Seeking simple RAW workflow on MacOS Sierra/Photos

[swandy]

Might as well through my 2 cents into this. I am what I consider an "advanced amateur" and have been shooting primarily RAW for quite a number of years. I was an Lightroom user till I moved to a Mac and then fell in love with Aperture. When Apple (in their infinite wisdom) decided to stop it's support for Aperture, I first went back to Lightroom because initially Photos just did not give me enough tools. Now with the various extensions I have gone full blown into Photos, and aside from some limitations (needs a better search engine and the ability to import RAW+JPEG as separate files so you can delete the one you don't need), I have been very happy. I have been able to do 90% of my adjustments using the built in tools in Photos and the few extensions that I like. Otherwise I have Affinity Photo but have been learning Pixelmator again just because it's a bit simpler and enough for my needs.
There is a great app called External Editor, which basically makes it very easy to work on any photo in Photos using any photo editing program you have on your computer. But the way the files are sent back and forth from Photos varies, so you have to play around and see what editor works best for you.
Also, someone mentioned RAW Power, which basically gives you all the sliders and adjustments that were available in Aperture that did not make it into photos. (From what I read one of the developers actually worked on Apple Aperture.) It works very well - for the time I tried it out - and if you need more controls for your RAW conversions, it has much more adjustments than the Photos Edit panel.

 

[Reality4711]

I shot RAW + JPG for several years (using Aperture, iPhoto, and then Photos), finally gave up on the JPG altogether, and just shoot RAW - I was just wasting storage space.

The thing is, RAW processing is integrated into both MacOS and iOS - what you see in Photos already has Apple's RAW profiles applied, so there's no need for a separate "down and dirty" JPG for export. "Developing" a RAW image, to me, is "image editing," using the same tools you'd use to edit a JPG, but from a better starting point. Sure, if you're sophisticated enough to over-rule Apple's RAW profiles on an across-the-board basis, then there is separate "developing" for RAW. I don't sense you're at that stage.

I'm also not sure whether a "workflow" is required, beyond "Import images, organize images, edit images." Workflow can mean different things to different photographers. If you're pushing publication deadlines or need to push wedding albums out the door, developing a workflow is very much a matter of speed and efficiency. It may include steps like adding additional metadata, applying a house "look," etc. If you've developed a distinctive editing style, it can be worthwhile to formalize it as a workflow. But for those of us who are exploring... maybe workflow over-formalizes the process.

The native editing tools that come with Photos don't include the kind of RAW processing features a serious RAW editor is looking for, but they still work - starting from RAW still gives you advantages over starting from a JPG.

There are RAW processing apps in Mac App Store that include extensions for Photos (plus the ability to access photos from the Photos library for working independently of Photos). I haven't tried them, but one in particular, RAW Power, looks very intriguing and capable. (I do use other Photos extensions - it's a very nice capability to have.)

I also don't have a lot of time in my day for fine editing. The whole "right tool/wrong tool" thing, while correct in principle, still has to take your own goals into account. Photos is hardly the most sophisticated editing tool on the market, but it's quite capable for quick work, it's built into the tool you're using for organizing your images, and there are extensions available that allow you to go much farther, when you have the need. "Limited" tools have a way of teaching you, too. When you reach a particular limitation, you learn just where your technique has been taking you, and you may better understand just what to look for in your next tool.

While there's something to be said for starting out with the "best," most sophisticated tools, it can take a while before you have the vision, experience, and skill to use the advanced capabilities. If you can't see something (that's obvious to someone of greater skill/experience), you can't use some of those tools effectively (and even risk mis-using them), and unless you're disciplined enough to explore one particular capability at a time, you may be overwhelmed by all the controls presented by advanced tools. Folks here inevitably tell us what camera they're using, less frequently explain just how they're using all the controls the camera offers - how many functions are set to Auto, how many are they setting manually? Same thing with Photoshop. "I use Photoshop" doesn't necessarily tell us how they're using it. It's completely possible that they're doing no more in Photoshop than they could be doing in Photos.

The key thing, as far as I'm concerned, is that you can always go back later and reprocess an image with other tools. And since we're always learning, we may end up going back and reprocessing using the same tool (like Photos). Shooting RAW preserves all your options in that regard.

Just to add to my 'like'.

One of the best reality checks I have read on this subject.

