Differences Between Raw or JPEG Format

Mike Agerbo: Well on the show we get a lot of questions from our viewers. One of the big ones is what is RAW versus JPEG when it comes to digital photography files. We have got an expert in studio with us Quana Parker. Thank you coming on the show. Quana Parker: Thank you for having me. Mike Agerbo: So pretty well most point and shoot cameras as we know today save their digital pictures in the JPEG format; which is the file format of the photograph, but we also have what are called RAW files now as well that were being exposed to especially with digital SLRs. Maybe you can just kind of give us the basic comparison between the two. What is a RAW file as opposed to a JPEG? Quana Parker: Basically, all camera shoot RAW files, though they are not really very usable in that format. So you have to put them out into something that can be used. And JPEGs are where you point them, where you use them, where you view them, how they goes on the web. So JPEGs are the standard for everything. It's kind of a universal standard. Mike Agerbo: Universal standard for everything. Quana Parker: Your SLR has the ability to shoot RAW files and in post processing there is a lot more that can be done with those files. All the data that is captured from the camera is, there in that files. You can tweak it, change it, adjust it and do whatever you need to and if you've got a file that is a picture that is shot, just a little bit underexposed, little overexposed you can sometimes save it whereas with a JPEG file, that's it. Mike Agerbo: Is that because a JPEG file is essentially a compressed file, it's actually taking information out of the picture to make it smaller? Quana Parker: A JPEG is the lossy file. So basically it compresses at its best as it can to make it look like a good picture. But sometimes in that compression, it - alright? Uses all that data and some of that data is useful data for you later on. There is a lot of things you can do when you shoot RAW that you can get away without having to think about then on the spot. So when you shoot a JPEG file you have to set the light that you are using. The opponent color of the light that is in a room, whether it is natural light or an artificial light, it is actually of different colors. So that different colored light gets put into your JPEG file, whereas on a RAW file it has all that data there and you can choose where you are going to set the white point of your photo. Mike Agerbo: So with the digital SLRs that are out in the market now, and obviously they are coming down much more so into the kind of consumer or prosumer range, they can be saved in RAW and JPEG? Quana Parker: Most cameras offer the option to save the image in both RAW and JPEG. The issue is that the RAW file is 10 times larger than the JPEG file. So if you are pressed for hardware space, pressed for memory card space, you end up getting a lot fewer files. Usually I would say, pick one or the other because you probably won't need both. And in most cases if you have to ask, you probably need to shoot JPEG. Mike Agerbo: Okay. So once if you do want to start working with RAW files, not all photo programs are I guess able to handle the RAW files, I guess some are better than others? Quana Parker: For dealing with any RAW file, you need a post processing program. There are very few ways to deal with those RAW files, and so you needed to put into either Adobe Camera RAW or every icon has their own proprietary software. You can put it into something like Lightroom or Apple Aperture, and those deal with your camera RAW files. From there you do whatever changes you want to do and eventually exported as a JPEG to be posted on the web or be printed from your print job. Mike Agerbo: Well, Quana thank you for coming on the show. Quana Parker: Yeah. Mike Agerbo: Quana Parker talking about the difference between RAW and JPEG files for digital photographers.