Hi,
I just bought a Canon 60D. My previous digital cameras have been point & shoot which did not produce raw files.
With the 60D comes various software applications to install on my PC to process 60D photo files. I already have PhotoShop Elements 8 that I've used for years, but I've never used the raw file features. My question is should I install the Canon software, or can I do everything the Canon applications do with PhotoShop?
Thanks,
Mike
I used DDP and hated it! It's just too different from what I was using before (lightroom3Beta). If it were me, I'd stick to using Camera Raw in PS if your already comfortable with the basics rather than learning a new program from scratch and transferrng files around.
The big difference with Raw and P&S files are that the latter aready has been "adjusted", sharpened, and shunk in size. Be prepared for your Raw files to be flat,soft, and huge in size. It's up to you to make that picture sing. As a side note, don't try Lightroom3. Cuz then you'll want it and unless you have a student discount, it's kinda not cheap.
Good luck MikeA01730
Words get in the way of what I meant to say.
andnowimbroke,
That sounds good to me. I
Mike,
Originally Posted by MikeA01730
DPP will allow you to apply the camera settings to your RAW for processing to JPEG.
Given the step you have taken from P/S to DSLR, I think the time spent learning will be time well spent. Once you learn what you need for the Canon RAW, you will be able to use it as long as you shoot with Canon.
Chris
Doesn't Camera Raw in PS have those type of settings too? I haven't used elements enough to know. I know Lightroom does and they are called Presets. It's good to use to get you going in the right direction, but I usually end up tweaking it a bit more. Once done, you can save that as a preset too. There is nothing in the camera that can't be done in the program generally speaking of course. Neutral, Faithful, Vivid, etc. should be able to be recreated with a click of a button in most programs.
All programs work noise/detail different. I'm okay with how Lightroom handled it if you chose to usethat program and PSE8 should do good also if you want to stick to it. The problem I had with Canon's DDP was it seemed clunky and had no fine tuning. The noiseknob was either at 1 or it was at 2 with nothing between and I had to apply the setting to see what it looked like. Programs like lightroom have a slider with no "stops" on it. You can move it around to whatever you want and see the results full screenwithout waiting. And just like with DDP, it's non-destructive. The one PLUS to using DDP from Canon is it's free! That can be pretty big when your talking about spending potentually another $200 on a program rather than gear or classes. Having said that, Lightroom is a great program and you'll prolly end up getting it and leave cloning to PSE8. That camera you have will be awesome for you for quite some time. Just don't read any posts on 1-series cameras or White/off-white lenses. You'll be taking pictures of pocket lint cuz that's all you'll have left.
Greg
Words get in the way of what I meant to say.
andnowimbroke,
I thought that with raw files NO processing is done in the camera. The camera settings are noted in the raw file for DDP to process, but the processing actually occurs non-destructively in DDP on the PC. With jpeg files the same processing is done in the camera, and it
No Processing is done to RAW Files, All the information is stored within the Metadata attached in the RAW File. It's essentially the Digital equivalent of a negative. A Jpeg is the digital equivalent to a developed print.
Lightroom and ACR all make non-destructive adjustments to raw files just like DPP does. It records those adjustments into a Sidecar file. Photoshop CS can also make non-destructive adjustments to your files, provided you use adjustment layers, and or, open the RAW file as a Smart Object.
It's when you save those adjustments to your image, and or, save as Jpeg they become (pixel level editing) destructive changing the
original RAW image data.
FWIW, I don't rely one what the camera or cameras software thinks a picture should look according to the Metadata. I prefer to rely on my eyes. ACR and Lightroom give you more tools to work with.
Different software handles noise reduction differently. Processing the RAW images on your computer will certainly yield better results than in-camera conversion to JPG - NR is a processing-intensive function, and your computer has a lot more processing power than your camera, plus the computer can take more time than you'll tolerate when your out shooting.
I started off shooting JPGs, and I can echo the previous comment about regretting that for some images now that I've switched over to RAW shooting entirely. Start in RAW from the beginning. I've used both CS and PS Elements with Adobe Camera Raw, and DPP. The ACR for Elements is limited compared to the ACR for Photoshop CS. I settled on DPP and used that for quite some time - I liked the lens-specific corrections that it offers (which are provided by Canon; ACR has a version but it's not as accurate or comprehensive). But more recently, I switched to DxO Optics Pro. They test camera+lens combinations and develop specific corrections (the 60D is supported, you'd want to check that your lenses are supported for the 60D).
In particular, I find that it does a really good job at reducing high ISO noise. I previously tested DPP and DxO head-to-head on the same RAW images: Mini bake-off: DPP vs. DxO(noise reduction is toward the bottom of the post).
DxO has a free trial version, and the Standard version (what you need for the 60D) is on sale for $99 through Jan 15th.
Good luck!
--John
All,
Thanks to everyone for taking the time to provide so much information. You
Not quite. PSE cannot open RAW files - you'll need to download and install the appropriate version of Adobe Camera Raw to open the RAW files - that software converts them and hands them off to PSE.
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