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How-To: Edit RAW Photos on a Budget (or for Free!)

Mark Edward Soper — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:30:00 -0600

Why Shoot in RAW Mode?

RAW mode, a feature of virtually all digital SLR cameras and an increasing number of high-end point-and-shoot cameras, enables your camera to capture all of the image data in your photographs in full quality without distortion caused by JPEG data compression. RAW files enable you to repair white balance and color temperature problems, solve exposure problems, and adjust color intensity and other settings far better than you can with JPEG files. Unfortunately, you must use software that supports RAW files to optimize your picture and export it to a format you can use for other purposes, such as JPEG or TIFF.

Thankfully, you don't need to spend a fortune on software to edit RAW images. In this article, we'll put three popular solutions to the test:

Canon Professional Digital Photo
Google Picasa 3.5
Adobe Photoshop Elements with Adobe Camera Raw

Professional Digital Photo and Google Picasa are free, while Adobe Photoshop Elements v8 runs around $80-100. Can you get by with a freebie, or should you cough up some bucks? To answer this question, we turned all three of our contenders loose on discolored, underexposed and overexposed Canon RAW (.CR2) photos taken with a Canon Digital Rebel XTi camera.

Google Picasa 3.5

Google Picasa is easy to download and uses the same interface for editing RAW images as for editing other supported image types (JPEG, TIFF, and so on). Picasa supports most digital camera RAW codecs (see this reference) and is updated frequently as new digital camera RAW file types are introduced.

Locating RAW Images in Picasa

RAW images are displayed in Picasa's image library window the same way as JPEG images. To determine the image type, click the image, and the file extension, size, and other basic properties are shown in the blue bar between the image browser and the action buttons.

Picasa and Automatic Photo Repairs

As soon as Picasa locates photos, including RAW images, it automatically applies fixes to those photos. This is very handy if you don't want to worry about making a lot of changes yourself, but if you don't agree with Picasa's changes, it can be frustrating, since you can't undo automatic fixes.

Fixing Color and Exposure Problems with Basic Fixes

To make manual changes, double-click the photo in the Picasa image library window. Picasa uses three tabs in its editing space. The Basic Fixes tab opens by default. For a quick automatic repair, click I'm Feeling Lucky. Sometimes you're lucky, but in this example, we've traded dark poor color for lighter poor color. Thankfully, you can undo changes made on this tab by clicking the Undo button

Using the Tuning Menu

For greater control over the image, click the Tuning tab. The Tuning tab enables you to use sliders to adjust Fill Light, Highlights, Shadows, and Color Temperature (the third tab, Effects, provides a dozen special effects). By using the Tuning tab, we achieved better color and exposure.

Once you make changes to a RAW file, the changes are stored in Picasa, but the RAW file itself is not changed.

Applying Changes to Multiple RAW Files

If you have a number of RAW images that have the same color temperature (white balance) or exposure problems, or if you want to apply the same special effects to a group of photos, you may want to make the same edits to each photo. Here's how Picasa does it.

1. Select the fixes desired from the Basic Fixes, Tuning, and Effects tab.

2. Click Edit, Copy All Effects.

3. Click Back to Library.

4. Use Shift-click or Ctrl-Click to select similar photos.

5. Click Edit, Paste All Effects.

Unfortunately, because you pasted the effects to the files, the sliders used to adjust exposure, color temperature, and effects do not show the actual settings on the target files.

Saving a JPEG File in Picasa

To create a JPEG file (which can be used for printing, emailing, websites, and so on) from your edited RAW file, click File, Save As, and select JPEG from the pull-down options. Unfortunately, Picasa does not provide options for file size/quality.

Picasa matches the image quality of the original photo, and uses a quality level of 85% when it cannot determine the quality level.

Saving Other File Types

If you need to convert a RAW file into a file type other than JPEG, current versions of Picasa can't do it (this feature was available in earlier versions).

Picasa 3.5 Summary

Pros: Free, supports most cameras that shoot RAW images, easy to use interface

Cons: Automatically makes changes to photos that can't be undone, more limited controls than others, can only export photos in JPEG, can't control JPEG quality levels.

Our take: Use Picasa 3.5 if it's all you have, but you'll probably be happier with your camera vendor's RAW image editor, or with Adobe Photoshop Elements with Camera RAW.

