Canon 5dii RAW > DNG Converter> CS3 RAW question

Hey guys, I recently acquired my long-awaited 5dii and the first thing that i realized was that the raw format of the 5dii was different from the raw format of the XSi I previously owned. Now, even with the xsi raw i had to download a special converter that runs in the background just so i could even preview the raw files in the windows picture viewing program.

After reading a bunch i found that i needed the DNG converter which was free to get and pretty simple to use, just takes a bit of extra time to convert from canon 5dii raw to .dng files before i can open them up with the CS3 raw program.

my question is this: I know i have my file "preview" set to medium when converting to .dng files, but even at full quality it seems like the .dng files is much smaller then the orignal raw file, however, when opened in CS3 and zoomed it it seems like its the same resolution as far as i can tell... do i loose image quality when going from raw to dng to cs3 jpg? also, should i set my .dng convert to full quality or does it not affect the over all image quality?

I also noticed that there is a very noticeable color variation between the 2 files. The windows photo viewer shows the canon raw to be different from the .DNG file and the raw file i see in photoshop (the photoshop file and .dng file look exacty the same) so im guesing that the true color of the image is what photoshop is showing (granted my monitor is fully calibrated, which it is) , correct?


thanks guys.


ps: also, is there a need to keep the original 5dii RAW file after the .dng files are made? or should i erase them? reason im asking is that im filling up my 700gb internal drive REALLYYYYY fast. lol.

thanks

DNG uses loss-less compression, that's why the files are smaller.
The only thing you loose is the ability to edit in DPP. So if you want to use DPP, you'll need the CR2 files.

aemravan wrote in post #12079392
...is there a need to keep the original 5dii RAW file after the .dng files are made? or should i erase them? reason im asking is that im filling up my 700gb internal drive REALLYYYYY fast. lol.

If you were shooting film, would you throw away the negatives?

You need to immediately get started with a multiple backup plan because you're currently highly at risk to lose everything. Lots of info to be found on POTN regarding the use of data drives and external drives for redundant file backups and archiving.

aemravan wrote in post #12079392
ps: also, is there a need to keep the original 5dii RAW file after the .dng files are made? or should i erase them? reason im asking is that im filling up my 700gb internal drive REALLYYYYY fast. lol.

thanks

I don't work with the DNG format, so I can't answer the first part of the question, but if I did I would definitely agree with Chas above -- I would not throw away my Raw files. They are the "original" and can be used with other applications, such as the Canon software, whereas DNG is limitied to apps that support it. And, the CR2 files can be backed up as an archive away from your working library.

But yes, you are hitting against the fact of our digital lives that disk space is limited and high-resolution files from these newer cameras can gobble things up.

When you mention your 700Gb hard drive, is that the only hard drive on your computer? If it is then the first thing you can and should do is get a second internal "data" hard drive to hold not just images but other things that need high performance but don't need to be on the system drive.

But, in time, you will need to expand your storage space. This is typically done with external drives -- USB, firewire, or eSATA are common connections. These drives can be used to offload images but still keep them "online". In the beginning I would look for one to move the images you have already worked on into, and then (this is important) to have a second one as a backup drive. Without a backup drive separate from the rest of your file system you will, in time, be unhappy!

External drives are much less expensive than they were a few years ago -- you can pick up a 1 Terabyte drive for the neighborhood of $100. Yeah, it's cash, but just realize that our digital photography has to encompass a system of computer hardware and software to support it. And all that will typically cost a lot less than that 5D2, so you have to keep that in perspective!

Personally, in the almost ten years I have been shooting digital, I have never saved a .CR2 file. I just see no need. Lightroom and Photoshop are for 99.9999% of what I do the only applications I need and most others need as well and they play much better with .dng. I have never needed the .CR2 once in all those years. I have to add though that I have never needed nor liked the Canon software either. But, to each their own I suppose.

First of all, thank you for the input.

Second of all, I am most definitely backing up my files to an external 1TB drive, i cannot risk loosing everything and have given it much thought. I am also in the process of making up a parts list for a workstation computer I am going to build for my pics/videos when i get out of school, that workstation will be running in a RAID setup so that I am constantly backing up my files. If the raid system ends up being too much of a hassle, i will simply acquire 2 large internal drives, and back up each drive to a seperate external drive as space runs out.

with that said, my external drive is doing perfectly fine as its only backing up my pictures and videso, but its my internal drive that is currently suffering b/c it also has all my other school reports, research, ect on it.

And if i were shooting film, i would be a miserable excuse of a photographer.... lol, maybe thats a bit harsh on onself, but in all seriousness, if i were shooting film, i would have many more concerns then storing negatives. Just like ben_r_ i use photoshop exclusively when edting my pics (aside from some noise reduction programs that accept jpegs, and some skin correction software that operates through photoshop) and do not see myself changing my ways. Not for a very long time. Since the .dng file is a lossless conversion and i still have a full quality image, that essentially becomes my negative, therefore i see no need to retain the .cr2 files.. atleast not at this point where i have more personal files then that of clients, maybe as i have more funds for storage i will come up with an archiving system that retains the cr2 files as well.


thanks again for the input

The DNG lossless compression is a little better than the in-camera compression of your CR2 files. That's one reason your DNG files are smaller. But the bigger reason is the "file preview" option. I was surprized to learn with my 5D2 that a full sized jpeg is embedded in the CR2 raw, and it's a big one.

When you convert the CR2 to DNG, that full sized jpeg is stripped out and replaced with a "none, medium, or full" jpeg, depending on your DNG converter setting. Even if you choose "none", a very small jpeg is still embedded, allowing other programs like Faststone to show a thumbnail.

I use "none". My 5d2 DNG files average 3 to 4 megabytes smaller than the CR2.

Whatever raw format you choose to work with (IT DOESN'T REALLY MATTER)... Save it with redundant backups. The backup is the only thing you should be concerned with.