I'm shooting jpeg again and getting better results.

I shoot RAW & Jpeg, but rarely process in RAW as I'm mostly happy enough with the Jpeg. If I was taking an important shot or one in difficult lighting, I would use the RAW file for more control over the final image.

Everyone seems to think that the OP's RAW conversion is flawed but is it really. Take a perfectly exposed image in both formats, JPG and CR2. How are you going to make it better using a RAW converter. I agree that if you didn't nail your exposure then RAW gives you a much higher chance of pulling a good image out of it but if you are confident in your photography shooting JPG makes just as much sense. Too many people use RAW as a crutch knowing that they don't have to work at getting it right in the first place.

Hmm, interesting responses. You guys are awesome.

DPP is not a program designed to be a high powered RAW developing tool. It is mainly a contrast, exposure, saturation adjusting program. Its tone curve does not offer the guided sliders that Lightroom does. So I can completely believe you're not getting good results by using DPP.

ssim wrote in post #14932640
Everyone seems to think that the OP's RAW conversion is flawed but is it really. Take a perfectly exposed image in both formats, JPG and CR2. How are you going to make it better using a RAW converter.

You're not going to make it better. And when I can be absolutely certain of getting absolutely everything absolutely perfect in-camera then I'll happily switch to jpeg. Unfortunately, not being perfect, this isnt likely to happen in the near future.

But this is irrelevant to the OP's problem. The default settings of DPP will produce a jpeg identical to the one that the camera would have produced. So if DPP is producing an image worse than that it can only be down to flawed raw processing.