Create and edit super-fine RAW photos
With an SLR camera and certain camera apps on the iPhone and iPad, you have the choice to store your photos in the so-called raw format. Unlike the usual jpeg, raw photos contain much more information about the color values of the captured scene. In addition, no compression is applied. That makes it possible to edit such a photo afterward much more extensively. If you make the underexposed image parts clearer with a jpeg photo, chances are that you will see the artifacts of the compression much better. However, the same operation in a raw photo shows the colors and details much better.
How to photograph in raw
In this tutorial, we show you how to make raw photos with the iPhone and iPad and then Edited in Photos. For this, we use the app Camera + 2 but with Obscura 2 ( temporarily free ) you make just as good raw photos.
The difference between raw and jpg
Open the next links of a jpeg – and a (converted) raw photo . With both photos, we have done exactly the same adjustments, but the difference is huge. Pay special attention to the sun and the landscape. You see: it has many advantages to use the raw format.
1. Import the raw photo
Did you share the photo directly to your Mac and does it not already appear in Photos and iCloud? Then you have to import the file first: drag it in the window of Photos
2. Inspector
Double-click the imported raw photo to display it in the window. Then click on the button with the ‘i’. In this info window, you can see exactly which camera settings were used.
3. Adjust lighting
In this raw photo the sky is overexposed and details are missing in the dark parts. Press the ‘Edit’ button and choose ‘Apply’. We drag ‘Light> Lighting’ to -0.10 for more details.
4. Selective
To get more details in the clouds without making the ground darker, we drag ‘Light parts’ to -0.50. We also drag ‘Glow’ to 0.38 for more contrast in the midtones.
5. Bright shadows
In addition, we drag ‘Dark parts’ to 0.40 to lighten the underexposed landscape without losing details in the sky. We also set ‘Zwartpunt’ to 0.55 for darker shadows.
6. Saturation
Because we make the dark parts lighter, the colors are often a bit gray. That’s why we drag ‘Color> Saturation’ to 0.25 for more lively colors.