RAW vs JPEG: Which Should You Be Using?

Do you keep hearing photographers talking about shooting and editing

RAW vs JPEG images? If you’re confused about what RAW is, and its
benefits, then you’ll find all the answers you need right here. Sometimes
called “digital negatives,” RAW images retain detail that other image
formats discard, giving you the very best starting point for editing your
images. In this article, you’ll discover the many wonderful benefits and
applications of shooting in RAW vs JPEG.

RAW vs JPEG: What’s The Difference?

RAW is an image file format unique to each camera manufacturer.

Essentially, it’s an exact copy of what your camera’s sensor captured
when you pressed the shutter button. No post-processing is applied to the
image before it is saved to your camera’s memory card.

Now, that might seem rather obvious, and you might expect all image file
formats to accurately store what your camera’s sensor captured.

However, memory cards used to be much more expensive than they are

now, and the maximum card capacity used to be quite small. Therefore,
camera manufacturers had to use a more space-efficient image file format,
so that more photos could be stored on the memory cards. That format
was JPEG.
The JPEG format is extremely portable. Every photo editing package can
work with JPEG image files, and most digital platforms, including email,
web browsers, messaging services and even digital TVs, can display JPEG
images without a problem.

Also, the JPEG format is very good at reducing file sizes but it does this by
using compression techniques which throw away a lot of the detail and
information in your photos. JPEG is an 8-bit technology, meaning
that each combination of red, green and blue (RGB) pixel can be one of
16.8 million possible tones. Sounds great, doesn’t it?

But the RAW image format uses 14-bit technology, giving an incredible 4.4
trillion different possible tones per RGB pixel combination. This translates
into a much wider dynamic range – both in relation to pixel brightness and
pixel color.

Why Shoot In RAW?

A good visual example of the quality difference between a JPEG and RAW
image of the same scene is a gradient in a sunset – where the dark sky at
the top of the image gradually fades into the bright sunlight on the
horizon.

We can’t show you a real RAW image because it’s not a suitable format for
displaying on the web. But the two side-by-side images below are
representative of the difference between a JPEG and RAW image, with a
slight exaggeration to emphasize the difference for illustration purposes.

The image on the left (below) represents the JPEG image. The banding
effect is due to the JPEG format not having enough different colors
(between the blue at the top and the orange at the bottom) to create a
continuous gradient.

The image on the right (below) represents the RAW image, and the
increase in quality is immediately apparent. The RAW image simply has a
wider range of colors it can use, resulting in the seamless, continuous
gradient you see below.
The main downside to shooting RAW images is that the image file sizes are
much larger. They can be anything between two and six times the size of
the equivalent JPEG images. This means you’ll run out of space on your
memory cards quicker, and it requires your camera to be capable of saving
such large files quickly, so it’s ready to take the next shot.

Luckily, memory cards are relatively cheap now and getting cheaper. So,
unless you’re shooting thousands of images a day, and quality isn’t a big
issue, you should always shoot RAW.

Set Your Camera To Shoot In RAW

By default, your camera will shoot in the JPEG format. This makes sense
because most photographers starting out with photography won’t know or
care about the difference between image file formats.

To shoot RAW images, you first need to tell your camera that’s the format
you want to shoot in.

Selecting RAW mode varies from camera to camera, but on my Canon 5D

mk ii, it’s in the system menu, under the heading “Quality.”

Below, you can see the Quality option is highlighted. The smooth arc
represents “fine quality”, and the “L” means Large. Therefore, I know I’ll
get the best quality JPEG the camera is capable of. But we haven’t told the
camera to shoot in RAW mode yet.

Selecting the Quality menu, I’m offered the option of shooting in either
RAW mode, JPEG mode, or both. Below you can see I’ve now selected to
shoot in RAW. I’ve also kept the fine quality, large JPEG option selected
too.

Your camera may allow you to choose one of several RAW modes, of
different image sizes (like my Canon 5D mk ii does). However, I
recommend that you always use the best, full-resolution RAW mode
available to you.

Exiting the Quality menu, my camera now confirms that I’ve selected both
RAW and fine quality, large JPEG formats.

Being able to shoot in RAW and JPEG at the same time is a great feature,
as you get the best of both worlds. You get the best quality RAW image for
when you need it, and the more convenient, portable JPEG image for less
critical purposes.

Import And Edit Your RAW Images

Once you’ve shot all your RAW images, you’ll want to transfer them from
your camera’s memory card onto your computer and import them into your
favorite editing program.

In Photoshop CC, when you try and open a RAW image (and it’s a RAW
format Photoshop CC recognizes), you’ll be prompted to makes some
decisions about how the image, or images, will be imported.

You can see the RAW image (the stacked cups and saucers) above. Above
the image are a row of image editing features you can use, such as
cropping, or rotating, etc. To the right of the image is a control panel which
lets you make adjustments to the RAW image settings.

