Is it necessary to save finished images in .TIF format?

[spaceman]

I shoot mostly in RAW mode, upload my files, do any necessary RAW adjustments, convert to TIF, edit in PSE, and save finished image as a high quality JPEG. If I do not do anymore editing, is JPEG sufficient for archiving the finished image/printing? Thanks.

Alan

[Jesper]

When you're happy with the results, it's good enough...

[Ikinaa]

I shoot rarely in RAW, but when I do, I always keep the RAW, even when I'm finished post-processing the pic.
RAW is your negative, you can't restore it from any other format, even from TIFF. So keep it... memory is cheap...

[photofinish]

In my workflow, I no longer use tiff. I convert from raw directly in PSCS, make my adjustments using layers, then save as a psd file. This way I can go back to the psd and make any changes or dump a layer. I then can print from here locally or save as a resized, sharpened jpg for web use as needed.

[JX]

I save my raw file to a DVD first. Then I convert to either TIFF or JPEG depending on what they will be used for. If I need to I always have the raw file to go back to.

[elbirth]

In my workflow, I no longer use tiff. I convert from raw directly in PSCS, make my adjustments using layers, then save as a psd file. This way I can go back to the psd and make any changes or dump a layer. I then can print from here locally or save as a resized, sharpened jpg for web use as needed.

I was actually surprised to find out that saving as a .tif image actually will retain any layers you make in Photoshop- give it a shot with a test image and try it out ;)

I have also read somewhere (not sure how accurate it was or where it was at, at the moment) that saving as a .tif image actually retains more information and a slightly better quality image than a .psd file does- and it can be read in other graphics programs as well.

[PacAce]

All my final outputs are in JPEG format. However, if I put some time and effort into editing a files, I do save the work in PSD format just in case I need to re-edit these files again.

[pradeep1]

My workflow is similar. RAW -> TIFF -> JPG, but I save the RAW, TIFF, and JPG. This is for "keepers". The rest are just archived as RAW/JPG.

I don't shoot too much RAW, but am moving towards more and more RAW as I do more landscape work. I save each and every RAW. Never know when in the future you'll be able to use some new fangled program to make your images that much more interesting.