RAW File Format: The Best Foot Forward

If so and you don't use it already, please, start now!

If you find the RAW file format intimidating for the moment, start shooting with it and you can always return to the files later when you are ready.

Keep working with JPEG's in the meantime.

Some critical decisions will no longer be cast in stone, as they often are with JPEG files or TIFF files.

Above all, you will achieve much better results from your pride and joy.

If you're not convinced after reading this overview, consider this:

If your camera can shoot RAW and you choose to only shoot JPEG, you are immediately throwing away around a third of the information that your camera is capable of capturing, in the form of bit depth for example.

I recently heard this compared to buying a high-performance car and never taking it out of first gear. You get the idea...

• Exposure can be changed from the comfort of your computer;
• White Balance can be fine-tuned or radically altered after the event;
• Highlight and shadow detail that you thought was gone forever can be recovered (yes, it's true!);
• A higher level of detail will be preserved, to the extent that you'll feel like you have a new camera.
• The original RAW file cannot be overwritten, no matter how hard you try. The only thing you can permanently change is the file name - any edits you make to a RAW file can always be undone without ever harming the original.

These days, however, superior cameras with this hallowed capability are becoming more accessible as the months and years roll by.

I won't buy a camera unless it shoots the RAW file format and, these days, they tend to be the smaller models as the image quality (or IQ as we call it) is so high.

Alongside my professional medium and large format cameras, I started with the Canon Powershot range back in 2003. I stuck with Canon for a while - after all, they make great cameras.

I then became seduced by the Panasonic Lumix family and now use a small Lumix LX3 and the larger, very capable Lumix GF1.

I am hoping to illustrate that, although lovely to own, you don't need big fancy digital backs and digital SLR's to make great photographs.

You don't need to spend a fortune.

In fact, I would bet my bottom dollar that you will take better photographs simply because you will be more inclined to carry the camera more often and experiment more.

You will feel freed from so much of the paraphernalia that can bog photographers down...

Remember, the quality of the cameras I have mentioned is much higher than 35mm ever was, not least because they capture 100% optical information...

...as opposed to film which was roughly 80% grain structure and only 20% optical information!

If ever you need to remind yourself of the great spontaneous photography that has been made with smaller cameras, you could do worse than checking out the likes of Henri Cartier-Bresson.

Soon, I will be publish more articles on this subject including:

• Working with your files in appropriate RAW processing software such as Adobe Photoshop Lightroom and Adobe Camera RAW;
• Other options such as Iridient Digital RAW Developer;
  
• An introduction to Adobe's Digital Negative Format (DNG);
• Using RAW files for High Dynamic Range (HDR) Photography;
• Making beautiful, accurate Fine Art Digital Prints from your RAW files.

In the meantime, whilst I'm compiling this new material for you, I hope you've found this overview helpful.

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