These are settings which a JPEG image would have had “baked in”, had
we only shot in the JPEG format. Crucially, you can’t undo the
automatically applied settings for a JPEG image.

RAW images let you make important decisions about settings

long after you’ve taken the photo. These settings include exposure, white
balance, and many other image properties.
Below you can see the result of some changes I’ve made to the RAW image
import settings. I’ve increased the exposure and the vibrancy. I also
changed the white balance mode to “Tungsten” to compensate for the
warm lighting.
Many photo editing programs can import RAW images without any
problems at all. However, if that doesn’t work for you, you may need to use
an intermediary tool, such as Adobe Bridge.

One enormous benefit of working with RAW images is that it’s non-
destructive. You’ll always have your original RAW image file to go back to.

RAW vs JPEG: Conclusion

In this article, you’ve had a brief introduction to RAW. You now know what
it is, and understand the benefits of shooting RAW vs JPEG.

To recap, the RAW image format retains the maximum amount of detail
about the captured scene. It makes no automatic image adjustments. This
results in greater dynamic range and smoother gradients from light to dark
regions in your images.

The RAW image format lets you make important changes to

properties long after the photo is taken. For example, exposure, contrast,
color saturation, sharpness, and white balance.
How To Batch Edit Your Photos In Lightroom
For most of us, the fun part of photography is actually getting out there
and taking photos. While it’s true that editing photos can be very
rewarding too, when it comes to editing dozens, hundreds, or even
thousands of photos, it gets tedious and time-consuming very quickly. In
this article, you’ll discover how to batch edit photos in Lightroom CC,
consequently taking all the pain out of editing multiple photos using
Lightroom’s powerful batch edit feature.

1. What Is Batch Editing?

Batch editing is a powerful feature of Lightroom CC which allows you to

apply edits to multiple photos.

Think back to the last time you photographed a social event, or you went
away on holiday with your camera. Perhaps you returned home with
hundreds or even thousands of photos?

Maybe you noticed that most, or all, of your photos looked a little under-
exposed, or the colors were a little muted, or the images were a little soft.
Sure, you could work your way through each photo fixing them manually,
but it could take many hours, or even days.

When you batch edit photos in Lightroom you can achieve the same
results in a matter of minutes, leaving you time to do something more
interesting!

2. Import Photos Into Lightroom CC

Before you batch edit photos in Lightroom CC, you’ll need to import the
photos you want to edit. However, if you’ve already imported the photos,
you can skip this section.

2.1 Initiate The Import

There are three main ways to import photos into Lightroom CC:

 Click the Import button in the lower-left corner of the Library module.

 From the main menu, choose File > Import Photos And Video.
 Drag a folder or files from the Explorer (PC) or Finder (Mac OS) into the
Grid view, and then skip to step 2.2.
In the upper-left corner of the import window, click Select A Source, or use
the Source panel on the left side of the import window to navigate to the
files you want to import.
2.2 Specify How You Want To Add The Photos To The Catalog

In the top center of the import window, specify how you want to add the
photos to the catalog:

Copy As DNG:  Copies photos to the folder you choose and converts any
camera raw files to the Digital Negative (DNG) format.
Copy: Copies the photo files to the folder you choose, including any
sidecar files.
Move: Moves the photo files to the folder you choose, including any
sidecar files. Files are removed from their current location.
Add: Keeps the photo files in their current location.
2.3 Select The Photos You Want To Import From The Preview Area

Select the photos that you want to import from the preview area in the
center of the import window. A check mark in the upper-left corner of the
thumbnail indicates that the photo is selected for import.

To filter photos in the preview, select any of the following:

All Photos: This option removes all filters.

New Photos: This option excludes suspected duplicates and previously
imported photos.
Destination Folders: This option groups photos by their destination
folder. (Available only when copying or moving photos into a catalog).
Click the Loupe view button in the toolbar to zoom in on a single photo.
To globally select or deselect all photos in the folder, click Check
All or Uncheck All in the toolbar.
Click the Sort pop-up menu in the toolbar to sort photos by capture time,
checked state, filename, or media type.
Drag the Thumbnails slider to adjust the size of the thumbnails in the grid.
Click the box in the upper-left corner of a preview to select or deselect
specific photos. Alternatively, Alt-click (PC) or Option-click (Mac OS)
anywhere on the thumbnail to select and deselect photos.

2.4 Specify The Destination For Your Imported Photos

If you’re importing photos by moving or copying them, specify where to

put them.

In the upper-right corner of the window, click To and choose a location for

the photos. Or click a location in the Destination panel and specify other
options as described below.

Into Subfolder: This option copies or moves the imported photos into a

new folder. Type the name of the new folder in the text field.
Organize: This option lets you organize the photos in the new subfolder in
one of three ways:

 preserve the original folder hierarchy of the source folder.

 create subfolders by date.
 or put all photos into one folder.

