A Photography forum. PhotoBanter.com

If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Go Back   Home » PhotoBanter.com forum » Digital Photography » Digital SLR Cameras
Site Map Home Register Authors List Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read Web Partners

Anyone using DNG?



 
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #11  
Old August 10th 05, 08:56 AM
Barry Pearson
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

G.T. wrote:
"Jeremy Nixon" wrote in message

[snip]

So you're completely on-board with DNG. I was wondering who has enough
faith in the format to get rid of their originals. I definitely like the
idea of a standard RAW format and the smaller file size is a bonus. And it
looks like DNG is gaining at least a little traction with 3rd party RAW
converters.


I convert directly from the card to the PC, so my original PEFs never
get onto the PC. Once I have copied the DNGs to a second place, and
have checked the 2nd copy in Bridge to ensure that the conversion has
worked, I reformat the card in the camera.

I use ACR so I am not inconvenienced by Raw converters that don't
accept DNGs, but obviously I want to see all Raw-handling software
catering for DNG as well. At the moment there are about 35 or more
non-Adobe products that handle DNG, of which most are viewers and image
managers rather than Raw converters. The process of adoption by all
products is slow (but steady), and will take years, so some people
still need to retain their original files, or not use DNG at all.

My original main motivation was the smaller sizes. (I started using DNG
about 2 weeks after it was launched, in fact 10 months ago today!) Now,
the fact that ACR 3.1 can store its settings in the DNG file is another
advantage, because it keeps everything together.

--
Barry Pearson
http://www.barry.pearson.name/photography/
http://www.birdsandanimals.info/

  #12  
Old August 15th 05, 04:42 AM
L. Sather
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

"G.T." spake:

Just wondering if anyone here is committed to DNG? I finally tried it out
last night and really like the fact that the files converted from my Rebel


Yes, exclusively. My workflow will often have me backup the RAWs right
after dumping my flash cards (my "you made a backup, right?" copy), and
then convert to DNG. I tried out Nikon Capture during the trial period and
simply don't need to waste money or precious heartbeats on that level of
tweaking. Adobe's plugin is quite streamlined, and with the sidecar files
I feel quite comfortable sitting down to plow through 400 images, each one
getting the custom treatment.

Adobe says the compression is lossless, does anyone know for sure whether
all info is retained?


1) The original RAW can be embedded if you are really paranoid.
2) The compression is lossless. (The very nature of RAW data means you
can't cut corners.)
3) They have already established that NEF (and likely other formats,
because hey, why not?) has encrypted data, and they are quite content to
leave said data encrypted. Essentially Nikon software will handle Nikon
RAW the best, that's a given. Standard stuff like IPTC and EXIF should be
free and clear and preserved properly. Adobe is keeping to its mission
statement and extending the olive branch to all companies, AFAIK.

My current workflow is Canon DPP to Photoshop CS but I wouldn't mind
switching to DNG Converter to Adobe Camera RAW to Photoshop if my images
will be safe.


They are safe in the sense that as long as Photoshop is available you
should be able to open them. And indeed, other programs can happily
support the format. I have done enough batch converting that I don't even
verify the files anymore (unless I update to a new version or something.)
But hey, one bad hard drive crash and your images are toast no matter what
the format. So make a RAW backup and a DNG backup and keep your working
copies mirrored. ;-)

"The only winners in the computer age are those that sell bandwidth and
storage."
-Lucas
  #13  
Old August 15th 05, 05:44 AM
John Francis
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

In article ,
L. Sather wrote:
"G.T." spake:

Essentially Nikon software will handle Nikon
RAW the best, that's a given.


Not so, by any means.

With any fixed choice of RAW converter you're restricted to the
choice of reconstruction algorithm (or algorithms) offered by
that converter. There's no one-size-fits-all 'best' converter
for all RAW images; there are always going to be some images
that just don't work too well with any fixed converter choice.

That's the one thing that has kept me from a 100% DNG workflow;
I've found a handful of images (maybe 1% of my RAW conversions)
where a different converter gives me a better starting point.

  #14  
Old August 31st 05, 03:05 AM
Alan Eskenazi
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

I have a Pentax istDS.
Before I convert the Pentax raw files to DNG files I use the Pentax Browser
to rename the raw files, after discarding the bad ones, AND then saving all
the EXIF data on a spread sheet. That way all the EXIF data is preserved,
although it is all not on the individual file.

