raw format

[ftlmo]

Hello i have a canon power shot s30 and love it a lot and have printed out some good photos,my ? is i have never used raw format,if i use that setting will the quality of my pics come out better and if so do i have to do anything in my zoombrowser to print them out at the original way the pic was taken.Idownload them right from the camera in jpeg formay want to try raw and what are the advantages to useing raw format.

[stopbath]

Raw format is great for those whom want to really manipulate the shots. Raw format gives the user a lot more data to use (pixel depth is 12 bit instead of 8, and there is no compression.)

Down side is the files take up much more room than slightly compressed 8bit files, and they must be converted to PNG, JPEG or some other format before they can be used in other software or get printed.

Jpeg super fine is usually good enough for most people most of the time.

[Wildman]

I always shoot in RAW mode. The biggest advantage is the ability to adjust saturation, sharpness... and most important, white balance, AFTER the picture is taken.

The file size issue isn't terribly important. My Canon Pro90 produces a 2MB RAW file. The largest, lowest compression JPG is about 1.7MB.

Compact Flash cards are pretty cheap now and you should have at least one spare anyway.

I use BreezeBrowser to batch convert my RAW files for editing. I usually use "as shot" parameters then re-convert any that need tweaking before processing in Photoshop Elements. I save the RAW files as proofs in a separate folder.