Canon Digital Photo Professional

Canon actually provides two ways to edit RAW files: ZoomBrowser EX and Digital Photo Professional. ZoomBrowser EX is clumsy, provides very limited editing features of RAW files only through an additional Canon-provided program called RAW Image Task, and is excruciatingly difficult to update. Our advice, after trying both: use Digital Photo Professional instead. You can install it from the CD packaged with your Canon camera, or download it from the Canon website.

Using Digital Photo Professional to Edit RAW Files

Digital Photo Professional (DPP) bears a striking resemblance to Adobe Lightroom. And, you can consider it a sort of "junior Lightroom" for Canon RAW files. Here's how to get started:

1. Open DPP

2. Select a RAW image created by a Canon camera (.CR2 or .CRW).

3. Click Tool to open the Tool palette.

4. From the RAW tab, use sliders to adjust brightness, white balance, picture style, contrast, color tone, saturation, and sharpness.

6. Use the RGB tab to adjust tone curves for RGB or separate channels, brightness, contrast, hue, saturation, and sharpness.

7. Use the NR tab to adjust noise reduction.

8. Click Tool to close the Tool palette.

Note: If you prefer to work with full-screen images, double-click the image in Step 2.

Using DPP to Save Changes to a RAW File

1. After editing a RAW file, click File, Save As.

2. Navigate to a different location if desired.

3. If you don't choose a different location and you don't want to overwrite the original file, enter a new name for the file.

4. Click Save.

5. A new RAW file is saved to the specified location.

6. If you have selected multiple files (see "Processing Multiple Files" for details), you will be prompted to save each additional file.

Saving a RAW Image as a Different File Type

1. Click File, Convert and Save.

2. The saved file uses the same name as the original file. Enter a different name if desired.

3. Select the image type (Exif-JPEG is standard; you can also select 8-bit or 16-bit TIFF, with or without JPEG image).

4. If you select an output option that includes JPEG, the image quality defaults to 10 (best). To decrease file size (and reduce quality), use the slider to select a smaller value (1 is smallest/worst quality).

5. Select the desired resolution.

6. Click Save.

7. The file is converted and saved.

Processing Multiple Files with DPP

To work with multiple files in DPP, you can choose from several methods.

Interactive Processing

1. Click each file you want to process to select it.

2. Click a check mark (check 1, check 2, or check 3).

3. Repeat Steps 1 and 2 until all files you want to process have been marked with the same check mark.

4. Click Edit, Select Check Mark x Images Only (x=1, 2, or 3).

5. Click Tool to open the Tool palette.

6. Make adjustments as needed using the RAW, RGB, and NR tabs.

7. Save or convert each file as desired, using File, Save As or File, Convert and Save.

Create a "Recipe" for File Editing

DPP also enables you to create a "recipe" from an edited file and apply it to other, similar files.

1. Make the changes as desired to the photo.

2. Right-click the photo.

3. Click Save Recipe in File.

4. By default, the name of the photo is used as the name for the recipe (.vrd) file. Enter a different name if desired.

5. Navigate to a different folder if desired (recipes are stored in the same folder as the source photo by default).

6. Click Save to save the recipe.

Applying a Recipe to a Different File

1. Select the file you want to apply a recipe to.

2. Click Edit, Read and Paste Recipe from File.

3. Select the recipe desired.

4. Click Open.

5. The recipe is applied to the selected file.

To apply a recipe to multiple files, select the files first as discussed in "Interactive Processing" earlier in this article.

Digital Photo Professional Summary

Pros: Free, powerful interface, able to save changes to a RAW file, doesn't make any changes for you, enables you to output both JPEG and TIFF files in a single operation, can save recipes to make the same changes to similar files.

Cons: Need to read the manual (available on the Canon camera CD or online) to learn all features; only works with Canon RAW files.

Our take: If you use Canon cameras that work with RAW files, DPP is a bargain – but read the manual to learn everything it can do.

Adobe Photoshop Elements with Camera Raw

Adobe Photoshop Elements can't work with RAW files unless you use Camera Raw to process the files first. However, once you install Photoshop Elements and Camera Raw, you're ready to work with Raw files. Camera Raw is available from the Adobe website at no charge.