I cannot fault it; in fact I am doing pretty much what is described having dumped CS5+Bridge and plugins for Affinity Photo. You never know when my next upgrade? comes around I may just use Photos and plugins, who knows.

It is plain to me that my skills with Photoshop after many years were really limited in comparison to what was available. Trim the fat and take more photographs. My new motto.

Regards. Sharkey

 

[KBeat]

Might as well through my 2 cents into this. I am what I consider an "advanced amateur" and have been shooting primarily RAW for quite a number of years. I was an Lightroom user till I moved to a Mac and then fell in love with Aperture. When Apple (in their infinite wisdom) decided to stop it's support for Aperture, I first went back to Lightroom because initially Photos just did not give me enough tools. Now with the various extensions I have gone full blown into Photos, and aside from some limitations (needs a better search engine and the ability to import RAW+JPEG as separate files so you can delete the one you don't need), I have been very happy. I have been able to do 90% of my adjustments using the built in tools in Photos and the few extensions that I like. Otherwise I have Affinity Photo but have been learning Pixelmator again just because it's a bit simpler and enough for my needs.
There is a great app called External Editor, which basically makes it very easy to work on any photo in Photos using any photo editing program you have on your computer. But the way the files are sent back and forth from Photos varies, so you have to play around and see what editor works best for you.
Also, someone mentioned RAW Power, which basically gives you all the sliders and adjustments that were available in Aperture that did not make it into photos. (From what I read one of the developers actually worked on Apple Aperture.) It works very well - for the time I tried it out - and if you need more controls for your RAW conversions, it has much more adjustments than the Photos Edit panel.

Jumping in late as well, but if it helps...

As far as my credentials for an opinion go... I do professional photography (products, sports events, portraits) and have processed well over 250,000 RAW images in Aperture and Lightroom.

Let's start with the notion "if you're serious at all about your photography, don't use macOS Photos." What utter nonsense! For one thing, Photos has gorgeous RAW conversions. Many people preferred Aperture for this reason, and the native macOS RAW conversion engine has only improved.

I don't like Lightroom, never have. I've used it a great deal because after Aperture died it's the only game in town, but I have never really enjoyed the experience. (Love DXO and CaptureOne for RAW conversion and editing, but their management and photo organization tools just aren't in the same league as Aperture and Lightroom.) If you want to use Photos because you prefer the interface, the ability to keep your photos easily in iCloud and shared with your iOS devices, go right ahead. It's already a superb tool for JPEGs, but if you want to work in RAW, and you should if you're using an interchangeable lens camera (DSLR or mirrorless), let me suggest some inexpensive plugins that will make Photos and RAW very happy bedfellows:

DXO Optics Pro for Photos <- Must Have
External Editors
Pixelmator Retouch

DXO will do a fantastic job fixing up the RAW image but applying the same types of camera and lens corrections you'd get from a program like Lightroom (better actually IMHO) or Canon's DPP, and give you the BEST noise reduction in the business. If it's an important image with good a deal of noise, use Prime mode and be amazed!

External Editors will let you pop over to program like Photoshop or Pixelmator for more advanced editing if needed, and return effortlessly to Photos. This is no different than the Lightroom workflow, FWIW.

While the built in healing tool in Photos works quite nicely, for advanced retouching, it's worth it to use Pixelmator Retouch, which I actually prefer to Photoshop. It's the same tool you'd get if you popped over to Pixelmator, except this is more efficient and runs directly within Photos.

With those three plug-ins, I find I get better results from Photos with my 5D Mark IV images (with all L glass) than I get out of Lightroom, plus I prefer the organization and the implementation of extras like location and face data. I use it for all but my large pro shoots. Alas, the workflow simply isn't designed for fast culling of say a couple thousand images from a football game, and for that I still rely on Lightroom and why I'll forever miss Aperture. However, I don't think those are the requirements being discussed in this thread.

I hope that helps a bit.

 

[redman042]

...I hope that helps a bit.

Thank you, that actually helped a lot. First, it's good to know that a pro compared Photos RAW conversion to third party options and found that Photos does a great job. It seemed that way to me, but I'm not a pro, and I guess I don't always trust my eyes. Second, these add-on tools look great. Pixelmator looks terrific. I was considering it anyway and I'm going to go ahead and grab it. DxO is obviously pro-level and the online demos look amazing. I may have to get that too but it's a bigger investment so I'll think about it.

