Raw Photos

[Gaprofitt]

Hi All,

So I have some questions. I happen to love Google Photos, however it sucks it doesn't support Raw files except for a very small selection of cameras. I want to be able to edit and organize all these photos as well as my phone's photos in one location.

What options do I have? Does Apple's photo library with iCloud support this? What are the limitations?

 

[FredT2]

Hi All,

So I have some questions. I happen to love Google Photos, however it sucks it doesn't support Raw files except for a very small selection of cameras. I want to be able to edit and organize all these photos as well as my phone's photos in one location.

What options do I have? Does Apple's photo library with iCloud support this? What are the limitations?

What kind of camera are you using? This is what Google supports:

https://support.google.com/photos/answer/6193313?co=GENIE.Platform=Desktop&hl=en

You can also convert to DNG. iPhone RAW files can be saved as DNG and backup up, for example. iCloud Photo Library will let you backup RAW files, but you can only view and edit them on a Mac. Have you looked at Lightroom CC?

 

[Gaprofitt]

What kind of camera are you using? This is what Google supports:

https://support.google.com/photos/answer/6193313?co=GENIE.Platform=Desktop&hl=en

You can also convert to DNG. iPhone RAW files can be saved as DNG and backup up, for example. iCloud Photo Library will let you backup RAW files, but you can only view and edit them on a Mac. Have you looked at Lightroom CC?

A bunch of Fuji gear, XT-20, XT2, X100F. I'm not really a fan of subscription stuff to be honest.

 

[MCAsan]

Apple Photos uses the MacOS raw engine that supports a world of cameras. I think you have some research and reading to do.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT207972

 

[ChrisA]

A bunch of Fuji gear, XT-20, XT2, X100F. I'm not really a fan of subscription stuff to be honest.

I've been hunting for replacement for Apple's Aperture for some time. What I have determined is that NOTHING beets Adobe. Their suite of software is very reliable and the quality of the result is good and they have integrated library. If their competitor when they compare themselves to Adobe can only say in effect "we have a lower price". Yes read the affinity, pixelmator or others web sites. They don't say "lower price" but it is clear that is what they means when they say "no subscription"

Low price is good for the guy who takes pic with his iPhone. Use Apple's Photos. It is free. But look at yore list of camera gear. it's like $3,000. Add in a computer and I bet you have $5K. Worse then that, all of that $5k is headed to a land fill one day. technology is not a lifetime investment you actually are kind of "renting" it because it has to be replaced periodically.

So why worry about $10 if it gets you the best software?

OK we can argue if Adobe is really the best. But I just don't see a competitor. The only argument is if you really NEED the best or if you can make do with Photos

 

[Apple fanboy]

I've been hunting for replacement for Apple's Aperture for some time. What I have determined is that NOTHING beets Adobe. Their suite of software is very reliable and the quality of the result is good and they have integrated library. If their competitor when they compare themselves to Adobe can only say in effect "we have a lower price". Yes read the affinity, pixelmator or others web sites. They don't say "lower price" but it is clear that is what they means when they say "no subscription"

Low price is good for the guy who takes pic with his iPhone. Use Apple's Photos. It is free. But look at yore list of camera gear. it's like $3,000. Add in a computer and I bet you have $5K. Worse then that, all of that $5k is headed to a land fill one day. technology is not a lifetime investment you actually are kind of "renting" it because it has to be replaced periodically.

So why worry about $10 if it gets you the best software?

OK we can argue if Adobe is really the best. But I just don't see a competitor. The only argument is if you really NEED the best or if you can make do with Photos

Don't tell my wife all that camera gear is landfill one day! She'll kill me!

But you are right. There is very little we buy these days that will be around in 10 or 20 years time.

 

[MCAsan]

Also....do you want a managed library or a referenced one. Aperture and Photos were designed for a managed library on local disks and/or in the cloud. With most other suites the assumption is the library is file system folders and subfolders that can be on more than one volume (HDD). Big difference to me. Personally I never want a managed library.

 

[robgendreau]

I dunno. Lr CC is subscription and in the cloud. iCloud Photo Library is subscription (although first GBs are free) and in the cloud. Google is sort of subscription but all free, and in the cloud. Not sure I see much difference aside from price. Software, terms of service, etc could all change.

I'd just pick what you can access most easily. Converting all your RAW to DNG could be a pain; at least iCloud can handle more types of files. And a problem I find with Google's stuff is that it's hard to organize with little desktop support, unlike Lr or Photos.

