Picasa is confusing me: Recently started shooting RAW. Have used Picasa for two years. NOW as I have downloaded to Picasa all my RAW files are weird. So, I shot a bunch of RAW+JPEG...

lrm Loc: Sarasota, FL

Recently started shooting RAW. Have used Picasa for two years. NOW as I have downloaded to Picasa all my RAW files are weird. So, I shot a bunch of RAW+JPEG Fine and downloaded to Picasa. the JPEGS are OK but the Raw photos are terribly dark and faint (some are pink). Is it me or does Picasa not handle Raw well?

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

Picasa is only showing you an "approximation" of that image. All raw files must be edited; they don't have any of the in-camera adjustments that jpg's do (white balance, color saturation, contrast, sharpening, etc.). Think of raw in the literal sense: uncooked, just the ingredients. You need a recipe, then you need to bake!

While you could edit your raw files in Picasa, you will have much more control and choices if you use the software that came with your camera, or another that supports raw, such as Photoshop Elements (and many more).

lrm Loc: Sarasota, FL

Thanks. Ran a second test with my older D7100 and D3200. Raw pix from both looked OK on Picasa (a bit darker than JPEG but ok) while those from my D750 were terrible. Makes me question my D750???

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

lrm wrote:

Thanks. Ran a second test with my older D7100 and D3200. Raw pix from both looked OK on Picasa (a bit darker than JPEG but ok) while those from my D750 were terrible. Makes me question my D750???

Have you used appropriate software to edit the raw images from the D750? The thumbnail view in Picasa is basically meaningless.

There is no point to shooting in raw if you aren't intending to edit (and with a editor that is designed to support raw). As I said, it's an "uncooked" file :)

picpiper Loc: California

lrm wrote:

Recently started shooting RAW. Have used Picasa for two years. NOW as I have downloaded to Picasa all my RAW files are weird. So, I shot a bunch of RAW+JPEG Fine and downloaded to Picasa. the JPEGS are OK but the Raw photos are terribly dark and faint (some are pink). Is it me or does Picasa not handle Raw well?

Picasa does not "handle" RAW files at all. It will display and "edit" .nef files from older Nikon DSLRs, but doesn't understand the newer camera .nefs. I saw the same pink-cast .nef files in Picasa when I got my D5300 after I broke my D5100.

RAW .nef files MUST be processed with NX-D or Adobe camera raw (ACR) inside Photoshop. If not you are just wasting space on your drives.

When you "edit" older .nefs that display properly in Picasa you are actually only making changes to the embedded .jpeg inside the .nef. You are not working with the full range of the RAW data.

bull drink water Loc: pontiac mi.

I use dng and arw raw files, my picasa handles both well. I find I have a good range of adjustments. the only down side is that I can only save them as jpeg files.

Yooper 2 Loc: Ironwood, MI

If you shoot RAW you need a more advanced PP software. Raw photos are flat and you need to at least bring out shadows and lights. An easy one to learn to use is Photoshop Elements. There is a Guided mode for beginners so you can use it fairly easily right away. There are many more on the market. For free you can get Gimp, which is comparable to Photoshop. It has a steep learning curve comparable to Photoshop, which is pretty steep.

photoman022 Loc: Manchester CT USA

i have nothing of value to add to this conversation; everyone else has stated it and stated it well!

Old Timer Loc: Greenfield, In.

I have found that Canon's Dpp does and good job of processing RAW files direct from the camera. I believe from what I have read that most Camera manufacturers program work well with RAW files as it is specific for that cameras soft ware. I use DPP for all my Canon down loads. If so desired then I can go to PS for other processing that I can not do in DPP but mostly using DPP.

photoman022 wrote:

i have nothing of value to add to this conversation; everyone else has stated it and stated it well!

Old Timer Loc: Greenfield, In.

I have found that Canon's Dpp does and good job of processing RAW files direct from the camera. I believe from what I have read that most Camera manufacturers program work well with RAW files as it is specific for that cameras soft ware. I use DPP for all my Canon down loads. If so desired then I can go to PS for other processing that I can not do in DPP but mostly using DPP.

photoman022 wrote:

i have nothing of value to add to this conversation; everyone else has stated it and stated it well!

TomballLegend Loc: Tomball, Texas

lrm wrote:

Recently started shooting RAW. Have used Picasa for two years. NOW as I have downloaded to Picasa all my RAW files are weird. So, I shot a bunch of RAW+JPEG Fine and downloaded to Picasa. the JPEGS are OK but the Raw photos are terribly dark and faint (some are pink). Is it me or does Picasa not handle Raw well?

Been at this camera thing over 50 years, darkroom to digital Never had a problem with Picassa The problem is you and RAW!!!!!

Edia Loc: Central New Jersey

lrm wrote:

Recently started shooting RAW. Have used Picasa for two years. NOW as I have downloaded to Picasa all my RAW files are weird. So, I shot a bunch of RAW+JPEG Fine and downloaded to Picasa. the JPEGS are OK but the Raw photos are terribly dark and faint (some are pink). Is it me or does Picasa not handle Raw well?

Raw files generally have a 14 bit color depth. Picasa only handles 8 bit color depth. It converts the raw files to jpegs before post processing. Light Room/Photoshop and other programs handle 16 color depth and can better handle raw photos than Picasa.

Yooper 2 Loc: Ironwood, MI

The bottom line is that Picasa is mainly a photo cataloging app. which has a few photo enhancement features. It's fine for beginners or those who never plan to do much with their photos. Time to get into more advanced software if you want to shoot in RAW. Once most people shoot in RAW and learn to control the outcome of their photos they never go back. I wouldn't. It puts you into a whole other realm of photography.

lrm Loc: Sarasota, FL

Thanks, that is the answer I have been looking for.

TomballLegend Loc: Tomball, Texas

Yooper 2 wrote:

The bottom line is that Picasa is mainly a photo cataloging app. which has a few photo enhancement features. It's fine for beginners or those who never plan to do much with their photos. Time to get into more advanced software if you want to shoot in RAW. Once most people shoot in RAW and learn to control the outcome of their photos they never go back. I wouldn't. It puts you into a whole other realm of photography.

Snobbish dribble!@