 

[IPadNParadise]

TBH - I didnt read all postings, but thought I would give you my workflow FWIW. I shoot, hobbyist only, with a Canon 5D MKIII (overkill for my uses, Iknow) in RAW. I transfrer them out of the camera into my Macbook Pro Photos App. I then Export them as Originals into my Documents in Finder. I have 3 choices then to open them in either Affinity Photo, Luminator or Pixelmator for editing. Mostly I use Affinity Photo. (A side comment, my challenge is photographing a black faced dog, that determines my editing choice). Anyway, I edit in my choice and then Export to Pictures in Finder, if I am really happy with it, I Share to the Photos App which is icloud.
I make the decision as to whether I want to delete any unnecessary duplicates I might on have on my MBP i.e. Original RAW file. I definitely delete the original RAW files still in my Photos App.
Occasionally I see a pic that has come out of my camera needing very little editing. In which case I will open it the thumbnail I see in the Photos App which converts it to JPEG and then I tweak it with the editing features within the Photos App. Many more advanced photographers may not agree with this last method, but all methods work well for me. I can also print well or have internet sharing worthy quality photos with any of these methods.

 

[MrGIS]

I'll be brief but also need to be blunt. Photos just doesn't cut it for those who have more than a casual interest in photography. However, its not a bad fit for someone who thinks that iPhones are the end all in taking photos.

There are multiple software choices out there depending on what you want to do with images. I am unsure why you find Lightroom to not be an option as it is what was the "other software" to Apple's own Aperture.

For raw images, I happen to like (for my camera) - Capture One Pro. I have friends who prefer Lightroom and some prefer DXO's software and others like Corel's offerings as there are several now out there.

The challenges you might want to consider -
Best software for your type of camera's raw file (they are not all the same nor are the results of various software)
Best workflow - do you do a lot of editing or maybe just a slight edit. Sofware out there reflect what can be done.
Best option to add 3rd party tools. Some software allow the use of another software to add features. As example, you may use Photoshop and add a 3rd party application such as OnOne filter effects. So finding as software that allows for the 3rd party additions may be something you want to consider.
Cost - there are free software and then expensive. Somewhere inbetween may be the software that best serves your particular needs.

As I said, I like Capture One Pro for personal. For work on other peoples' images, I use Lightroom and go into Photoshop often enough. A good pal of mine dropped Photoshop entirely and uses Pixelmator (and one other software instead) and is extremely happy.

[doublepost=1495634288][/doublepost]I've been very happy using Photos augmented by MacPhun's Aurora HDR, Luminar, Intensify etc as extensions for photos. I find myself using Luminar for the most part. In my opinion this a great setup for serious hobbyists. The costs are quite reasonable as well.

 

[Reality4711]

Affinity as a Plugin for Photos works well.

I use Affinity directly from the Macs filing system using FRV to browse while my wife (who loves Photos - much more social than me) uses the plugins I set up for her as I am paid up owner of AFP..

You need to own AFP to use the plugins in Phot, which is a little confusing but allowing them on my wifes machine gives use a shared knowledge base when it comes to any problems we might have individually with an image (we can help each other).

The plugin system works really well with almost all the 3rd party software AFAIK.. and with RAW files of 10-15Mb my wife has no speed problems at all. How it would handle anything D5III or D500 size I cannot comment on.

As I may have said before, over complication is a trap not easy to get out of.

Regards Sharkey

 

[Fabmac]

If you are semi serious you only got one path
Lightroom.
It's easy to use, it's not that time consuming if you get in to it.
Don't know why the raw and jpeg posts here, raw always, same as always full manual shooting.
Why we use a reflex or evil if not for this ?

 

[Wordsman]

I'm in a similar situation - an enthusiastic, time-strapped amateur, using Photos and shooting RAW+JPEG with a Fuji XT2.

I use my iPad to import the JPEGs while on vacation, and do some sorting and minor edits while away. But I'm not quite sure yet what I'm going to do with my RAWs when I get home.

Since moving from Lightroom I've been trying to import photos to my Dropbox folders, and only then import into Photos. That way I know I have a source file, even if I move from Photos and its libraries in future. And I only have the last 3 years of photos in Photos, to keep storage down on my MacBook Air.

