Does DPP4 save RAW-based HDR images as RAW or JPG?

[stevet1]

OK  Here's my question:

 I set my AEB and take 3 RAW photos.

I go into DPP4 , load up the photos and in the Tools menu, start the HDR composting.

I merge the files and wind up with an HDR image. 

I go to save it. Is it saved as a RAW file, or as a jpg?

I looked at the manual, and all the manual says is, 'Save as" and then it stops.

I have  T8i, and I can do an HDR composition of RAWfiles, but the resulting image is saved as a jpg.

Steve Thomas

[johnrmoyer]

I hope some of this might be helpful.

I am not certain, but I guess this might be the section of the manual that explains it:

https://cam.start.canon/en/S002/manual/html/UG-04_EditImage_0170.html#EditImage_0170_2

So far as I know, DPP cannot create a composite raw file. Saving as a 16 bit TIFF preserves enough information for further editing in another program.

https://cam.start.canon/en/S002/manual/html/UG-05_Synthetic_0030.html has the instructions for creating an HDR image.

I have in the past used DPP to save 16 bit TIFF files from each of the RAW files and then used Hugin on my Linux machine to combine the TIFF files as what Hugin calls a "stack".

DPP does not save meta data to the composite image. Exiftool may be used to copy selective meta data from one of the RAW files to the final composite JPEG when one is done editing.

[rs-eos]

RAW files contain data coming right off of a camera's sensor.  Even for single images, applications such as DPP or Adobe Lightroom will create any necessary intermediate files representing edits to the original RAW.  Then, you can export into a final image (JPEG or other formats).

When working with composites with multiple RAW images in Adobe Photoshop, I typically choose smart object layers for each RAW.   The underlying data of the layer is the RAW image, I can apply whatever edits via the Camera RAW filter, but saving the composite here results in an Adobe Photoshop file.  I can then export to any supported image format.

I expect the same would be in DPP any compositing using the same process.  It would create intermediate files as needed for any edits to the individual RAW images, and there'd be some format/file representing the recipe of how the images are combined together (kinda like the Adobe Photoshop file containing the layers).  You'd then export the final image as JPEG or other supported image formats.

[johnrmoyer]

---

@rs-eos wrote:

RAW files contain data coming right off of a camera's sensor.  Even for single images, applications such as DPP or Adobe Lightroom will create any necessary intermediate files representing edits to the original RAW.  Then, you can export into a final image (JPEG or other formats).

When working with composites with multiple RAW images in Adobe Photoshop, I typically choose smart object layers for each RAW.   The underlying data of the layer is the RAW image, I can apply whatever edits via the Camera RAW filter, but saving the composite here results in an Adobe Photoshop file.  I can then export to any supported image format.

I expect the same would be in DPP any compositing using the same process.  It would create intermediate files as needed for any edits to the individual RAW images, and there'd be some format/file representing the recipe of how the images are combined together (kinda like the Adobe Photoshop file containing the layers).  You'd then export the final image as JPEG or other supported image formats.

---

Although I have not used any Adobe software for many years and now use either Canon DPP or Rawtherapee for raw development, I expect that Canon DPP processes raw files differently than the Adobe software. Newer cameras can produce a few different kinds of raw files. The software built into the camera now does more processing of the counts from the individual photo sites when producing a raw file. For example, if the camera is mirrorless, the dual pixel data is combined using some algorithm to make a single pixel raw file (the algorithm might be simple addition in some cases).

For Canon DPP, the best format to export for further editing is 16 bit TIFF. Free software such as gimp can combine several images as layers. Hugin free software has an option to save intermediate files that could be used as layers in gimp. I find that Hugin is better for aligning a stack of images than gimp, but that might be due to my lack of knowledge about gimp.

Before exporting 16 bit TIFF files from Canon DPP to edit as layers in another program, I suggest using "digital lens optimizer" in Canon DPP because it seems to use more knowledge of Canon lenses and physical filters on Canon sensors than is available to other programs. If planning to edit in another program, I suggest doing any unsharp mask later in the other program. If one does not have a lens supported by DPP and never uses DPRAW files, then I expect another program will be as good as DPP.

https://snapshot.canon-asia.com/article/eng/5-essential-adjustments-to-do-with-digital-photo-profess...

https://snapshot.canon-asia.com/reg/article/eng/eos-5d-mark-iv-lens-aberration-correctiona-close-up-...

[stevet1]

Thank you all for your help.

Steve Thomas