 

[MCAsan]

That is why I have Lr Classic CC. Lr CC strikes me as Adobe's answer to Photos. Would never use either.

 

[FredT2]

That is why I have Lr Classic CC. Lr CC strikes me as Adobe's answer to Photos. Would never use either.

Wait, what? What happened to this?

This week I canceled my long running CC subscription. I now use Affinity Photo on Mac and iPad. Hard to beat the cost. I do have the Macphun apps setup as plugins.

 

[MCAsan]

After looking around, I signed backup to Adobe CC for one more years using Lr Classic CC, not the new Lr CC. Lr performance is much better and I definitely like the luminosity and color range masking. Besides I got to seriously dislike the Affinity UT with the ton of Personas and the fact that you render from Raw to Photos. Not for me.

I will continue to use Luminar and Aurora as plugins. When Luminar releases their DAM, I will see if it makes sense. But I am after Skylum to fix their masking package in Luminar and Aurora. The new luminosity masking is a joke and there is no color range masking or edge aware brush and eraser.

I looked at C1P but there is no blending modes to their layers. the mask refining tools are very good. Since I do zero studio work, I never understood Sessions concept.

 

[FredT2]

After looking around, I signed backup to Adobe CC for one more years using Lr Classic CC, not the new Lr CC. Lr performance is much better and I definitely like the luminosity and color range masking. Besides I got to seriously dislike the Affinity UT with the ton of Personas and the fact that you render from Raw to Photos. Not for me.

I will continue to use Luminar and Aurora as plugins. When Luminar releases their DAM, I will see if it makes sense. But I am after Skylum to fix their masking package in Luminar and Aurora. The new luminosity masking is a joke and there is no color range masking or edge aware brush and eraser.

I looked at C1P but there is no blending modes to their layers. the mask refining tools are very good. Since I do zero studio work, I never understood Sessions concept.

Got it. That's a very interesting approach. I'm glad there's someone around who can keep us informed on all of the things going on! For now I'm sticking with Lightroom 6.

Aside: I did some more testing and found that LR CC Classic is indeed faster than 6 in a number of areas.

 

[Mal Blackadder]

My Adobe subscription is due to expire soon and I have been thinking of maybe trying other software for raw files, the camera I currently have though is the Fujifilm X-E3, the camera has been on sale for 3 months or so, but so far its RAW files are not supported in the Photos app, does anyone know how long it takes Apple to update RAW file support for newer cameras, I was expecting the camera to be supported once High Sierra came out but no such luck.

 

[robgendreau]

My Adobe subscription is due to expire soon and I have been thinking of maybe trying other software for raw files, the camera I currently have though is the Fujifilm X-E3, the camera has been on sale for 3 months or so, but so far its RAW files are not supported in the Photos app, does anyone know how long it takes Apple to update RAW file support for newer cameras, I was expecting the camera to be supported once High Sierra came out but no such luck.

I seem to recall with one of my cameras it took six months. But with Apple, who knows? fortunately other vendors react more quickly, although it sometimes depends on the brand of camera.

Perhaps you could convert to DNG if there's a need to use Photos now.

 

[Mal Blackadder]

I seem to recall with one of my cameras it took six months. But with Apple, who knows? fortunately other vendors react more quickly, although it sometimes depends on the brand of camera.

Perhaps you could convert to DNG if there's a need to use Photos now.

Well fingers crossed that I won't have to wait six months, currently I am converting to DNG but I am hoping that I will not have to keep on doing it for too long.

 

[MCAsan]

Well fingers crossed that I won't have to wait six months, currently I am converting to DNG but I am hoping that I will not have to keep on doing it for too long.

Create a DNG copy...but always keep the native format original.

 

[High Desert]

Take a serious look at Affinity Photo. It is a very good piece of software with excellent support in both updates and forums attended by AP employees. The only drawback I see so far, and it is not a big deal yet (for me), is that it lacks a DAM. Supposedly, one is being developed pr release in 2018. I think Adobe is already seeing falloff from its user base to AP, or other software providers due to both its' "rental" fee monthly and declining customer support. I won't go back to Adobe again, personally, but that is my choice.

 

[MCAsan]

Another issue with Affinity Photo, not 100% non-destructive. When you leave Develop and take the image to Photos, you can not return and redo all the changes you made in Raw. I have no idea why Serif has designed in such a limitation.

 

[High Desert]

FWIW - if anyone is interested in Affinity Photo or Designer, they are running a 48 hour discount of 20%. Here is email sent to me:
In case you missed it, we’ve taken at least 20% off* the price of all our apps to celebrate the great year we had in 2017.

