Is there a way to convert all of my raw files into JPEG (iCloud Photo Library)

[spaceballl]

Hi There!

I think I've been a bit reckless over the years with shooting RAW. Most of my RAW files aren't epic pictures or anything like that. Most likely I either don't want them or the JPEG is fine. They're taking up a lot of space. Is there a way to go back and mass convert all my RAWs to JPEG? Thanks!

 

[ChrisA]

....Is there a way to go back and mass convert all my RAWs to JPEG? Thanks!

It would help a lot if you told us what software you are using. Are these just in a folder, in Adobe Lightroom, still in Aperture?

So in general you select some number of RAW images and do something like File/Export and after the export back them up a few times then delete the originals. The details depend on your software

 

[spaceballl]

It would help a lot if you told us what software you are using. Are these just in a folder, in Adobe Lightroom, still in Aperture?

So in general you select some number of RAW images and do something like File/Export and after the export back them up a few times then delete the originals. The details depend on your software

I mentioned iCloud Photo Library in the original post so I thought 'Photos' was implied. Are there other ways to do iCloud Photo Library? I can export and re-import, but there's a risk of some metadata being messed up in the process. The metadata is important to me. I was curious if there was a quick batch process / script to convert all RAW to JPEG.

 

[ChrisA]

Sorry I missed the reference.

Go into Photos, select as many images as you like and then File/Export. It will ask you for a folder to place the JPG images into then after some time you get a pop up notice saying it is finished.

I don't know how many you can select at one time. I know a hundred works OK. Perhaps a thousand or even more.

As for meta data there is a limit of what can go into a JPG file. I use Apple's Photos for my eBay photos. I tend to shoot raw then export to JPG then later after the item sells I trash everything. I just checked. I notice the JPG files do contain metadata but there is a limit of what can go into a JPG file. They loose the location (lat long) and maybe more but all the camera based meta data from my Nikon D300s or iPhone 5C is in the exported JPG files

But really what does storage cost today? A 1TB disk costs $100. That means 1GB for 10 cents. My unlimited cloud backup at BackBlaze costs only $5 per month. Storage is even cheaper if you buy more of it at a time.

 

[robgendreau]

Photos can certainly export your RAW as jpegs. But its batch operations kinda lag.

I'd suggest you use Graphic Converter; it's not very expensive and could be very useful in the furture for messing with your photos. It gives you a ton of control over the process. You can add metadata, geolocate, add adjustments, all kinds of stuff. Converting is its thing and it does it better than most.