ORF files

[unclebuddha]

Here's what I've got: CS3, E-PL5 shooting jpegs + orf files, Adobe orf to dng conversion program. In the recent past, I was able to

process orf files into dng files so I could post process in CS3. Last night, I used the Adobe converter to make dngs from orfs. BUT CS3

wouldn't open them. Just told me that the file type was unrecognized.

 

I'll say I'm more of a go out and shoot type of person than a sit behind the computer chimping type. That's why I've never taken the time

to upgrade CS3, it does enough.

 

Now I throw myself at your mercy, both for the Digital Darkroom question in the Oly forum and for not being able to figure this out for

myself. Jeez.

 

Any advice? Upgrade to CS online? User the Olympus software (which will take me forever to learn)?

[Greg M]

<p>If the converter can turn them into DNG files, prior versions of Photoshop should work, so it's interesting you're having this problem. Interesting only because it's you. If it were me I'd have another opinion.</p>

<p>Have you considered creating an account on Adobe's forum and asking this? Their techs constantly watch and get involved in conversations. I would imagine you'd get an answer or workaround.</p>

<p>You could always just buy Lightroom outright. All Lightroom is, is Adobe Camera raw, a filing system I have no use for and other image management tools. ACR (They call it the development window in Lightroom) is configured differently, but the tools are all the same and do the same thing. I have both as a result of my subscription but never even look at Lightroom.</p>

[andreas_manessinger]

When using the converter, you can specify the DNG version to convert to. Personally I haven't used the DNG converter in a long time, thus I can't say what the exact DNG version supported by CS3 is, but if you stick to the right version, CS3 can open it. As far as I remember, the converter tells you about compatibility levels in its help.

 

As Greg already said, you can just as well buy Lightroom, and for the few occasions when you need Photoshop (for instance when you want to use "Edit / Transform / Skew"), you let Lightroom render to a DNG, edit the DNG in Photoshop, and finally finish it in Lightroom. That's what I do.

[chuck -]

<p>Open the DNG Converter, go to Preferences, and change to "Use Camera RAW 4.1 and Later". That should get you back in business with CS3. </p>

[unclebuddha]

<p>THANK YOU THANK YOU! Changed the DNG converter to 4.1 and it worked like a champ! You guys rock.</p>

[mike_walmsley]

<p>Hey Mark<br>

Pardon logging onto to your question late, but just want to add my two cents. I shoot with an e3 and was using PhotoShop CS4 to process my ORF files for the first couple of years. Then I downloaded the free Olympus Viewer 2 software which I feel does a far better job. It wasn't that difficult to learn. I recently added a solid state drive to my Mac and upgraded my OS so I updated the Olympus raw editing software (to Viewer 3). I use it to process the raw ORF files with some basic adjustments, to get 16 bit Tiff files. I then finish the tweaks on PhotoShop (sharpening, highlights & shadows etc) and save them as 8 bit and also make Jpegs at the final stage if I need to. I find this two step process does a better job overall than PhotoShop did on its own. No disrespect to the Adobe Gods (I use PS everyday at work too), I just wanted you to know that in most cases OEM raw editing is the better way to go and Viewer 3 has some nice options at its disposal. </p>

[harold_gough]

I always get Olympus Viewer 3 to convert ORFs to TIFFs for processing and resizing. I then get it to convert to JPEGS e.g. for uploading. My Photoshop 7 doesn't "see" ORFs so it can open a series of TIFFS as though the ORFs were not in the folder.