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|| SportsShooter.com: Member Message Board
RAW to JPG converter - which one do you recommend?
Armando Solares, Photographer
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Englewood | FL | USA | Posted: 12:41 PM on 01.10.07 |
->> I am shooting RAW for everything and it is great. Except that recently I've had to convert a lot of RAW images to JPGs for my clients. It takes a really long time to do it in Adobe Bridge and CS2. How can I convert, say 1,000 images to JPGS in less than, say 8 hours?
Is there a faster way of doing this using Brige and CS2? Which converter is the best and fastest?
There is a bunch of them out on the web, even some free ones. However, I wanted opinions from SS members.
Thanks,
Armando |
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Clark Brooks, Photo Editor, Photographer
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Urbana | IL | USA | Posted: 12:59 PM on 01.10.07 |
->> Try DPP.
I did 100 images in about 15 minutes yesterday. 800 images took about hour and half that last time I needed to process that many. Your processing speed is going be determined by how much hard drive space you have, RAM and processor speed. For bulk processing I use it exclusively.
Good luck. |
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Matthias Krause, Photographer
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Brooklyn | NY | USA | Posted: 1:04 PM on 01.10.07 |
| ->> IMO DPP produces the best skin tones also. |
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Jason Orth, Photographer
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Lincoln | NE | USA | Posted: 1:09 PM on 01.10.07 |
->> For speed I've found RawShooter Essentials to be excellent. DPP is very good for conversion, but I think RawShooter is noticeably faster. It is free, but since Adobe bought Pixmantec it isn't being updated after Lightroom's release.
http://www.pixmantec.com/products/rawshooter_essentials.asp |
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Harrison Shull, Photographer
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Asheville | NC | USA | Posted: 1:14 PM on 01.10.07 |
->> Armando-
All of the RAW converters can do what you ask. I would stick with either DPP or CS2/ACR (or maybe Lightroom) as they are fairly standard programs and you already have them. I use both DPP and CS2/ACR but have found that I like DPP better for my workflow when it comes to prepping large numbers of screen-res jpegs for archiving to my database.
You can write a batch action using Bridge and CS2/ACR to process jpegs but this may not be what you want if the RAW's are not all going to be processed alike. One good resource for info on CS2 workflow is a visit to www.D65.com.
For DPP, try the following steps.
1) Take all the images that you want to process and put them into a folder.
2) Open that folder in DPP
3) Spend the time to process each RAW file the way you want
(or gang multiples if many are to be processed the same)
4) Select all the images and then click "batch process"
5) Specify the output parameters (dest file, size, res, etc...)
6) Click "execute" and let 'er rip
Cheers - HS |
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Patrick Tower, Photographer
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Normal | IL | USA | Posted: 1:16 PM on 01.10.07 |
->> I've found DPP to be the best for my purposes, especially when doing bulk processing. Of course, this is assuming that you're using a Canon camera. (Doesn't everyone?) :)
That said, what I find even more useful is taking advantage of the camera's ability to capture both RAW and JPG images simultaneously. In my current workflow, I use in-camera JPG's for most everything except the final print, and if you're using a non-1D-series camera, I think there are still ways to extract a large preview JPG from the RAW much more quickly than converting the image. Of course if those 1,000 images must be highest resolution and highest quality, then post-capture conversion is your only choice. |
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Bob Ford, Photographer
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Lehighton | Pa | USA | Posted: 1:23 PM on 01.10.07 |
| ->> I use Lightroom for stuff like this. I just import the RAW fles, and then export them as jpegs. I'm very happy with the quality of the jpgs it automatically creates. |
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Brian Cripe, Student/Intern, Photographer
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East Lansing | MI | USA | Posted: 2:08 PM on 01.10.07 |
| ->> I use DPP, Adobe ACR, and CaptureOne for raw conversions - I've been happy with all of them for different purposes. CaptureOne seems to do the best job with shadow detail, DPP creates the best skintones (and handles information in the highlights the best), and ACR... well, it's integrated into photoshop :) CaptureOne does thebest job with batch raw conversions as far as speed - 400 images took me about 2 hrs the last time I did it. |
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Howard Curtis Smith, Photographer
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Easton | PA | USA | Posted: 2:14 PM on 01.10.07 |
->> While I don't use it myself, Bibble Pro is supposed to be extremely fast. They have a free trial so you can test it for yourself.
