Saving RAWs as JPGs

I'm new to the field and new to using RAW files. I've heard so much for and against RAW but I currently like it especially for the RAW editor in photoshop. I am however having a problem with editing my RAW in the editor and then opening it in photoshop to complete the editing. It seems that the original RAW image is lost. After editing it I then save it as a JPG, but when I go back to open the RAW it's not the original but rather then one with the changes. Am I doing something wrong? I don't want to loose the original RAW file. Any help/guidance would be appreciated!!

When you edit a Raw file and open it the Camera Raw settings are "kept", either in an XMP " sidecar in the same folder or internally in CS. When you next open it, those files will show the adjustments made.

If you want to reset your settings, go to Edit/Develop Settings, or right-click and follow Develop Settings to choose Camera Raw Defaults. You will note the other choices in the Settings list can do some handy things as well.

Thanks for the info. There is a drop down box on the right side of the RAW editor to change it back to "RAW defaults."

Actually no....to revert your RAW files to their original state you need to open Adobe Bridge and navigate to the folder containing the files.

Select the files you want to return to their original state (CTRL+A for all the files) then right-click and select Develop Settings > Clear Settings. Using the fly-out menu in Adobe Camera RAW is incorrect and it doesn't even have the Clear Settings option.

Try this... when a previously edited RAW file is viewed in Adobe Bridge it can possibly have two icons in the upper right corner of the thumbnail(s). One icon indicates that the image has been cropped, and the other indicates that the settings have been edited. If you select Develop Settings > Camera RAW defaults you are simply substituting the ACR default settings for whatever personal edits you did previously. Consequently the "edit" icon will not clear. If you use Develop Settings > Clear Settings, the icons will disappear indicating that the file is now back in its original state.

In the attached screen capture of a RAW thumbnail as viewed in Adobe Bridge, the rectangular icon in the upper right corner indicates the file has been cropped, the other icon with the two sliders indicates that the file settings have been edited.

So as previously stated, to get your RAW files back to the state as they came out of your camera, you right-click on the thumbnail(s) and select Develop Settings > Clear Settings and the icons will disappear. If you choose Develop Settings > Camera RAW Defaults instead, the icons will not clear because you've now substituted the ACR default settings.

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