AE


"John Francis" wrote in message
...
In article ,
Paul Furman wrote:
G.T. wrote:

Just wondering if anyone here is committed to DNG? I finally tried it
out
last night and really like the fact that the files converted from my
Rebel
XT RAW files are 75% the size of the original RAWs. Adobe says the
compression is lossless, does anyone know for sure whether all info is
retained?

My current workflow is Canon DPP to Photoshop CS but I wouldn't mind
switching to DNG Converter to Adobe Camera RAW to Photoshop if my images
will be safe.


I use it to reduce file size and make what I think will be a better
supported archive for future use. My Nikon D70 files lose a few odd ends
in the EXIF data, that is common for some of the shooting information to
be in a non-standard format and no other program can recover it all
either. I forget what exactly, do a comparison & check for yourself.


Actually, you lose information because it *isn't* in the EXIF data.
That's because EXIF doesn't have tags for some of the data (such as
exactly which lens you are using, for one example), so the camera
manufacturers have to resort to other ways of storing this stuff.

That said, DNG V3.x has the ability to store all this private
MakerNote data in the DNG file for those manufacturers who use a
private RAW file format that is basically an extension to TIFF/EP.
This includes Canon, Nikon & Pentax, and possibly a few others.
While no software I know of is capable, at present, of reading
and displaying this manufacturer-specific private data from the
saved copy of the MakerNote tag, it is at least theoretically
possible. This makes switching to DNG even less risky.

Despite that, though, I still recommend archiving the original
RAW file. Maybe I'm over-cautious, but DVDs are cheap.

I'm just about to switch to DNG myself, so my process will be:

o Create 2nd copy of files to a removable HDD
before deleting from CF cards/microdrives

o Archive original camera RAW files to DVD or CD

o Convert RAWs to DNG

o Copy DNGs to removable HDD (and possibly to DVD)

o Original RAW files can now be deleted from system
(although I'll probably keep selected images online,
just in case I want to use a different RAW converter)

o All the usual image editing stuff.

o Save processed files to removable HDD and to CD.






  #15  
Old August 31st 05, 09:25 PM
Jeremy Nixon
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Thomas T. Veldhouse wrote:
Jeremy Nixon wrote:

No. When you use an application that calls Nikon's SDK to do things like
preview NEF files, you need to have Nikon's libraries installed, which get
installed with the bundled software. If you don't have that installed,
iView, for example, can't display NEF files and will simply show an error
message that it can't find the media importer.


That is not true. I am able to view .NEF files from within Adobe
Photoshop CS2 and Photoshop Elements 3.0 (with updated plugin from
Adobe's site).


Right. I said "an application that calls Nikon's SDK", which Adobe stuff
does not. They have their own code to read NEF files.

But iView MediaPro in particular can't work with NEF files unless you have
installed Nikon's software.


It is probably capable of using the Adobe RAW plugin.


It isn't.

--
Jeremy |
  #16  
Old September 1st 05, 12:09 AM
Jeremy Nixon
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Thomas T. Veldhouse wrote:

Ah .. I see. In that case, any software that requires one to install
another vendors software before you can use theirs, just for access to
its basic libraries, is likely not worth the cost of its shrinkwrapping.


I don't know -- does anyone include the camera libraries? Are they even
allowed to?

--
Jeremy |
  #17  
Old September 2nd 05, 10:31 AM
Barry Pearson
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Thomas T. Veldhouse wrote:
Jeremy Nixon wrote:

[snip]
I don't know -- does anyone include the camera libraries? Are they even
allowed to?


I am quite sure that they can be licensed. Nikon likes money like
everybody else.


The Nikon advisory that responded to criticism of their encryption of
the WB for the D2X said:

"With each introduction of a new Nikon digital Single Lens Reflex
model, Nikon updates the available SDK selection to provide new
information; this is the situation with the D2X, D2Hs and D50 models.
As stated above, application for the Nikon SDK is possible for bona
fide software companies that send Nikon a written application for the
SDK. Once approved, the SDK is provided to the developer at no charge
and they are authorized to use it".

I don't know whether they are authorised to distribute it. I believe
the developer has to sign an NDA. And the SDK doesn't provide access to
the raw data, just to de-mosaiced data.

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0504/05...efresponse.asp

--
Barry Pearson
http://www.barry.pearson.name/photography/
http://www.birdsandanimals.info/

 




Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 12:15 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004-2024 PhotoBanter.com.
The comments are property of their posters.