For Windows

For MacOS

Cameras supported by latest Camera RAW version

Using Camera Raw to Edit RAW Files

You can open any RAW file recognized by Camera Raw with Photoshop Elements, once you install the appropriate version of Camera Raw. Here's how to get started:

1. Open a RAW image file from File, Open in Photoshop Elements, or drag the file to the Photoshop Elements window.

2. Camera Raw opens.

3. Use the Basic tab to adjust white balance, color temperature, exposure, fill light, contrast, and other settings.

4. Click the Advanced tab if you need to adjust sharpening or noise reduction.

Using Camera Raw to Create a Digital Negative

Adobe's digital negative (DNG) format provides an industry-standard file format that retains all image information, making it a useful replacement for proprietary RAW files. In fact, a few digital cameras store their RAW files as DNG files. Here's how to save a DNG file with Camera RAW.

1. To create a digital negative (DNG) file, click Save Image.

2. Enter the image name and select other options, then click Save.

Saving a RAW Image as a Different File Type with Camera Raw and Adobe Photoshop Elements

1. After making changes with Camera Raw, click Open File.

2. The file opens in Photoshop Elements.

3. Use File, Save as to save the file as a JPEG, TIFF, PSD, or other file type.

4. If you select JPEG, you will be prompted to select the desired image quality (1-lowest, 12-highest).

5. Click Save to save changes.

Processing Multiple Files with Adobe Camera Raw

To apply the same changes to multiple files, you should open the files at the same time:

1. Select the files you want to edit with Camera RAW.

2. Drag the files to the open Photoshop Elements window.

3. Click Select All to select all files.

4. Use the Basic and Advanced tabs to make editing adjustments as needed.

Adobe Camera Raw Summary

Pros: Great preview, makes most changes with a single interface, works with both Photoshop and Photoshop Elements (which provide the most flexible file output options of any program in this roundup, can make the same changes to multiple files, works with virtually all RAW file types.

Cons: Requires you to buy Photoshop Elements (or Photoshop); if you buy a new camera, you might need to upgrade Photoshop Elements/Photoshop, as the newest Camera Raw versions support only current Photoshop Elements/Photoshop, can't save settings for reuse later.

Our take: If you already use Photoshop Elements (or Photoshop), Camera Raw is a no-brainer; it's also the best of the three solutions if you plan to make a lot of additional changes to your photo afterwards. However, if you are looking only for a RAW converter, your camera vendor's software may be satisfactory – and it's usually free!

Mark Edward Soper is the author of The Shot Doctor: The Amateur's Guide to Taking Great Digital Photos.

Check this Out: Nighttime Video Shot with Canon's EOS 1D MK IV

Bart Salisbury — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 16:04:06 -0500

On the very day that Canon introduces the EOS-1D Mark IV camera, filmmaker Vincent Laforet releases the first movie produced on the camera: Nocturne. What’s amazing about Laforet’s short movie is that it was shot at night, in an urban setting, making use only of available light. On his blog Laforet writes: “Here is the main point that I hope you take into account: the short film you are about to watch was shot in pretty much the very worst light that I could possibly find in an evening urban landscape. I did not chose “pretty lighting” in a mall or under neon signs. That would have been cheating in my book.” The result is impressive.

But then so to is the EOS-1D Mark IV. It comes with an Advanced Photo System High Definition (APS-H) sized 16.1 megapixel CMOS sensor, dual DIGIC 4 image processors, and--wait for it--ISO speeds from 100 to 12,800. The ability of the camera, which is primarily for taking still pictures, to handle low-light situations and provide high quality noise reduction is evident from Laforet’s film. (Although Laforet does confess to cleaning it up a bit with Stu's Magic Bullet Colorista software.) The EOS-1D’s video ability includes HD movies with manual exposure control, shooting between 1080 at 30 frames per second, down to 480 at 60 frames per second.

Equally impressive is the EOS-1D’s price-tag. Canon’s suggested retail price is $4,999, and that’s only for the camera body. I’m thinking my hidden Scorsese is going to have to remain hidden a bit longer. In the meantime a 1080p version of Nocturne can be found at SmugMug.

