RAW vs. JPEG...??

[MGriff240]

Okay, n00b question, but I need to know...

What is the difference in the two file types? The only thing I've heard is that JPEG's are compressed at a lower quality, therefore not favored when doing cropping/enlargements.

If someone could explain the differences to me, I'd be forever in your debt. :mrgreen::thumbup:

 

[tpd]

[FONT=Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif]Cameras all start with raw data and convert this data to JPG images with hardware in the camera. They then throw away the raw data since it's no longer needed. Image quality is the same in JPG and raw[/FONT]

RAW allows you to easily change many things on a photo (using Photoshop) then output the flattend JPEG. It gives you a lot more control.​

 

[ann]

RAW has not been processed by the camera's micro chip. And i disagree that a raw file and a jpeg image quality is the same.

There is much more information in the raw file which gets throw away or thrashed when saved as a jpeg file. there is data lost with the compression of the jpeg file.

The down side to raw, one must process the file, and the files are much larger.
what you see on the LCD is the jpeg file and when you open the Raw file it won't look the same , this allows the photographer to decide exactly how they want to process the image.

 

[dyyylan]

The down side to raw, one must process the file, and the files are much larger.

i'd call that an upside :thumbup:

 

[DennyCrane]

Image quality is NOT the same in RAW and JPG, since there's various levels of JPG quality. And even the highest level of JPG quality will still have some loss from compression.

 

[iflynething]

LMGTFU

 

[ann]

i personally do not find that RAW is a downside, but some folks don't want to deal with the processing and would rather not spend the time or energy to make the changes as necessary.

 

[Village Idiot]

i personally do not find that RAW is a downside, but some folks don't want to deal with the processing and would rather not spend the time or energy to make the changes as necessary.

That would be Ken Rockwell and well, we all know I think he's stupid.

 

[IgsEMT]

Image quality is NOT the same in RAW and JPG, since there's various levels of JPG quality. And even the highest level of JPG quality will still have some loss from compression.
_____________

:thumbup:
I believe LgFine JPG on nikon is compressed to 75%. IF you were to do same compression in PP on CaptureNX2, your file would still be sharper then in-camera compression.

 

[FinerWorks]

Raw has more data which allows for better editing the photo. Think of raw as a digital negative. Your camera software will have a means of loading and viewing the raw file but when it is time to print them you will may need to export them as jpgs or tiffs which will only contain the raw data of how the raw was last saved.

You can have your camera save the files as jpg files but you do loose some control of how well you can edit the photo without it starting to look noisy or overexposed while if you had shot in raw you could adjust this more.

Also jpegs are compressed therefore are smaller. You can save more jpgs on a card then you can raw files since they are so much smaller. Your camera can process these faster therefore when shooting in Jpeg mode you can generally fire off more per second then you can a raw.

I use raw when I am shooting very controlled shots like portraits or fine art photography but if I am on vacation or at an event where I know I am going to shoot hundreds or more images I will probably shoot in jpeg mode.

 

[rocdoc]

remember all those settings your camera has, starting with the white balance, and then the sharpening and contrast mode (things like "landscape mode" and "portrait mode" etc), and d-lighting (on Nikons) etc.? If you shoot raw, you do not need to worry about them. The camera records all the data that hits the sensor, and you do all that processing yourself whichever way you want. That means you never have to worry about having hit the white balance right, for examply. My WB stays on auto. Also, within about one stop you can also correct the exposure without much difficulty. Since I started shooting raw and I learned how to use the necessary software, I have never shot another jpeg with my SLR.