Things are not done to RAW file. Data in RAW file is converted into RGB image. This RGB image may be save into an image file like Tiff and Jpeg or transfered into Photoshop. When demosaicing the raw data into a RGB image the RAW converter can create the RGB image in 8 or 16 bit color mode in a standard color spaces like Prophoto, Adobe and s RGB. During the conversion process most RAW converters can apply filters like noise reduction, lens correction, white balance adjustment, curves, sharpening, exposure and others. I would not get to aggressive with noise reduction and sharpening. During RAW conversion.
If you are going to print your images on a wide gamut printer to get the most out of your image convert the raw data in a wide color gamut color space in 16 Bit mode.
If you are just going to be using your images on the web, viewed on computers and printed by a lab that wants you images as sRGB jpeg files. You might as well just convert to 8 Bit sRGB images in the first place. Your editing time will be shorter for the editor will be processing half as many bites in 8 bit color mode and you also do have to convert from a wide color space to sRGB when your saving image files.
If you are just going to be using your images on the web, viewed on computers and printed by a lab that wants you images as sRGB jpeg files. You might as well just convert to 8 Bit sRGB images in the first place. Your editing time will be shorter for the editor will be processing half as many bites in 8 bit color mode and you also do have to convert from a wide color space to sRGB when your saving image files.
Only if you don't intend to do any substantive editing. If you do intend substantive editing, convert the image into a 16-bit format (generally TIFF) and edit in 16-bit (either TIFF or PSD). When you've completed editing, convert to 8-bit sRGB for the lab to print, if that's what they want.
Doing substantive editing in 8-bits can seriously damage overall tonal values, ending up in banding.
RDKirk wrote:
Doing substantive editing in 8-bits can seriously damage overall tonal values, ending up in banding.
Very true and sometimes the banding will appear after a simple Curves move in 8 bit. Better to keep everything in 16bit for preserving the wonderful tone graduations that help make an image pop and take on that three dimensional "look" with better fine detail rendering. Doing even smallish moves in 8 bit can sometimes cause the sky or tone graduations like a sky turn ugly, blotchy real quick. Lots of good info is lost in 8 bit work but preserved in 16 bit editing.
Best to do all image editing in 16 bit and save as 8 bit jpeg for web work as the very final step.
