 

Thanks,

 

Dave

[fotografz]

The canon 10D RAW software is a time thief. You have to do each function independently,

and wait for an eternity for it to process before moving on to the next adjustment. The

Canon Digital Pro RAW developer is much better, but I don't think the 10D is one of the

supported cameras yet.

 

PhotoShop CS RAW developer is a real time, cumulative function program that is very fast

and allows you to apply the last set of corrections to the current image you are working

on. You also can batch correct RAW files, but need to learn how to write an action. When

the geniuses at Adobe figure out that a crop tool will make the RAW program better,

then it will be the one to beat.

 

Phase One C1 Pro is probably the best, but I'm not sure yet as I just got into it. But it does

have a crop tool and a simple batch application, so that's good.

[casey mcallister]

Color One!

 

See:

 

1dslr.com or rawworkflow.com

[wedding-photography-denver]

In a bundle, PSCS.

 

C1 pro is good and has the speed.

[belledeux diana]

Marc, I followed your directions (I think!) in another post you put up about using PSCS for batch converting raw files. I got nowhere.

<P>

I see the photos in the camera, but when I download them to the computer, and tried to change the files from nef to jpg in PSCS I had no luck. They were files that could not be read by PhotoShop...I kept getting that pop-up.

<P>I took the photos at raw setting on the Nikon D70, and they were read to a lexar compact flash card.

<P>

Am I missing a step?

<P>

Is downloading them with a lexar card reader to my computer leaving out a step or something?

<P>

Thanks

[wedding-photography-denver]

Belle, are you using the latest upgrade/plugin from Adobe for PSCS?

 

http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/detail.jsp?ftpID=2460

 

Regards.

[belledeux diana]

that did the trick......there seemed to be no camera raw plug-in in the PhotoShop plug-ins folder in the first place..........whoa, that plug-in is wild...and fun to work with......I am so clicking my heels together! thanks again

[todd frederick]

Why RAW? I use high res jpg and convert to tiff in PS.

 

When doing a wedding in RAW the time drain is awesome. If I have 600 images I can't work on each one. I need something that comes out as near to "ready-to-print" as possible. This is a practical issue...not one of "principle!"

 

I'm receiving a Canon 10D kit tomorrow, so I need to know.

[fotografz]

Hi Todd. RAW need not be as time consuming as you imagine. There are many techniques

and programs to speed up the process (which can be reviewed with a search here).

Unfortunately, the File Viewer Utility for developing RAW files that comes with the 10D is

one of the slowest around. It wasn't designed for heavy professional demands. PhotoShop

CS has a RAW developer that includes the 10D as a supported camera, but that version of

PS isn't cheap. C1 Pro is a RAW developer that I'm teaching myself right now, and if I can

master it, will most likely be the best option to shorten my RAW work flow.

 

Why RAW over J-Peg? The advantage is similar to the difference between using neg film

verses slide film to shoot a wedding. While a J-peg file can be adjusted somewhat after

capture, the short dynamic range of digital makes it a dangerous choice in many difficult

lighting situations where it wasn't an issue with film. On the other hand, a RAW file has a

huge range of corrections that can be instantly applied. Plus, you can separately store the

RAW files untouched just like we did with negatives. So, you can always go back to the

original RAW file and start over fresh.

 

If you shoot carefully with J-pegs to get it as close to printable as possible, you could do

the same with RAW without ever compressing the file the way J-Peg does

(compression means some picture data is eliminated to make the file smaller). Then the

only extra step you would need to do is to convert the RAW file to either a J-Peg or Tiff for

printing ... which is an automated function in many of the more advanced RAW developer

programs.

 

To put it in perspective, none of the high end commercial digital backs even offer J-peg as

an option. They are all RAW captures to maximize quality.

[david_boily]

Todd,

 

Once you go RAW you never go back! I used to shoot JPEG simply because I didn't have enough CF cards. But because of pretty wild exposures when using my flash, I shot the ceremony in RAW. The extra latitute for under/over exposure is amazing. The other reason is that I don't have to pay constant attention to Whitebalance, it can all be done afterwards. You might think that JEPS are ready to print, but I found I spent more time correcting bad JPEGs than starting clean from a perfect TIF file. I give my clients their proofs on a CD and although these files don't need to be perfect, they do need to be relatively well exposed and colorbalanced. Fixing all these pictures in PS takes for ever. Using actions and batch processing doesn't help much since the auto-levels sucks. In short, although the Canon software is slow, it is still much better than shootng JPEGs... Just have LOTS of Memory on hand.

 

Dave

[djphoto]

When you learn how to do it (and it is not a steep learning curve) editing and processing RAW files in Phase One's Capture One software is much faster than correcting jpegs unless your exposures are uncannily good and require little/no correction.

 

When you learn to use some of the keyboard commands, it becomes even faster.

[dave_nelson___atlanta__ga]

I have just started reading Kevin Ames book "Adobe PhotoShop CS, The Art of Photographing Women" and the first chapter has convinced me never to shoot in JPEG ever again. I suggest finding this book and even if you do not buy it, read pages 5, 6, and 7.

[djphoto]

It isn't an issue of quality, but of latitude. I shoot jpeg when the light is controllable, predictable, and consistent. I light the formals at my weddings with one or two studio strobes with umbrellas, check my histogram carefully with a few test shots, and then fire away with jpegs that can go directly to proofs with no Photoshop work whatever. But when I'm in an uncontrollable, catch-as-catch-can situation, I shoot RAW.

 

If you can nail the shot perfectly every time, then jpegs are the way to go. But if you have to do any degree of correcting those jpegs at all, I can beat the socks off of you by shooting RAW and processing in Capture One.