Date Format: This option lets you choose a format for the dates.
2.5 Specify Other Import Options

Specify other options for the imported files using the panels on the right
side of the window. Most of these are beyond the scope of this article, but
they include options for backing up photos during import, ignoring
duplicates, and renaming files.

The one option of importance to batch editing is Apply During Import. In

the Apply During Import panel on the right side of the import window,
choose a setting from the Develop Settings menu. Here you’ll find a wide
range of standard edits that can be applied to all your photos as they’re
being imported.
3. Use A Preset To Adjust Multiple Photos

The easiest way to batch edit photos in Lightroom is to use one of the
existing presets offered by Lightroom CC.

Just in case you skipped the import section above, it’s worth noting that
you can apply a preset batch edit to all your photos at the import stage.
Jump back to section 2.5 above to discover how to do this.

3.1 Select A Preset

If you’ve already imported your photos, no problem, you can still apply
presets to all your photos.

Firstly, go to the Library tab.
While you can simply apply a preset to all the selected photos, it’s better
to double-click on one of the photos so you can check the preset edits in
more detail before you apply them to all of the photos.

With the selected photo displayed large on your screen, look to the top
right of your screen and find the Quick Develop panel.

Click into the drop-down select box next to Saved Preset, and choose the
preset you want to try out. As soon as you click on a preset, the large
image is updated to have the preset applied. Choosing a different preset
overrides the previously selected preset.
 3.2 Select Which Photos Will Receive The Preset’s Edit

Once you’re happy with the results, press COMMAND + A (on a Mac) or
CTRL + A (on a PC) to select all of the imported photos, or hold down the
COMMAND key (on a Mac) or the CTRL key (on a PC) whilst you click on
the imported photos you want to receive the preset edits.

3.3 Apply The Preset To The Selected Photos

To apply the chosen preset to the selected photos, click the Sync button.

Next, you’ll see a pop-up dialog box where you can specify any of the
metadata to be stored alongside your images. It’s not important right now,
but if you like your metadata relevant and up-to-date, then you may want to
return to this in the future.
Finally, click the blue Synchronize button to begin the batch update. Once
you’ve done this, you’ll see the selected thumbnails at the bottom of the
screen change as each receives the preset edit.
4. Apply Your Own Edits To Multiples Photos

For more control over how you batch edit photos in Lightroom, switch over
to the Develop tab.
Again, choose a photo from the imported photos to try your edits out on
by double-clicking on one of the thumbnail images, making it appear large
on the screen.

On the right-hand side of the screen, you’ll find a wide range of tools for
editing your photos. Exploring all these tools is beyond the scope of this
article, but let’s make some edits that we can apply to the photos we
imported earlier.

As you can see below, I’ve used the tools to edit the photo of the girl to be
black and white instead of color, and I’ve boosted the contrast and clarity
a little.

Next, to apply all these edits to all the photos I imported, we need to select
them all, by pressing COMMAND + A (on a Mac) or CTRL + A (on a PC).
Once that’s done, click the Auto Sync button. A pop-up dialog box
titled Synchronize Settings is then displayed.

4.1 Sync All Edits

For now, ignore all the options here, and just click the
blue Synchronize button. Next, you’ll see the selected thumbnails at the
bottom of the screen change as each receives the preset edit.
 4.2 Sync Selective Edits

Alternatively, instead of ignoring the Synchronize Settings options, you

can decide which of the edits you made should and should not be applied
to all the images.

You might be wondering why this would ever be necessary when you
batch edit photos in Lightroom, but it’s actually a very powerful feature.

Let’s imagine you made several edits to your photo, and some of the edits
were specific to that particular photo. Perhaps you brightened a region of
the photo that was a little too dark. Unless all the photos are too dark in
exactly the same region, you’re going to end up with a brighter region in
all the other photos that looks strange.

The trick here is to untick the Local Adjustments option as this will prevent

edits made using a brush, graduated filters or radial filters.
You can turn off, or on, any of the other options depending on what types
of edits you want to be applied to all the photos you imported earlier.

5. Reset Or Undo Your Batch Edit

Regardless of whether you batch edit photos in Lightroom using the

presets or your own custom edits, you can easily reset all of the photos
which received your edits.

Firstly, click the Reset button at the bottom right of the screen – this

resets the edits made to the photo you tested the edits on.
Finally, click the Sync button again, then click the blue Synchronize button
in the pop-up dialog box. You’ll then see the thumbnails gradually change
back to their previous, unedited state.
Batch Edit Photos In Lightroom: Summary

In conclusion, in this tutorial, you’ve discovered how to import and batch

edit photos in Lightroom CC. You’ve learned how powerful this feature is
and how it can be applied selectively so that only certain edits are applied
to all the selected photos. You’ve also discovered how to undo or reset the
batch edits.

To summarize, this is a wonderful time-saving feature that will free you up

to take more photos and do less editing.