I shoot with a Canon 30D. I decided to try RAW format for the first time this past weekend. I shot in RAW + jpeg so I have two identical images. When reviewing these, I noticed that the jpeg image is considerably darker than the RAW image. See examples below.
jpeg
RAW- just saved as a jpeg in PS Elements so I could load into photobucket. no editing done
I have noticed that a lot of my images are relatively dark. Before this, I only shot in jpeg format.
I checked the camera and nothing is set to cause it to do this (that I am aware of).
Is this normal?
I also noticed a lot of noise in this image shot at 800 iso. Normally, I don't have this much noise at 800.
Thanks in advance for your help.
edit- now that I view the post, the above images look very similar. The difference is not nearly as pronounced as what I see in my photo organizer. Does saving to jpeg just do this?
The 'darker' image is probably because the jpeg has been proccesed in camera and the camera has applied all sorts of adjustments. These adjustments are what DPP uses as a base when you run the raw thru it. Most other converters dont see any of this so just start with a set of default settings.
Same with the noise, the camera is probly applying NR in camera.
Carry on using RAW as you will find its the way to go and can do alot more with it. but It can be a good idea to go the RAW+Jpeg until you are totaly happy using raw.
when jpegs are made in camera, it applies the contrast setting that is somewhere in your camera menus. so if a picture does come out darker/more contrasty it should not be taken as issue. i cant really say whether or not it is a photo organizer issue. (maybe the organizer applies auto fix to pictures in jpeg)
you should tell us what camera you are using and what photo organizer you are using when you have questions like this.
No problem. Another thing to note is that I did not have this noise issue when just shooting in jpeg format. This camera is usually very low noise, even at higher iso's.
With RAW you get the unaltered version of what you shot (hence the name). The assumption is that people shooting RAW will want to adjust exposure, contrast, color balance, sharpness when viewing the image interactively on the computer.
So when shoot RAW you should expect to add sharpening and other adjustments during editing. If you find that is too much trouble try shooting in RAW + Large JPG mode. That is the best of both worlds: the convenience of JPG and the insurance of RAW if you screw up the JPG
Your raw image is the completely unedited photo from the camera, as it was captured.
The camera, when using a jpeg mode adds settings to the photo and processes it in camera.
For instance, take a shot in raw, and go through your photo in DPP. Go over each mode Faithful, portrait, landscape so on and so forth. You will see each change.
When you shoot with the camera, in raw or not, it applies a mode to it. For instance, my shots are all raw, but the camera is in "standard". So it defaults to those if I shot in jpeg.
RobertLynn- funny to get a response from you because that is my Dad's name What is DPP? My camera is also set to standard which the manual says only applies some sharpening.
Dave In La- they are identical above and in photobucket. However, they are different when viewed side by side in PS Elements on my screen. Weird.
cgardner- the above images were shot using RAW + Large JPG. Your reasoning is exactly why I chose that mode. I don't have a lot of experience processing photos, especially in batches. I like the convenience of jpeg.
I guess the reason for my post was to find out if my camera has something set internally causing it to darken my photos. I bought the camera used so I wasn't sure if it was set for certain internal processing. The only thing I found in the manual relates to the picture style and it is set to standard.
Do you think you took enough time to really understand Dave in La's post? The key words are "you must have a colorspace issue... did you tag, assign or convert any colorspace?" What color space is your camera set to record for JPEGs?
It's normal for the same image to look different--darker, lighter, etc.--in different apps as most are not color managed well. However the 2 images by the OP look the same to me in Safari.
Did you use a program (like Apple's image capture or Canon's Camera Window) to download the media? Is it set to convert the jpegs to the working color space? Is your monitor calibrated and are you using that calibration as the working color space?
