Posted by Danna Richkun on November 12, 2009 at 10:58 PM
I'm new to digital photography. I'm currently downloading RAW images into Canon Digital Pro and converting them for transfer into Elements 2.0 (old version I know....came with my new(old)Canon 20D). My question is which file format should I convert the RAWs to for further editing in Elements? JPG? TIF? Which file types will lose the least data in the conversion?
A RAW conversion to TIFF is probably the best choice. TIFF does support layers so you can save your layered TIFF a 'master file'. TIFF files a re lossless. From your 'master file' you can save as jpeg files for the web.
btw: You really should consider upgrading to the latest version of Elements.
-P
Posted by Dan Borzynski on November 13, 2009 at 12:10 AM
TIFF or PSD. NOT a jpeg - everytime you resave as a jpeg you lose information.
I would really consider upgrading to the most recent version of Elements if finances allow. I've gone from Elements 1 to 3 to 5 (to using 7/8 on another machine) and it is a huge, huge upgrade.
Posted by Danna Richkun on November 13, 2009 at 8:48 AM
Thanks so much for the info and suggestions! I have access to a much older version of Photoshop (6 I believe??) which I have yet to install on my new computer. With just now moving into digital photography, from everything I've read, I think I will probably get Lightroom and use it alongside my old versions of PS and Elements. At the same time, Photoshop is so huge and overwhelming to me, that perhaps it's worth just spending the $60 and getting the newer version of Elements. At the same time I have a couple of lenses in mind and a better tripod (talk about ridiculously expensive) so somewhere along the line I have to begin prioritizing between all these toys!
For now, what I'm doing is uploading my RAW images into Canon Digital Pro, doing some basic editing there, then converting to TIF and transferring to Elements to do any other editing. My plan is to backup my original RAW (CR2) files to an external hard drive which I have yet to purchase. Is there a way to compress the RAW files for storage on an external hard drive without losing data from the shots? With RAW files 8-12 MB per shot, I'm afraid of filling up even a large hard drive pretty quickly.
Posted by John Mumaw on November 13, 2009 at 11:39 AM
I think you'll prefer the greater control and better image quality you'll get converting your RAW files in Elements 8 rather than DPP. You'll also have the advantage of still being in Elements for further editing. I wouldn't bother with PS 6 if I were you.
A 500GB external hard drive will hold roughly 51,000 10MB RAW files from your 20D.
Discussion
4 repliesThanks for all comments!
A RAW conversion to TIFF is probably the best choice. TIFF does support layers so you can save your layered TIFF a 'master file'. TIFF files a re lossless. From your 'master file' you can save as jpeg files for the web.
btw: You really should consider upgrading to the latest version of Elements.
-P
I would really consider upgrading to the most recent version of Elements if finances allow. I've gone from Elements 1 to 3 to 5 (to using 7/8 on another machine) and it is a huge, huge upgrade.
For now, what I'm doing is uploading my RAW images into Canon Digital Pro, doing some basic editing there, then converting to TIF and transferring to Elements to do any other editing. My plan is to backup my original RAW (CR2) files to an external hard drive which I have yet to purchase. Is there a way to compress the RAW files for storage on an external hard drive without losing data from the shots? With RAW files 8-12 MB per shot, I'm afraid of filling up even a large hard drive pretty quickly.
A 500GB external hard drive will hold roughly 51,000 10MB RAW files from your 20D.