American Photo: JPEG Vs. RAW, The Advantages and Disadvantages Explained

[Jason Dunn]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.popphoto.com/howto/2196/jpeg-vs-raw-the-advantages-and-disadvantages-explained.html' target='_blank'>http://www.popphoto.com/howto/2196/jpeg-vs-raw-the-advantages-and-disadvantages-explained.html</a><br /><br /></div><i>"If you own a digital SLR, you already know that your camera is capable of recording both JPEG and RAW file formats. You might assume that choosing one format over the other is simply a trade-off between convenience and quality. It isn't quite that simple. True, JPEGs take up less space on a memory card and are ready to use straight from your camera, but they sacrifice image quality and processing flexibility to achieve these advantages. RAW files contain significantly more picture information than JPEGs but demand much greater storage capacity, special processing software, and extra work on the computer. While some of the advantages of your camera's RAW format seem obvious, others are less so. Choosing the right format is largely a matter of what you intend to do with your pictures. Either of them may be the right format for the job, but you need enough information to make the right decision."</i><br /><br />Another look at JPEG vs. RAW - this was a great article for me to read, because it finally convinced me to start shooting in RAW mode consistently. That, and, uh, the wedding photos I took last weekend (casually, I wasn't the official photographer) that turned out horribly because of bizarre red channel casts that I had a hell of a time correcting. Are you a DSLR owner that's stuck in JPEG shooting like me? What's holding you back from using RAW for your important photos?

[randalllewis]

I've taken a few RAW shots with my Canon cameras since way back to my G2. But JPEG has been my standard. And there certainly have been shots I've taken in JPEG that I wished I'd taken in RAW because of changes I wanted to make but couldn't. What keeps me from RAW consistently is the file size. When I travel to the UK each year, I take hundreds of shots which I couldn't do in RAW format. This year, as prices for 1GB CF cards are becomming reasonable, I've invested in some in preparation for this year's trip. I always have two cameras with me and I think I'll have one take RAW and the other JPEG. Once I am convinced I won't run out of storage while in the middle of the Scottish Highlands, I might be able to switch to RAW exclusively. Thanks for posting that article.

[Jason Dunn]

What keeps me from RAW consistently is the file size. When I travel to the UK each year, I take hundreds of shots which I couldn't do in RAW format. This year, as prices for 1GB CF cards are becomming reasonable, I've invested in some in preparation for this year's trip.

Indeed, RAW images are certainly big. I have a 4GB card, and with JPEGs I never feel like I'll run out of room, but with RAW I do. So before I go to Hawaii this year I'm actually going to invest in an 8GB CF card. Is that scary or what? 8O

If storage is more important to you than speedy performance, you may also want to look at Microdrives. There are some great deals to be had:

http://thoughtsmedia.pricegrabber.com/search_attrib.php?page_id=152&amp;form_keyword=microdrive&amp;rd=1

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Why not bring your notebook along, Jason? I recall you have a P7000 series that's not particularly heavy, and you can leave it in the hotel room and download the photos at the end of the day, and maybe backing up the photos to a DVD or something just in case. ;)

[Jason Dunn]

Why not bring your notebook along, Jason?

Oh, I always do, but if I'm out on vacation for 8 hours of touring around Hawaii, you can bet I'll take more than the 250 or so photos that the D200 says I have. There's also that bug with the compressed RAW estimation we talked about, but it makes me REALLY uncomfortable to see the number ticking down and not knowing if it's really accurate or not. 8GB of storage is the answer - they're not even very expensive any more...and I"ll have the 4GB for backup. :D