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non-Adobe RAW converters and LR - how does that work?
speric
Registered Users Posts: 30 Big grins
Basically my question is how do you use a RAW converter other then the program you use to process, catalog, or file your images? Basically I’ve been using LR to import my photos off the card and thus relying on its conversion.
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If I was to use another program like DPP to extract the RAW files off my card and I import this file into LR from my HD, doesn’t that change it to LR’s conversion, thus negating the step of converting with something other then Adobe? Or will LR use the DPP version of the .cr2 file and how I see the image in DPP will look the same in LR or even PS?
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For example, I downloaded some .cr2 files off my card using DPP, LR and Aperture. Out of the 3, DPP “looked” the best, but I want to use something like LR/PS or Ap to catalog and post-process my images.
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I guess I have a gap in my understanding of the “conversion” process and what I see on my screen using a given program.
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If I was to use another program like DPP to extract the RAW files off my card and I import this file into LR from my HD, doesn’t that change it to LR’s conversion, thus negating the step of converting with something other then Adobe? Or will LR use the DPP version of the .cr2 file and how I see the image in DPP will look the same in LR or even PS?
<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p>
For example, I downloaded some .cr2 files off my card using DPP, LR and Aperture. Out of the 3, DPP “looked” the best, but I want to use something like LR/PS or Ap to catalog and post-process my images.
<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]--> <!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p>
I guess I have a gap in my understanding of the “conversion” process and what I see on my screen using a given program.
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Raw data is read only. Each application reads the Raw data, uses some default (or user supplied) set of instructions to render a preview on screen, then the final rendered image (TIFF, JPEG etc). You can't render part of the work in LR then the rest in DPP, its an all or nothing process (rendering). You can of course render multiple iterations using multiple converters.
Author "Color Management for Photographers"
http://www.digitaldog.net/
But then does that mean you can't manage the .cr2 files because if you import them into LR, then ACR will render the .cr2 file for following-up pp in LR?
When I read what people are using, it sounds like they'll "render" their Raw file in say DPP, and then "send it" to PS for more edits, then catalogued in LR. Does that mean they are sending TIFF, JPEG files that were saved through DPP, opening that TIFF say in PS, and then importing that TIFF into LR to be catalogued and leaving the .cr2 file uncatalogued?
obviously you can see my confusion around this.
Sounds like I made it worse. And my opinions may be totally irrelevant! I haven't completely figured it out yet.
Sarah
That's one way of doing it. In addition, you can import the CR2 files into LR, but you need to remember that any changes you made in DPP will not apply to them. I think it's always a good idea to hang on to the original RAW files. If you want to rework a shot from scratch, LR will open the CR2 file by default in ACR, but I think you can right-click on the thumb and use Open With to choose the converter of your choice. I know that works in Bridge. If not, you can always repeat your original processing steps.
You might be better off if you save the output from your RAW converter as a 16 bit TIFF temporarily. Once you are satisfied with the final PS edits, save as JPG then delete the TIFF. There is some loss of quality when you save as a JPG, so you only want to do it once.
You can manage any of those in LR, you can move from LR to ACR and back because they are both Adobe products using the same Raw engine. So you could do some metadata editing in LR, save the metadata and go directly into ACR and further work on the rendering metadata, then render the image to pixels as your TIFF, JPEG etc (and, if you do so FROM LR, you can tell it to manage those NEWER rendered images).
While you can go from LR to ACR for Raw processing, I'm not sure I see the point. Expect for very subtle differences (like point curves), the two are identical. But you can bounce around with those two Raw processors because they share the same engine. Move to DPP, all bets are off (it simply can't understand nor use the Raw rendering, metadata instructions you built in the Adobe products).
Rendering from Raw is a big fat line you draw in the sand. You should decide when to do so because you can't go back (the toothpaste is out of that tube). You can build metadata instructions for Raw rendering in a product forever, exporting a TIFF or other rendered image as you go. The Raw never changes, only the instructions for rendering and with virtual copies, you can have many sets all using the original Raw data to build that rendered iteration. Once rendered, you can't go back to the Raw as far as that rendered iteration is concerned. You've baked those pixels, you either now continue to edit in Photoshop or toss that iteration, go back to the Raw and build new or modified instructions.
Author "Color Management for Photographers"
http://www.digitaldog.net/