I'm with you on sticking with Photos. If all your kit is Apple, as mine is after moving from PC a few years ago, it makes everything so simple. Importing is easy, syncing is easy, sharing is easy. I've had training in Lightroom, but didn't use it often enough, so I forgot where things are and so found it to hard to use. I had Adobe CC but ended up resenting a monthly cost for something I was barely using.

 

[USAntigoon]

Still at a loss why people take the RAW+JPEG mode.. JPEG pics are created by your camera processing settings.. The RAW pics are in the end your creation. Agreed it takes quite some time in post and once you work with RAW, they are storage eating hogs..The resulting pics in jpeg can be stored in different media to enable sharing..
Whilst on vacation I use my iPhone to share some immediate impressions and once back home, the real "RAW" work in post begins..

Apple Photos is OK for JPEG fine tuning. I stayed away for my RAW processing. I use Capture One Pro and let me tell you the cpu takes quite a beating these days with full sensor size RAW pics. Post processing programs are getting more sophisticated and more CPU-GPU demanding.In fact my current late 2012 iMac is overdue for upgrade (Waiting for more details about the iMac Pro as I do a lot of FCPX work as well)

 

[Wordsman]

Still at a loss why people take the RAW+JPEG mode.. JPEG pics are created by your camera processing settings.. The RAW pics are in the end your creation. Agreed it takes quite some time in post and once you work with RAW, they are storage eating hogs..The resulting pics in jpeg can be stored in different media to enable sharing..
Whilst on vacation I use my iPhone to share some immediate impressions and once back home, the real "RAW" work in post begins..

Only so I can play with the Fuji film simulations. My understanding is they're only applied to JPEGs, but I might be wrong. I Always shot RAW-only before Fuji.

 

[MrGIS]

My wife and I are getting semi-serious about photography again but would like a workflow that takes advantage of iCloud and avoids too many tedious/time-consuming steps. We are hobbyist shooters and have busy lives and don't really want to mess with Lightroom or Photoshop. For the occasional special photo that will be framed, I would like a good option for developing the RAW image, but I would like to keep the files in the Photos library. For most other shots we will sometimes shoot in RAW+JPEG and sometimes just JPEG depending on how special the shots are. I want to manage how many RAW images we upload into iCloud, to avoid consuming massive amounts of space. We are shooting with a Canon 80D DSLR.

I'm looking for feedback from other hobby photographers that periodically shoot in RAW+JPEG and import their shots into iCloud Photos to store, manage, and edit them. Here are my questions:

What's your workflow?

What third-party apps/add-ons do you use to adjust the more special images?

Have you found a good way to remove RAW images from RAW+JPEG files in Photos?

Do you edit RAW images in Photos on the Mac, or do you use a third party add-ons like Affinity or Luminar? How well do those work? Have you compared them?

Can you edit imported RAW images (the RAW file in a RAW+JPEG) directly on the iPad? I have not found a way. On the Mac you can pick the RAW or the JPEG, but on the iPad I don't see that option, and it's not clear what I'm editing when I import into a third-party app.

You need to understand the root cause for most of negative comments surrounding Apple Photos. Many folks just haven't been able to get past the fact the Apple abandoned Apeture and rolled out Photos a couple of years ago. I used Apeture for years, and it's absolutely true Photos is not a replacement product. For a while I was pissed... but I got over it..

Photos is a suitable product for hobbyist / semi serious photographers, particularly if you're happy living in the Apple ecosystem. This is true whether you shoot with an iPhone or a $10,000 DSLR. It's easy to edit and share your photos. For all the functionality that I miss from Apeture, I've settled on using MacPhun's Luminar as a Photos extension. I find the combined tools and workflow perfectly adequate for my purposes. If I were a pro with thousands of images to deal with weekly, it likely would not be suitable.

In summary, there is absolutely no reason not to start with Photos. Its a great place to learn the basics and decide over time if you want or need something like Lightroom down the road.

 

[robgendreau]

I'm in a similar situation - an enthusiastic, time-strapped amateur, using Photos and shooting RAW+JPEG with a Fuji XT2.

I use my iPad to import the JPEGs while on vacation, and do some sorting and minor edits while away. But I'm not quite sure yet what I'm going to do with my RAWs when I get home.

Since moving from Lightroom I've been trying to import photos to my Dropbox folders, and only then import into Photos. That way I know I have a source file, even if I move from Photos and its libraries in future. And I only have the last 3 years of photos in Photos, to keep storage down on my MacBook Air.

