Mountain-Light
JPEG vs. RAW files - Which is Better?
Do you shoot in RAW or JPEG?
If you're a beginner you may only use the JPEG format. Perhaps your camera doesn't have the RAW format. A few compact cameras have this facility.
Regardless of your experience in photography, your aim is to take quality images. If that is your goal then the RAW format is the one to use. Why?
When the camera is set to shoot in the JPEG format the in-camera software processes the data and some information is discarded in this operation.
A RAW file is different - it's like a digital negative because it contains the original image information as it came off the sensor before in-camera processing so you can do that processing afterwards on your computer with RAW conversion software. Many of the camera software settings can be adjusted after the shooting using RAW conversion software. The beauty of using RAW is that you can reprocess the RAW data until you’re satisfied, without any quality loss.
RAW files can contain more shadow and highlight detail than JPEG images.
RAW is a very powerful feature of digital cameras that gives you more flexibility than any other format.
Do you shoot in RAW or JPEG?
If you're a beginner you may only use the JPEG format. Perhaps your camera doesn't have the RAW format. A few compact cameras have this facility.
Regardless of your experience in photography, your aim is to take quality images. If that is your goal then the RAW format is the one to use. Why?
When the camera is set to shoot in the JPEG format the in-camera software processes the data and some information is discarded in this operation.
A RAW file is different - it's like a digital negative because it contains the original image information as it came off the sensor before in-camera processing so you can do that processing afterwards on your computer with RAW conversion software. Many of the camera software settings can be adjusted after the shooting using RAW conversion software. The beauty of using RAW is that you can reprocess the RAW data until you’re satisfied, without any quality loss.
RAW files can contain more shadow and highlight detail than JPEG images.
RAW is a very powerful feature of digital cameras that gives you more flexibility than any other format.
Landscape and Wildlife Photography
