Raw editors.

[JBW]

Hi, today was not a good day. I decided to have a go at the Sony software for RAW. One program was a relatively small and simple program. Think of a plane and simple Picasa for RAW and you will be close. It was a little slow and it was just a bare bones program.

The other Sony product is really not a Sony product. It goes by the name of Capture One. You get the stripped down pro program with a few tweaks to make it Sony. You also get a massive program that is not intuitive will slow your computer waaaaay down and even comes with a Trojan horse.

I un-installed both of them.

I will be sticking with RawTherapee. I have loaded in the various profiles for my camera and as the following shot shows when combined with Gimp for the final touches it does a reasonable job.

Any errors or short falls are much more likely because of my lack of skill than the programs lack of potential.

I do like the added possibilities of RAW. They may not be noticeable on the web but they are noticeable to my mind.

[Donald]

The other Sony product is really not a Sony product. It goes by the name of Capture One.

I've never used Capture One, but even if you got the bells and whistles, all-singing version and it worked perfectly, I'm not sure it would give you more than you get from RT.

And just think of it not in terms of not having been a good day, but rather as a day of learning (albeit interspersed with naughty words and the need for a good stiff drink)!!

[JBW]

I've never used Capture One, but even if you got the bells and whistles, all-singing version and it worked perfectly, I'm not sure it would give you more than you get from RT.

And just think of it not in terms of not having been a good day, but rather as a day of learning (albeit interspersed with naughty words and the need for a good stiff drink)!!

And the congregation said Amen!

[Manfred M]

Before you throw out the baby with the bathwater; Phase One Capture One is a very well regarded parametric editor. The company that puts it out (Phase One) makes very high end medium format digital cameras and backs that sell for $20,000 - $60,000. The are used throughout the fashion and high end catalog industry.

It is more or less the equivalent of Adobe Lightroom as it is also an image management / cataloging tool. A couple of the pros I know use it and the people that do tend to prefer it to Lightroom. It is one of the raw convertors I use, but more importantly it is a fantastic tool for tethered capturing. It seems to work a lot better than either the Nikon or Adobe products.

Does it have a longer learning curve; yes. Is it a better raw converter and parametric editor than RawTherapee; I can't answer that, but suspect it will have a much better camera profile as your camera is supported.

[Krawuntzel]

Before you throw out the baby with the bathwater; Phase One Capture One is a very well regarded parametric editor.

It is.

It seems to work a lot better than either the Nikon or Adobe products.

Seems?

Does it have a longer learning curve; yes. Is it a better raw converter and parametric editor than RawTherapee; I can't answer that, but suspect it will have a much better camera profile as your camera is supported.

It is not better or so ... and to upgrade to the pro-version - with all the possibilities - from the byback of Sony costs around 200 Euros.
Erwin

[shreds]

I have been using C1 for around eight years and can confirm that it is first rate. I have been through various incarnations with it and have beta tested at least the last couple of versions, pre public release.

Ok you have to buy it, rather than downloading it for free, but I regard your comments about it as rather uninformed. It is certainly on a par and I would regard it as better than LR. The full version is certainly not slow. (Can't comment on the Sony version as I don't shoot Sony).

So just because you are having a bad day really should not mean that C1 takes the brunt of your anger. A little more objectivity would be welcome.

[DanK]

Brian,

Most good editing programs, including raw editors, have a great many functions, which makes them complicated at first. I use Lightroom, which is now intuitive for me, but I can remember pulling my hair out a few times early on when I couldn't figure out how to get something to work. Patience and google will be your friends, and there are people on this forum who use many of them and can provide answers.

I haven't used other raw editors, but I am willing to bet that the quality of your output 3 months from now will depend much less on which one you pick than on how much effort you put into mastering it.

Dan

[Ndukes]

And the congregation said Amen!

and it's Amen from me too. It seems to me that you are finding RT reasonably accessible and you are probably best to develop your skills on this over the next 6 or 12 months before seeking what might amount to minor advantages from an alternative application with a steeper learning curve and one which conflicts with the way you like to think of things.
I often think that some people like to challenge themselves with complex processing for its own sake when they would better spend the time out in the garden with the camera.