I'm with you on sticking with Photos. If all your kit is Apple, as mine is after moving from PC a few years ago, it makes everything so simple. Importing is easy, syncing is easy, sharing is easy. I've had training in Lightroom, but didn't use it often enough, so I forgot where things are and so found it to hard to use. I had Adobe CC but ended up resenting a monthly cost for something I was barely using.

Only so I can play with the Fuji film simulations. My understanding is they're only applied to JPEGs, but I might be wrong. I Always shot RAW-only before Fuji.

Given the workflow, I dunno about the JPEG/RAW workflow, esp with an iPad and it's more limited storage.

And isn't one of the huge benefits of Photos using iCloud Photo Library? So why the workflow with Dropbox if you find Apple's synching so easy, etc? It can optimize storage on the iPad to save space, and yet keep originals on the macOS machine, or maybe an external attached to it at home if space is tight. I dunno how well it works with RAW/JPEG pairs, but if you only need Fuji-created JPEGs, don't they have some desktop software than can do that, rather than producing JPEGs for all images?

 

[v3rlon]

My wife and I are getting semi-serious about photography again but would like a workflow that takes advantage of iCloud and avoids too many tedious/time-consuming steps. We are hobbyist shooters and have busy lives and don't really want to mess with Lightroom or Photoshop. For the occasional special photo that will be framed, I would like a good option for developing the RAW image, but I would like to keep the files in the Photos library. For most other shots we will sometimes shoot in RAW+JPEG and sometimes just JPEG depending on how special the shots are. I want to manage how many RAW images we upload into iCloud, to avoid consuming massive amounts of space. We are shooting with a Canon 80D DSLR.

I'm looking for feedback from other hobby photographers that periodically shoot in RAW+JPEG and import their shots into iCloud Photos to store, manage, and edit them. Here are my questions:

What's your workflow?

What third-party apps/add-ons do you use to adjust the more special images?

Have you found a good way to remove RAW images from RAW+JPEG files in Photos?

Do you edit RAW images in Photos on the Mac, or do you use a third party add-ons like Affinity or Luminar? How well do those work? Have you compared them?

Can you edit imported RAW images (the RAW file in a RAW+JPEG) directly on the iPad? I have not found a way. On the Mac you can pick the RAW or the JPEG, but on the iPad I don't see that option, and it's not clear what I'm editing when I import into a third-party app.

I have been using Photos + extensions (macPhun, Affinity, Pixelmator, DXO optics, et al).
Workflow is like
Import photos
All photos go to "last import" and you are there.
Cmd-A (select all), Cmd-I (to bring up the info panel)
Assign a location (I am on Nikon, with no internal GPS. I take an iPhone photo and copy the location over if need be).
Assign Keywords that apply to everything, descriptions and naming

Now I go into a larger view and scroll through to delete any obvious failures (focus, motion blur, just plain missed)

Assign additional specific keywords/faces. If you want to fake the star system, you can use the emoji ⭐️, you can set up keyboard shortcuts for ⭐️, ⭐️⭐️, ⭐️⭐️⭐️, ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️, and ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. Then searching for ⭐️⭐️ will get you anything with 2+⭐️. I do not do this, but some need their yellow stars.

Now it is back to the start and edit/adjust. I go through and tweak images. MOST of the time, Photos gets it done. I can always send it to Affinity/Pixelmator or even Portrait Pro if need be using the "External editors for photos" I got from the App store, BUT, that looks like it will be included in High Sierra, so you might want to save those $2 to see how it works.

I usually shoot just raw, and export any jpg I want. IF you shoot RAW+JPG, they will be stacked. When you go to Edit, you can select "Use Raw as original." As this is a menu item, you could map a hotkey to it to make it faster.

You could also make a smart Album with qualifier "Photo is Raw," but that might get unwieldy after a while. You would still need to separate by events. I suppose you could have automator set up to recreate the folder structures, but looking for RAW only.

I am not sure why you are shooting raw+jpg though. You are, of course, free to do as you wish. I shoot raw, and they show upon my phone just fine (latest phone and OS as of this writing).

That is a rough overview of using photos. I am trying out On1 Photo RAW now, just because I like some of the features. I am trying to decide if that is what I need before the sale ends. Unfortunately, that is before the High Sierra version of Photos comes out.