Image Credit: Vincent Laforet

Canon EOS Rebel T1i 500D

Gordon Mah Ung — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 12:33:55 -0500

DRebel, you've come a long way, baby

Canon’s original Digital Rebel 300D lit the fuse that started the sub-$1,000 digital-SLR war. With the “DRebel” now in its fifth iteration, it’s hard to believe just how far this camera has come.

The original DRebel sported a dust-sensitive 6.3MP CMOS sensor and a pathetic four-shot JPEG buffer. The new EOS Rebel T1i 500D ups the megapixels to 15.1 and features a massive 170-shot JPEG buffer at 3.4fps. Dust cleaning, once rare in DSLRs, is featured, as is Live View, or the ability to use the LCD screen to focus and frame a shot. The three-inch screen is a gorgeous 920K pixels and makes smaller and lower-res screens seem antiquated.

The real eyebrow-raising feature of the Rebel T1i, though, is its support for 720p and 1080p video modes. While we once believed that DSLRs would never do video, it’s now the top checkbox on newer models. The T1i supports 720p at 30fps, but at 1080p resolution the frame rate drops to a nearly unbearable 20fps. Video is compressed using H.264 and is stored in a QuickTime .MOV container.

HD Video comes to budget photography.

We found the video quality to be mixed. The low-light performance was surprisingly noisy considering the T1i’s relatively large CMOS sensor. It’s not terrible, and it’s better than the majority of pocket HD cams, but we were hoping, perhaps foolishly, that the T1i’s low-light video would rival that of the superb and pricey EOS 5D Mk II. Sadly, audio is only mono and there’s no provision for mic-in. The trigger for the video is also poorly placed.

The low-light capability of the still images was far more satisfying. Although we’ve heard complaints of noise issues at high ISOs with the EOS 50D sensor that the T1i is based on, we felt the noise control was quite good. And when compared to an older-generation body, such as the 10MP EOS 40D, the T1i has the advantage. The T1i’s 3200 ISO is on par with the 40D at a lower 1600 ISO, which is quite a feat when you consider how many pixels Canon has jammed onto the APS-C sensor format in the Rebel. Generally, as the pixel density increases on an imaging sensor so does noise. The maker can increase the sensor’s size, but that adds cost. Today, the APS-C size is all budget consumers are going to get.

Is the T1i the perfect budget DSLR? Certainly not, but it is hard to ask for more in a body at this price. Sure, we’d love to see 24fps 1080p, a mic-in jack, and perhaps a higher-performance autofocus system (as is, it’s fine for the majority of folks), but for $900 those wishes are unrealistic. Of course, there was a time when our wishes for a large buffer, video mode, and a high-resolution screen in a sub-$1,000 body were unrealistic, too. Overall, the T1i is the pinnacle of the sub-$1K DSLRs—it will make anyone looking for a step-up from a point-and-shoot grin from ear to ear.

Last Minute Windows 7 Concept Ads Shot with 5D Mark II

Andy Salisbury — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 14:56:18 -0500

To the surprise of few, Microsoft is gearing up to dominate the airwaves with Windows 7 ads in preparation for their October 22nd launch. And, while there hasn’t been a lot of time to shoot the concepts for said adverts, the bar has been set quite high.

The ads, which show off 7’s personalization, aero shake and the life of a carefree teenager, were all shot during a strict 3-day deadline using a Canon 5D Mark II. All things considered, these commercials are pretty impressive.

No word as to when Microsoft will start running the new spots.

Image Credit: Microsoft

Canon's New EOS 7D: Bigger, Faster, Smarter, Stronger

Mark Edward Soper — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 09:46:42 -0500

Canon fired the latest salvo in the hotter-than-ever digital SLR wars this week, introducing its new EOS 7D. The $1699 (body-only) EOS 7D includes some now-familiar features, such as APS-C image sensor size (1.6x crop factor), 3-inch LCD with Live View, and Full HD Video.

The $1699 (body-only) EOS 7D includes some now-familiar features, such as the APS-C image sensor size (1.6x crop factor), 3-inch LCD with Live View, and Full HD Video. Here's what's new and different.