[JBW]

I have been using C1 for around eight years and can confirm that it is first rate. I have been through various incarnations with it and have beta tested at least the last couple of versions, pre public release.

Ok you have to buy it, rather than downloading it for free, but I regard your comments about it as rather uninformed. It is certainly on a par and I would regard it as better than LR. The full version is certainly not slow. (Can't comment on the Sony version as I don't shoot Sony).

So just because you are having a bad day really should not mean that C1 takes the brunt of your anger. A little more objectivity would be welcome.

Ian, one of us is certainly uninformed but it is not me. You have never used the Sony version and I have. I made no comment on how the full version worked.

I had to dl it three times from the official Sony site before the dl worked. I thought I was dl a fully functioning Sony product. When it is finally up and running the first thing I am told is that it is a free 30 day trial version. Then every time I opened it I get the do you want to upgrade now screen. It is slower than RT. When I uninstalled it I had to deal with a Trojan horse it was attempting to leave behind.

Those are the 'facts'. You make what you want out of them.

[JBW]

Before you throw out the baby with the bathwater; Phase One Capture One is a very well regarded parametric editor. The company that puts it out (Phase One) makes very high end medium format digital cameras and backs that sell for $20,000 - $60,000. The are used throughout the fashion and high end catalog industry.

It is more or less the equivalent of Adobe Lightroom as it is also an image management / cataloging tool. A couple of the pros I know use it and the people that do tend to prefer it to Lightroom. It is one of the raw convertors I use, but more importantly it is a fantastic tool for tethered capturing. It seems to work a lot better than either the Nikon or Adobe products.

Does it have a longer learning curve; yes. Is it a better raw converter and parametric editor than RawTherapee; I can't answer that, but suspect it will have a much better camera profile as your camera is supported.

Manfred, you were right about the advantages of a replaceable lens set up with a big sensor. Let me think on it. It is the rainy season and there will be time to dl it again.

[JBW]

Brian,

Most good editing programs, including raw editors, have a great many functions, which makes them complicated at first. I use Lightroom, which is now intuitive for me, but I can remember pulling my hair out a few times early on when I couldn't figure out how to get something to work. Patience and google will be your friends, and there are people on this forum who use many of them and can provide answers.

I haven't used other raw editors, but I am willing to bet that the quality of your output 3 months from now will depend much less on which one you pick than on how much effort you put into mastering it.

Dan

Absolutely!

[JBW]

It is.


Seems?


It is not better or so ... and to upgrade to the pro-version - with all the possibilities - from the byback of Sony costs around 200 Euros.
Erwin

you bring up a valid point, I did not dl the full version but a cu down version built for Sony. They may be very different.

[Manfred M]

If you did not receive a version with your camera and all they give you is a trial version, I would not bother, unless you have a real need for the functionality or the price is really good. As for speed, I find it more or less as slow (or fast) as Lightroom; neither of which are speed demons, especially if you do not need or want the cataloging functionality.

[JBW]

I have no idea why I would go along with a suggestion from a man who intentionally lives in the coldest capital city in the world and swims under thick ice on purpose!

But never let it be said that I am not willing to give a possibly good product a second chance. I just dl the Sony version of Capture One from their site. It loaded quicker and runs faster which I hope means no Trojan Horse this time.

The first disappointment (unless it is well hidden) is that the Sony version doesn't tether. That seems to be a pro only option.

I am curious if this 'Sony' version will shut down after a month.

B.

[JBW]

If you did not receive a version with your camera and all they give you is a trial version, I would not bother, unless you have a real need for the functionality or the price is really good. As for speed, I find it more or less as slow (or fast) as Lightroom; neither of which are speed demons, especially if you do not need or want the cataloging functionality.

I just don't know if the Sony version will quit working after a month. I am always in desperate need of a good filing system. I did dl it again from their site and we will see what happens.

[Jimr1961]

Take a look at DigiKam. Open source, many features.

[Manfred M]

I have no idea why I would go along with a suggestion from a man who intentionally lives in the coldest capital city in the world and swims under thick ice on purpose!

I'm told that it's actually the second coldest capital city in the world. Ulan Bator, Mongolia holds the honour of being the coldest.

[Polar01]

I'm with Manfred here, so what is so wrong with swimming under the ice?

Cheers: Allan