 

[redman042]

I am not sure why you are shooting raw+jpg though. You are, of course, free to do as you wish. I shoot raw, and they show upon my phone just fine (latest phone and OS as of this writing).

I'm considering RAW only, but I don't want to have to go through RAW processing (white balance, noise reduction, etc.) with every photo. It's nice to have a camera-processed JPEG ready to go. Unless I'm misunderstanding how Photos handles the RAW file.

 

[v3rlon]

I try to address white balance and as much as possible in camera. That said, things go wrong.

I copy adjustments and paste them (and often tweak them in specific cases). So many times I find the detail from a raw image is what makes it pop, even though you would never notice if you only saw the jpg.

You see the jpg and say 'wow, that's a great shot.' You see the (processed) RAW and never want to see that same bland jpg again.

 

[tgara]

I'm considering RAW only, but I don't want to have to go through RAW processing (white balance, noise reduction, etc.) with every photo. It's nice to have a camera-processed JPEG ready to go. Unless I'm misunderstanding how Photos handles the RAW file.

As a bit of background, I'm shooting a Canon 5D Mark III, which has two card slots, one for a CF card and one for an SD card. I shoot raw images onto the CF card, and large JPEG's onto the SD card. The SD card has the advantage in that it can easily offload images to my iPad using Apples Camera Connection kit, and I can include them in a shared iCloud library to share with friends and relatives. The CF card, on the other hand, allows me to keep a back up of the raw images for further processing later if I wish. So I do shoot RAW+JPEG, but not on the same card.

There are two items that have not been discussed in this thread yet, which may be worthwhile for the OP to consider.

1. Canon's Picture Styles. If you set up in camera Picture Styles properly, it's easy to obtain large JPEG's with little to no further processing by you because the camera does it on the fly. I do this often, and it is a very fast way of getting very good pictures that you can put into Photos easily and share via a shared iCloud Photo Library. Processing RAW images one by one is, quite frankly, too much work. Using picture styles in combination with the iCloud photo library and shared iCloud libraries, you can obtain great images and share them easily, which is really what matters.
2. Canon's Digital Photo Professional software. This software has the keys to all the RAW images that the OP will shoot with his Canon 80D. I've tried all of the third-party photo processing applications, and IMHO, Canon's DPP beats them all. It has access to aspects of each photo that none of the third-party applications will ever have, and the best thing is that it's completely free. If I have a JPEG from (1) above that I like and want to tweak further, back at my computer, I will import the RAW counterpart photo into DPP and process it further, which may include printing it on my Canon printer.

 

[redman042]

As a bit of background, I'm shooting a Canon 5D Mark III, which has two card slots, one for a CF card and one for an SD card. I shoot raw images onto the CF card, and large JPEG's onto the SD card. The SD card has the advantage in that it can easily offload images to my iPad using Apples Camera Connection kit, and I can include them in a shared iCloud library to share with friends and relatives. The CF card, on the other hand, allows me to keep a back up of the raw images for further processing later if I wish. So I do shoot RAW+JPEG, but not on the same card.

There are two items that have not been discussed in this thread yet, which may be worthwhile for the OP to consider.

1. Canon's Picture Styles. If you set up in camera Picture Styles properly, it's easy to obtain large JPEG's with little to no further processing by you because the camera does it on the fly. I do this often, and it is a very fast way of getting very good pictures that you can put into Photos easily and share via a shared iCloud Photo Library. Processing RAW images one by one is, quite frankly, too much work. Using picture styles in combination with the iCloud photo library and shared iCloud libraries, you can obtain great images and share them easily, which is really what matters.
2. Canon's Digital Photo Professional software. This software has the keys to all the RAW images that the OP will shoot with his Canon 80D. I've tried all of the third-party photo processing applications, and IMHO, Canon's DPP beats them all. It has access to aspects of each photo that none of the third-party applications will ever have, and the best thing is that it's completely free. If I have a JPEG from (1) above that I like and want to tweak further, back at my computer, I will import the RAW counterpart photo into DPP and process it further, which may include printing it on my Canon printer.

Great tips. I have to agree with you on Canon's DPP software. While the UI takes some getting used to and is a little funky, it's powerful software. It seems to pick up some processing settings that the camera has saved to the RAW image, and then lets you tweak further. I've also learned how to batch apply RAW tweaks to multiple images. But it requires a PC or Mac which may not be handy in the field like an IPad.