http://www.bibblelabs.com/
Personally, I use Photo Mechanic and PhotoShop CS3 beta when I am in a hurry, or if I am doing a large batch. I use Canon DPP if time is not a factor and I want the best quality conversion. |
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Ian L. Sitren, Photographer
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Palm Springs | CA | USA | Posted: 3:44 PM on 01.10.07 |
->> In shooting bodybuilding competitions for my clients even 8 hours would be unacceptable. I shoot everything RAW and get my jpgs for upload by using Photo Mechanic. Everything else is just way too slow for that time pressure.
When I would go back and do selects I did everything in ACR and Bridge. However on my g5 I am now doing it all in Aperture 1.5 and I am really pleased with it. As soon as I go from my PowerBook to a new MacBook Pro, Aperture will be going on the road with me too. |
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Bill Miller, Photographer
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Thousand Palms | CA | USA | Posted: 4:48 PM on 01.10.07 |
->> Speed depends on several factors. Your computer, ram and disk drives. Then more importantly the type of file you are wanting, Tiff 16bit, Tiff 8 bit, Full size Jpeg, Proof Jpeg or Web gallery.
For example a RAW Canon 1Ds file produces a 63Mb Tiff 16bit, while a 8-bit is 31.5Mb, Full Jepg=2.9Mb, Proof Jepg= .33Mb. Conversion times will therefore vary from 18.6Sec to 3.5Sec.
These are the speeds using Bibble v7.0 Pro Version. PC 3.0Gz, Raid, 3GB ram.
Here is a link to a comparison between all of the major RAW converters - http://www.sphoto.com/techinfo/rawconverters/rawconverters.htm#features
Also a link to BibbleLabs - http://www.bibblelabs.com/products/bibble/speed.html |
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Phil Hawkins, Photographer
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Fresno | ca | usa | Posted: 7:24 PM on 01.10.07 |
->> Not to take anything away from those who have other opinions, but I can't believe I'm the first who swears by Capture One. I have used every RAW converter under the sun, and by far, my favorite is Capture One LE. (The Pro version is WAY overpriced and overkill in it's features EXCEPT live capture.)
It loads, displays and organizes incredibly fast. Image quality is the best as far as I'm concerned, and I love the fact that I can create an 8000 dpi TIF image when converting. This ability to go 8000 dpi in converting allows me to enlarge with no limit on size, and ensures I will capture everything that can possibly be tranferred in terms of detail and color info. (Let's not denegrate into a rhetorical discussion of 8000 dpi or 300 dpi when converting...)
Conversion times are fast, and batch processing is as quick as a keystroke.
I can create white-balance values and SAVE THEM for future use. Presently, I have about 25 different white balance settings for all the different venues I shoot basketball in. Shoot, load the white-balance settings, hit the button and ALL of my RAW files are white-balanced presto!!
The only downside to Capture One is that whenever a new camera hits the market it takes them forever to get the new RAW algorithm out to users. I.E., when the Canon 5D came out, it was 4 months before the download was ready!
However, if you want to compare converters for your own decision, go to http://www.sphoto.com/techinfo/rawconverters/pages/digitalphotopro.htm and compare.
Otherwise, go to http://www.phaseone.com/ and read up on it. You will recognize the "PhaseOne" moniker as the same folks who make the Phase One digital backs for medium format cameras...
Enjoy
Phil |
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Leonard Spoden, Photographer
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Vienna | VA | USA | Posted: 7:45 AM on 01.11.07 |
| ->> I agree, I have tried all the converters and Capture One is the best for color and noise and it is easy to use. I wish ACR did a better job, but the color and pixel rendition is very crude. I have tried DPP, the color is great, but it wasn't very usable, but for free it is a good converter if you don't want to pay for C1 but want great color. Lightroom is nothing more than a new front-end for ACR. |
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