Photoshop 5.5 and RAW

[PhotoHeather]

I tried searching the forums with "photoshop 5.5" and "RAW" but everything I found was irrelevant. Sorry if this has been asked before but I was curious if I should be shooting in RAW with my Canon DSLR (getting the xt or xti on Saturday and want to know a few things before I pop off a few thousand shots in the first day.)
I don't think that Photoshop 5.5 supports RAW.. but I could be wrong so I figure I'd ask first. I can't afford the $500+ upgrade to CS2 right now so I am going to have to stick with the version I have for now.

Thanks in advance for any help you are able to provide.
Heather

 

[Big Mike]

Hello Heather, welcome to the forum.

You are correct, PS 5.5 won't support RAW...at least not RAW files from those cameras. The part of Photoshop that opens Raw files is called Adobe Camera Raw...which didn't show up until later than 5.5 (as far as I know). Not to mention that with every new camera...Adobe Camera Raw has to be updated. I don't think that XT or XTi especially files will even work with Photoshop CS.

The good news is that your camera will come with software to deal with Raw files. Basically, what the software does (same as A.C.R.) is to convert the Raw file into a standard image file type...like Tiff, JPEG, PSD. Before the actual conversion...you can make all sorts of adjustments.

So the typical workflow consists of converting the Raw images...which can then be worked on in Photoshop just like any other image type. It can tend to take longer than if you had shot in JPEG....but the key is in the adjustment that you can make before the conversion. Much more flexibility in Raw files.

There are also other programs to convert the Raw files. Raw Shooter Essentials...is a good one...but it has been bought out by Adobe...and now there is Adobe Lightroom. There is also Aperture, for the Mac.

 

[PhotoHeather]

Thank you for the quick reply and great information. As a beginner would you reccomend just shooting in JPEG at the begining? Or will I regret it later?

 

[shingfan]

Thank you for the quick reply and great information. As a beginner would you reccomend just shooting in JPEG at the begining? Or will I regret it later?

RAW would be mostly desired if you plan on post processing.....is a lot easier to work with and with the best quality

 

[PhotoHeather]

Thanks! Now it looks like I will be investing in some larger CF cards!

 

[Big Mike]

If you are just getting used to your camera...shooting JPEG may be easier...however, RAW is really the way to go...and you might as well get comfortable it.

 

[Big Mike]

Thanks! Now it looks like I will be investing in some larger CF cards!

The good news is that they get cheaper every day.

 

[PhotoHeather]

SOOOO True. I remember I paid about $60 for my first 64MB one only a few years ago. :stun:

 

[shingfan]

SOOOO True. I remember I paid about $60 for my first 64MB one only a few years ago. :stun:

thinking about the old time......my coworker always tells me his first digital camera costs him $5000.....he bought it in japan

 

[Big Mike]

SOOOO True. I remember I paid about $60 for my first 64MB one only a few years ago.

I have a 16MB CF card around here somewhere. It would hold two, maybe three shots from my camera

 

[DSLR noob]

Amazon sells a 2gig for $50. The SanDisk Ultra II.

 

[Big Mike]

Be careful about that. I don't think that Amazon actually sells them...it's will be another company...and SanDisk Ultra II is the most common card to be faked.
http://members.shaw.ca/fakesandisk/

That being said...$50 sounds about right for a real Sandisk Ultra II 2 Gig card.

 

[PhotoHeather]

I see your 16 and raise you an 8MB card that came with my first Kodak digital camera. It held quite a few pics at the time. Maybe around thirty. I was just so impressed it held more than the average film canister.
The price through Amazon Marketplace is better than Costco, $65+ tax, but now that I am aware of the knock-offs I will probably go in another direction. I might just pick up another 1GB Ultra II (for a total of two) for $27.99 and at least know it is backed by a reputable company. I just hope that is enough for now. I will probably be going nuts with my new "toy" for the first few weeks.

 

[Big Mike]

I see your 16 and raise you an 8MB card that came with my first Kodak digital camera

I also have an 8MB Kodak card here at work. It came with a Kodak camera that my company bought many years ago. I think it may have been a 1 MP camera...and I'm sure it was expensive at the time.

 

[DSLR noob]

No floppy disk cameras are what's in yo!