Another one of the many benefits of digital photography is the ability to choose the type of digital file that results from taking a picture. Should you choose RAW format or JPG? Like with so many answers to questions about photography the answer is, “It depends.” But it’s an important thing to consider, because the digital files you save are analogous to the negatives you saved from film photography days. Here are some things to consider.

RAW Format

• RAW format captures more digital information, and therefore results in a larger file that takes up more room on your memory card.
• That additional information means you can use your photo processing software to the best of its ability.
• The RAW file size slightly affects the speed at which you can fire off photos (like in rapid fire mode while you hold down the shutter release).
• Use RAW when you know ahead of time that you’re going to get “artsy fartsy” with your pictures and anticipate doing process work on the photo: adjusting white balance, color saturation, color vibrance, exposure.
  • For example, you don’t have to fret over whether you have the white balance set right. You can set your white balance to “automatic” and handle any changes using your photo editing software.
• Use RAW when you know you’ll be making prints of the photo and may want to fine tune the contrast levels.
• You can always create a JPG copy of a RAW file.
• Professionals normally shoot in RAW format, because it results in a more flexible file.

JPG Format

• JPG format captures less digital information, and therefore results in a smaller file that takes up less room on your memory card.
• Using JPG means you’ll get slightly more speed out of your digital camera’s continuous shooting (rapid fire) capability.
• JPG is the photo format that’s used for websites and blogs.
• You cannot save a JPG file in RAW format – the additional information was never captured.
  • Want the best of both worlds and have the camera do the work for you? Most digital SLRs now give you the option of having the digital photo files automatically saved in both formats: RAW And JPG. But remember, that will suck up a lot of space on your memory card.
• Use JPG format when you’re not overly concerned with quality, but more concerned with quantity – the number of photos your memory card will hold.

My Decision

I shoot in RAW format all of the time now. I enjoy processing my photos and adjusting the different levels to get photos looking just the way I want them. I’ve got a big memory card, and the rapid fire shutter speed degradation is not an issue for me. So the benefits outweigh the drawbacks for me.

Isn’t Shooting In RAW Cheating?

Some digital photography “puritans” insist that an image must not be changed from its original state – no post photo processing. You can decide for yourself whether that’s your style, or whether you’re comfortable editing the photo. Shooting in RAW allows for more flexibility, especially if you’re pron to changing your mind. Start as a puritan, then change your mind. Or, start as someone who does lots of crazy post processing, then revert back to the original. With RAW, you can do both!

My opinion is that using photo editing software is a lot like the darkroom techniques that were used in the film developing days. Ansel Adams used to use his own darkroom techniques that gave his black and white prints a very unique look. And if Ansel Adams did, that’s creative license enough for me!

Conclusion

Unless you’ve got a good reason not to, start shooting in RAW. Crank up your favorite photo editing software and discover the added flexibility you’ll get from RAW. You can make a bunch of changes, get ultra creative, then revert back to the original RAW file whenever you like (you can’t do that with a JPG unless you saved the original somewhere).