lsupremo Loc: Palm Desert, CA

If you store both raw and jpeg in your camera and you are downloading your images into Lightroom do you download one or both?

I’ve been only loading from my #1 raw card. So I’m asking myself why raw/jpeg?
Should I look at the jpegs ? Or should I copy raw/ raw to keep a back up in a safe place? Or whatever??

JR45 Loc: Montgomery County, TX

Depends on your work flow.
For me it works best to upload both. If I see something I like in
the JPG, I do the post from the raw and print from a TIFF.
Archie the raw.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

I have no use for jpegs except for distribution. I process all files that I distribute to clients or upload to social media from raw. Once images reach their destination, I generally delete them. I keep the raw and psd files that I use to make the final edits.

Shooting raw+jpeg for my use makes no sense at all. Many of my images are high contrast and exposed to the right just short of overexposing, so they make absolutely awful jpegs out of the camera, so to standardize and streamline my workflow, I just don't bother with capturing or processing jpegs.

Dngallagher Loc: Wilmington De.

FWIW: I only shoot raw and import my raw files into Lightroom for editing & management. I publish JPG’s from the edited raw files, saving raw files and the edits made. When I need a JPG, Lightroom easily and quickly exports them.

If you shoot raw+jpg, the camera created jpg may not ever match what an edited raw can produce in Lightroom ( or another editor)

Jerry G Loc: Waterford, Michigan and Florida

I shot raw and jpg for awhile until I was comfortable with my editing. Since I now edit every photo I see no reason to shoot raw + jpg.

mborn Loc: Massachusetts

I agree RAW only. LR CREATES JPEG on export

mrtaxi Loc: Old Westbury NY, Fort Lauderdale, FL

The only reason to shoot raw + jpeg is if you are sending “direct from camera” a picture to social media or a friend.

Base_fiddle

I used to shoot raw and jpeg. I hardly used the jpeg files. When shooting in Denmark, my raw card became corrupted and I lost a number of shots. The shots also were stored on my jpeg SD card, but editing them would not have given me the same shots as editing a raw file. So, I learned my lesson and I now use both cards only for raw shots.

tomcat

Another 20-page thread is coming

DavidPine Loc: Fredericksburg, TX

It doesn't make sense unless you are a sports photographer and have a deadline.

AndyH Loc: Massachusetts and New Hampshire

I agree that the idea of shooting both on separate cards is useful only until you've developed a little bit of skill in post-processing. Once you've mastered batch processing in LR or other software, you can easily turn all the Raw files you just shot into JPEGs with a standard "mode" of your preference for the subject. If you're going to make photos as art, or do special family portraits or event shots, you will also have much more control if you start with the Raw file. In addition, if you are generally or in special circumstances exposing to or beyond the right, you'll need to start with the Raw file to get a good image with the desired contrast range.

That's not to say that there isn't a use for JPEG. I use it for some family snaps that I plan to send off with little processing, and for documentary photos of construction projects. I often take dozens of shots on the installation of a single building system, or documenting unexpected conditions when you do something that will be covered up before all the paperwork for a change order is processed (such as showing deteriorated framing when sheetrock and plaster is removed). For these shots I don't need artistic composition or even full dynamic range most of the time. It's more important to get as comprehensive a set as possible and get them into my files quickly to process the changes. In that case, speed is far more important than composition, most architects use point and shoots or even cell phones for that purpose. None of those shots will ever make the cover of Time, but they're not intended to.

My general advice is that shooting both on separate cards can be a good learning aid, but usually you just need one or the other, so it's more efficient to start out that way. While you're learning and shooting the Raw + JPEG scheme on two separate cards, you can set your Lightroom settings so that there are different sequence names for each card (as you'll be downloading them separately) or you can have the same image names with the two different file extensions so they'll show up next to each other in the LR folder for easy comparison.

This is an area where every photographer has different needs and may prefer a certain workflow. As you gain experience with processing, I think you'll come to a point where you don't need the "one of each on separate cards" redundancy, and may well find that it slows down the process for you. As always, YMMV.

Andy

gvarner Loc: Central Oregon Coast

I shoot RAW and JPEG and only use the JPEG’s for less important photos that I don’t want to have to go through the extra step of developing the RAW. Just a judgement call on my part.

via the lens Loc: Northern California, near Yosemite NP

It is entirely up to you how you use your images and what workflow you use. Having said that, if you are not using the JPEGs why shoot that way? A RAW file after processing can be output as a JPEG file if you need one. I think some people look at the JPEG to see how the camera processed the image but that always seems crazy to me, either let the camera do it and be happy with the results or use your own creativity on the RAW file. Creating duplicate files can also be an issue within the digital asset management system of LR.

jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ

If you are confident in your ability to edit raw files, and you are getting the results you want, then I see no need to shoot or save the jpg images. It's a waste of space and time to do both. Many people, including myself, start out shooting both raw and jpg just in case they have some kind of doubts or trouble with the raw editing. But it didn't take long for me to decide that all I need are the raw images and don't need to shoot both. Sometimes I do shoot jpg's but usually only for placing ads on things I'm selling on CL or eBay. I don't need raw images of a lens or a bicycle that I'm selling. Once it's sold I get rid of the pictures anyway.

cjc2 Loc: Hellertown PA

RAW is what I import, jpeg is what I export. Best of luck.