crooner Loc: Portland, OR

I use a Canon SX50 HS. I'm about to try post processing in DPP and/or Fast Stone. I have saved each image as JPEG and RAW. A basic question: Is it better to make a copy of the original RAW image and edit that or simply edit the original RAW image with the understanding that the original image information will still be contained in the edited version?

RonBoyd

The basic answer would be that a JPEG image has already been processed (by the camera) and those changes are baked into the resultant file. A RAW image is just what the name implies; with very few exceptions, the unchanged data captured by the Sensor. The fact that a program (ACR, DPP, ON1 RAW, etc.) makes it visible to your monitor does not alter the original data. Therefore, one has greater control over the post-processing with a RAW file. Depending on what you wish to do with the image is the final determinate of the value of each format.

PixelStan77 Loc: Vermont/Chicago

I use Lightroom for RAW processing. It is non destructive. It is always good to have your images backed up anyway.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

My understanding is that if you tweak the sliders (like in DPP) and save the RAW file, all original image information remains in tact, just with the changed slider settings saved to the file. You can change the slider settings again if desired. (Not sure if there is a "reset" option to put the data back as it was before you moved the sliders, as in out of camera.) So with that in mind, I only keep one RAW file per image. I usually don't perform multiple adjustments, but if I did, I might save the second adjustment simply for convenience.

Delderby Loc: Derby UK

Once you edit your RAW it has to be saved as a file. Depending on the type of file you save it as will depend on how much extra info is also saved. If you save your edit as a JPG then you will lose what the JPG does not need. If you wish to preserve more info in your edited file, then try saving as a TIFF file. I always save an edited file (RAW or JPG) as an uncompressed TIFF. BUT take heed - I am no expert.

RonBoyd

Two things: In my above statement, my thoughts got ahead of my fingers. What I meant by "few exceptions" was those that post-processing has no control over -- focus, shutter speed, etc. (and even now I am explaining it poorly.) Secondly, RAW files are "Read Only" and cannot be changed. They can only be "saved" as a different format --TIFF, JPEG, etc. The camera is, therefore, the only device that can "Save" a RAW file.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

Is it better to edit a copy of a RAW? No, because it is not the same as with JPEGS.

With JPEGS, you edit and "save" or "save as" the file. It works like document files, spreadsheet files, etc. The original can disappear for good if you don't work on copies.

RAW photos are entirely different. They are like film negatives. You can't change them. You open them through an interpretive program like Lightroom or the others listed above. Editing adjustments are saved in catalogs, "sidecar" files or (maybe) other methods. The adjustments are NOT saved in the RAW file, nor can you make a new RAW file through a "save" or "save as" procedure. You can "export" or "render" the RAW, with adjustments, to a variety of formats like JPEG, TIFF, etc. You do that to do things like sending to friends, relatives or posting to Facebook.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Odd, my Canon RAW files are read/write, none are read only. Changes made in DPP update the file when saved, I do not have to create another file.

RonBoyd

FWIW, (and not particularly important) The Develop Module in Lightroom is ACR (Adobe Camera RAW) which is why I inadvertently left out mentioning Lightroom above.

RonBoyd

Google it: https://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4GGNI_enUS483US484&q=Save+RAW+files+in+DPP&qscrl=1

for instance: http://www.dummies.com/photography/cameras/canon-camera/how-to-save-edited-raw-files-in-digital-photo-professional-on-your-canon-eos-6d/

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Sorry, but I just edited a .CR2 file in DPP, alternately slammed each of the sliders left and right, and saved it, and closed DPP.
When I re-opened the file in DPP, the slider changes were all as changed.

RonBoyd

Did the created/modified date change on the RAW file... or is (perhaps) DPP reading a TMG file along with the RAW file?

via the lens Loc: Northern California, near Yosemite NP

Hi Crooner,

If you choose to shoot in jpg format you are letting your camera make the editing decisions for you and that's fine if you are content with that. If you choose to shoot in RAW then you get to make those decisions using a file that contains many more tones of color for you to work with. I can see no reason to shoot in both jpg and RAW except to create confusion later on. The simpler you make your shooting and editing process the more likely it is you will be successful in meeting your photography goals. You can make any format you need using your RAW file after you edit it to your satisfaction in most of the editing programs. If you are unsure how to edit a RAW file at first most programs contain a button for auto edit, that will get you started in the right direction. RAW files remain intact as the original RAW file and editing programs simply overwrite edits onto the RAW file. In Lightroom, which I use, the original RAW file metadata is contained in a sidecar file that needs to remain with the RAW file. I can "save" the metadata edits I complete in Lightroom to the metadata sidecar file if I choose to; if I do not choose to do that then the edits are saved in a catalog folder that works with Lightroom and the changes can only be accessed via Lightroom. This works well for me as I do everything through the Lightroom application. I import the RAW file, edit it knowing that the original file is always there for me to access, and only make copies of images (other than an immediate backup copy as I import) that are edited using other software, such as Photoshop or On1 or Topaz or Nik. I do, however, use those programs through the Lightroom application, too. When I need a jpg or tif, I simply export whatever photo I want to use in that format. I don't keep multiple or duplicate files ever. There are around 25 different editing programs you can use: the trick is finding one that does what you want in a way that works for you.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

I only have one file showing with the "TEST" name, a .CR2, no TMG files are showing on my (Windows) system in any photo directory.

Windows shows not "date taken" for CR2 files (Windows does not know it is a camera image file)
Date modified is today 11/19/16.
Date created is today 11/19/16.
Originally created on 10/15/16

via the lens Loc: Northern California, near Yosemite NP

Actually in LR you use jpg files the same way you use RAW files. The program saves all changes, for either type of file, linked to the image in a separate catalog file. In LR you never need to use save except for one thing: if you want to save the edits you made to the actual file or sidecar file itself, not just into the LR catalog. I'm not sure what you mean by, "The original can disappear for good if you don't work on copies." Are you implying that jpg files simply fade away? I am aware that a jpg file, each time you open it, loses a little bit of data, but I've not heard of any jpg files simply fading away. A curious thing.