The good news is you’ve still got time to claim this fantastic offer – but you need to act fast, because there are only 48 hours left to snap up Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer for macOS and Windows and Affinity Photo for iPad at the current low prices.

Affinity Photo, on Mac, Windows and iPad, pushes the boundaries for photo editing software with its blazing fast performance and huge professional toolset. Whether you’re looking to edit and retouch images, or import RAW files and create expansive multi-layered compositions, our award-winning app has all the power and performance you will ever need. The iPad version is even better value, with around 25% off.

Affinity Designer, on Mac and Windows, is the fastest, smoothest, most precise vector graphic design solution around. Each feature, tool, panel and function has been developed with the needs of creative professionals at its heart and the result is a ground-breaking application that will revolutionise how you work.

If you were thinking about treating yourself to one of our award-winning apps, now is the perfect time to buy. But hurry, as the offer must end Friday 5 January – so don’t miss out!


Visit our site

To show our appreciation to existing customers we are also been giving away two free content packs for Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer.

The DAUB BlackBox brush pack contains 12 versatile brushes of inks, bristles and sketchy strokes, all expertly crafted by the good people at DAUB to fully utilise the unrivalled dynamics in Affinity’s brush engine. They’re compatible with Affinity Photo on Mac, Windows and iPad (they’re also great for using in the pixel persona of Affinity Designer on Mac and Windows).

For Affinity Designer users, we have a huge iOS 11 UI kit to help you create amazing UI assets for use with Apple’s latest iPhone and iPad OS. This bumper pack of iOS 11 UI assets contains hundreds of elements, covering all the latest updates to Apple Pay, FaceID and iPhone X. All optimised to take advantage of Constraints, they’re supplied with a full laydown document as well as a pack to install into your Assets tab.

Simply click the links below to claim your free content:


Free Brush Pack



Free iOS 11 UI Kit

Once again, we’d like to thank you for helping to make it a super year for Affinity. We look forward to another great year together in 2018.

The Affinity Team

*Please note: precise discounts may be subject to regional currency variations.

 

[Apple fanboy]

FWIW - if anyone is interested in Affinity Photo or Designer, they are running a 48 hour discount of 20%. Here is email sent to me:
In case you missed it, we’ve taken at least 20% off* the price of all our apps to celebrate the great year we had in 2017.

The good news is you’ve still got time to claim this fantastic offer – but you need to act fast, because there are only 48 hours left to snap up Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer for macOS and Windows and Affinity Photo for iPad at the current low prices.

Affinity Photo, on Mac, Windows and iPad, pushes the boundaries for photo editing software with its blazing fast performance and huge professional toolset. Whether you’re looking to edit and retouch images, or import RAW files and create expansive multi-layered compositions, our award-winning app has all the power and performance you will ever need. The iPad version is even better value, with around 25% off.

Affinity Designer, on Mac and Windows, is the fastest, smoothest, most precise vector graphic design solution around. Each feature, tool, panel and function has been developed with the needs of creative professionals at its heart and the result is a ground-breaking application that will revolutionise how you work.

If you were thinking about treating yourself to one of our award-winning apps, now is the perfect time to buy. But hurry, as the offer must end Friday 5 January – so don’t miss out!


Visit our site

To show our appreciation to existing customers we are also been giving away two free content packs for Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer.

The DAUB BlackBox brush pack contains 12 versatile brushes of inks, bristles and sketchy strokes, all expertly crafted by the good people at DAUB to fully utilise the unrivalled dynamics in Affinity’s brush engine. They’re compatible with Affinity Photo on Mac, Windows and iPad (they’re also great for using in the pixel persona of Affinity Designer on Mac and Windows).

For Affinity Designer users, we have a huge iOS 11 UI kit to help you create amazing UI assets for use with Apple’s latest iPhone and iPad OS. This bumper pack of iOS 11 UI assets contains hundreds of elements, covering all the latest updates to Apple Pay, FaceID and iPhone X. All optimised to take advantage of Constraints, they’re supplied with a full laydown document as well as a pack to install into your Assets tab.

Simply click the links below to claim your free content:


Free Brush Pack



Free iOS 11 UI Kit

Once again, we’d like to thank you for helping to make it a super year for Affinity. We look forward to another great year together in 2018.

The Affinity Team

*Please note: precise discounts may be subject to regional currency variations.

You can also pick it up for free in Europe with certain Xrite products.