Raw Image Visibility and size.

[Epicuros]

I have read several articles in which it is claimed that RAW images are not visible unless converted. However, in DPP software that comes with our EOS camera, we can see raw images even before conversion. If these are the +JPEG images  the camera produces how come we process RAW images based on the JPEG images we see? There must be something  I am missing. Besides, I noticed that RAW image size is quite smaller than the converted TIFF image size How is this?

[ebiggs1]

If you use Adobe ACR to do your edits, you will notice it makes an xmp file for each edited Raw file.  That is the tag file that remembers your edits.  If you should move the Raw file and not move the xmp tag, all your edits will be lost.  If you move or copy the Raw file, you must move or copy the xmp file, too.

[RobertTheFat]

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@ebiggs1 wrote:

If you use Adobe ACR to do your edits, you will notice it makes an xmp file for each edited Raw file.  That is the tag file that remembers your edits.  If you should move the Raw file and not move the xmp tag, all your edits will be lost.  If you move or copy the Raw file, you must move or copy the xmp file, too.

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And in that respect Canon's Digital Photo Professional handles editing better, because it maintains your edits in the RAW file itself, while still allowing them to be changed or discarded. (You can also maintain edits separately in a "recipe" file, but that's not required.)

[ebiggs1]

"... Canon's Digital Photo Professional handles editing better,..."

"Better", not really if you just consider this one approach better the rest of the advantages in LR/ACR far exceed this.  Personally, I do not consider it a better way to do it anyway.  I keep coming back to this but neither do 99.9% of all professionals in the business.

You like DPP4 and more power to you.  I freely admit it works.  However, it is not and will not replace LR/ACR or PS.

"recipe" file, but that's not required..."   LR/ACR or PS have what is called a 'preset' which can be applied upon import or later whenever.  Also, the xmp file can be saved alone and later loaded to apply to any photo or any batch of photos.

You know DPP4 way better than I, but you will have to really dig to find something it does better than LR/ACR or PS.  Perhaps you will?

[ebiggs1]

BTW, the xmp file can be handled in several differnt ways.

When a camera Raw image file is processed with Camera Raw, the image settings are stored in one of two places. The Camera Raw database file or a sidecar XMP file. If you choose to save it as a DNG file, the settings are stored in the DNG file itself, but they can be stored in a sidecar XMP file instead, either way.

In addition, you can record the state of an image at any time by creating a snapshot. Snapshots are stored renditions of an image that contain the complete set of edits made up until the time the snapshot is created. By creating snapshots of an image at various times during the editing process, you can easily compare the effects of the adjustments you make. You can also return to an earlier state if you want to use it at another time. Another benefit of snapshots is that you can work from multiple versions of an image without having to duplicate the original.