Bigger - The EOS 7D cranks up the size of several subsystems, including

18MP image sensor
Two DIGIC 4 image processors for faster image processing and better low-light performance
ISO expandable to 12,800
100% viewfinder coverage
19-point autofocus
63 zone dual-layer metering that uses AF and color information for better exposure and image quality

Faster - Shoot faster with the EOS 7D, thanks to

8 fps burst shooting (up to 126 large JPEG or up to 15 RAW; requires Ultra DMA Compact Flash Card)
1080HD video mode now offers frame rates up to 30 fps and includes adjustable frame rates for all supported video resolutions

Smarter - The EOS 7D provides a smarter viewfinder and AF system for better information and composition

New toggleable LCD overlay for better framing and focusing even in total darkness
New Spot AF mode for focusing on tiny areas of a scene
AF Point expansion (borrowed from the EOS 1D series) automatically shifts to adjacent focus points if the selected manual focus point loses focus
Improved automatic AF point selection and Zone AF

Stronger - The EOS 7D is designed to stand up to protracted use:

Magnesium body with dust and weather resistant features
Shutter rated for up to 150,000 cycles

Lens Options, Accessories and More Information

The EOS 7D will also be bundled with Canon's 28-135mm EF IS lens, which provides framing comparable to a 45-215mm lens on a full-frame 35mm camera. The kit will sell for an estimated $1,899.

Wide-angle fans will want to consider Canon's new 15-85mm EF-S IS (24-135 35mm equivalent) and 18-135mm EF-S IS (28-215mm 35mm equivalent) lenses.

Canon's new optional WFT-E5A Wireless File Transmitter ($699.99) provides a variety of storage and backup options for the EOS 7D, including the ability to record to a USB external hard disk and an Ultra DMA Compact Flash card inside the camera at the same time, and it also supports geotagging through Bluetooth. Learn more about the EOS 7D and WFT-E5A here.

Learn more about the EOS 7D's new AF features here.

Are you excited about the new features in the 7D? Wishing it had a different mix of goodies? Click Comment and sound off.

Photo courtesy Canon USA.

Canon Unveils Augmented Reality Take on Jurassic Park

Andy Salisbury — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:52:03 -0500

Sure, we may not have the technology to create our own legitimate Jurassic Park (yet!), but that doesn’t mean we can’t try. And thanks to the minds over at Canon, we’re one step closer to being toe to toe with our prehistoric friends.

In an exhibit over in Chiba, Japan there will be 260 different dinosaurs to check out by means of a virtual reality viewer. A look through the viewer will put the dino about 5 meters away from you.

The exhibit will be on display from July 18th to August 1st, so if you’re hoping to make it over to Japan for a look, you best book soon.

Image Credit: Canon

Canon May Pursue SED Display Technology after Winning Legal Battles

Paul Lilly — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 09:19:23 -0600

Three years ago, SED televisions were thought to be on the verge of competing with LCD HDTVs and plasma displays. By utilizing thousands of tiny electron guns for each phosphor pixel, SED looked poised to offer a compelling high definition solution with wide viewing angles and deep colors in a display as thin as LCD. But any plans to storm the market were quickly squashed when Applied Nanotech took Canon to court for illegally sublicensing its patents.

Fast forward to today and Canon is finally in the clear to launch SED-based televisions after having won the patent suit. Douglas Baker, Applied Nanotech's chief financial officer, admitted "it would probably be a futile effort" to try and appeal the case in the U.S. Supreme Court, so the only thing stopping Canon at this point is, well, the fear of being laughed at.

"At times like this, new display products are not introduced much because would laugh at them," Tsuneji Uchida, Canon's president, told Financial Times.

Uchida did say that Canon has been working on a cost competitive SED production process, so perhaps SED TVs might finally one day materialize. But first, Canon will need to set aside any fears it has of criticizers laughing at them. We hear picturing them in their underwear helps.

Image Credit: Canon

No BS Podcast #81: The Mongolian Barbecue Edition

Tom Edwards — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 13:23:15 -0500

The podcast gang gets together to talk about the new Andoid phone from Google and T-Mobile, Canon's latest camera, and the best screwdrivers on the market. We also answer a load a tech questions and sing the praises of the local Mongolian barbecue restaurant.

Do you have a tech question? A comment? A tale of technological triumph? Just need to get something off your chest? A secret to share? Email us at maximumpcpodcast@gmail.com or call our 24-hour No BS Podcast hotline at 877.404.1337 x1337--operators are standing by.

Subscribe: http://feeds.feedburner.com/maximumpc/1337