 

[tgara]

Great tips. I have to agree with you on Canon's DPP software. While the UI takes some getting used to and is a little funky, it's powerful software. It seems to pick up some processing settings that the camera has saved to the RAW image, and then lets you tweak further. I've also learned how to batch apply RAW tweaks to multiple images. But it requires a PC or Mac which may not be handy in the field like an IPad.

Yes, the DPP software will apply the camera Picture Style Settings to your RAW image. Or you can select a different one. This is one thing that no other third party processing software can do. It's like using presets in Aperture or Lightroom.

If you use the camera-processed JPGs in combination with Photos on your iPad (for additional edits, cropping, etc.), you'll be all setwhen you travel. Save the RAWs on your cards for when you get back to your desktop at home. Using this workflow, my travel kit is nothing more than a few extra cards, and the SD card reader for the iPad.

 

[v3rlon]

ok, my test of ON1 just cratered.
There is a LOT that I like about the design/features, but it is way slower that just using photos. 7-8 seconds to swap to the next raw file, and cannot delete from the develop tab.

 

[dlbh]

I shot RAW + JPG for several years (using Aperture, iPhoto, and then Photos), finally gave up on the JPG altogether, and just shoot RAW - I was just wasting storage space.

The thing is, RAW processing is integrated into both MacOS and iOS - what you see in Photos already has Apple's RAW profiles applied, so there's no need for a separate "down and dirty" JPG for export. "Developing" a RAW image, to me, is "image editing," using the same tools you'd use to edit a JPG, but from a better starting point. Sure, if you're sophisticated enough to over-rule Apple's RAW profiles on an across-the-board basis, then there is separate "developing" for RAW. I don't sense you're at that stage.

I'm also not sure whether a "workflow" is required, beyond "Import images, organize images, edit images." Workflow can mean different things to different photographers. If you're pushing publication deadlines or need to push wedding albums out the door, developing a workflow is very much a matter of speed and efficiency. It may include steps like adding additional metadata, applying a house "look," etc. If you've developed a distinctive editing style, it can be worthwhile to formalize it as a workflow. But for those of us who are exploring... maybe workflow over-formalizes the process.

The native editing tools that come with Photos don't include the kind of RAW processing features a serious RAW editor is looking for, but they still work - starting from RAW still gives you advantages over starting from a JPG.

There are RAW processing apps in Mac App Store that include extensions for Photos (plus the ability to access photos from the Photos library for working independently of Photos). I haven't tried them, but one in particular, RAW Power, looks very intriguing and capable. (I do use other Photos extensions - it's a very nice capability to have.)

I also don't have a lot of time in my day for fine editing. The whole "right tool/wrong tool" thing, while correct in principle, still has to take your own goals into account. Photos is hardly the most sophisticated editing tool on the market, but it's quite capable for quick work, it's built into the tool you're using for organizing your images, and there are extensions available that allow you to go much farther, when you have the need. "Limited" tools have a way of teaching you, too. When you reach a particular limitation, you learn just where your technique has been taking you, and you may better understand just what to look for in your next tool.

While there's something to be said for starting out with the "best," most sophisticated tools, it can take a while before you have the vision, experience, and skill to use the advanced capabilities. If you can't see something (that's obvious to someone of greater skill/experience), you can't use some of those tools effectively (and even risk mis-using them), and unless you're disciplined enough to explore one particular capability at a time, you may be overwhelmed by all the controls presented by advanced tools. Folks here inevitably tell us what camera they're using, less frequently explain just how they're using all the controls the camera offers - how many functions are set to Auto, how many are they setting manually? Same thing with Photoshop. "I use Photoshop" doesn't necessarily tell us how they're using it. It's completely possible that they're doing no more in Photoshop than they could be doing in Photos.

The key thing, as far as I'm concerned, is that you can always go back later and reprocess an image with other tools. And since we're always learning, we may end up going back and reprocessing using the same tool (like Photos). Shooting RAW preserves all your options in that regard.

[doublepost=1508543531][/doublepost]ApfelKuchen: You are a beautiful person; you gave the best answer I've ever heard a photography give to a complicated question. No judgment, just clear experience and response, and understanding of the experience of learning technology. Nobody ever talks about the overwhelmed piece. It's better human nature to find out what you need first and then tinker. It's really no different than anything else. Congratulations on being a calm, mindful person.