Just curious on other experiences with the results of RAW processing of Nikon D7000 images via Aperture.
My results are quite flat and need sigificant boost in contrast and some levels adjustment to really look good. I suppose I am curious if that is the way it is supposed to be processed or its just Apple's RAW processing deficiency for this Nikon camera? I realize RAW images allow for the latitude to be edited to the users satisfaction, but I would have assumed one could have images processed initially that wouldn't require much, if any, editing.
I suppose I could create a basic preset for processing my RAW images, but before I do that, I thought I would pose the question first.
Ken
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RAW processing of Nikon D7000 images
#1
Ken,
We need to establish what your frame of reference is. Do you have images from other cameras in your Aperture library that appear better to you? If so, are those files RAW or JPEG?
Have you tried viewing your images in another program such as Lightroom, Camera RAW or DxO Optics? If so do these images appear more pleasing to your eye?
Are you shooting RAW, or RAW+JPEG? If RAW+JPEG, is Aperture using those JPEGs as previews? Is your camera set to a desaturated setting in the Picture Control Menu? If your preference is for images with more punch, have you tried setting Picture Control to VIVID and maybe boosting saturation?
What we need are details! If it’s any use to you, I shoot a D90 and generally find the images to be quite pleasing straight from the camera. RAW files can appear to lack pizzazz at first because the camera hasn’t done the processing for you as with JPEGs.
I am shooting primarily just RAW, but certainly have compared to the jpegs shot with the camera, as well. The flatness of the images is quite noticeable, and certainly can be improved via NIk filters or Aperture editing features. Of course, the advantage is that I have ultimate control of the final image.
In regards to your comment about picture control, I that should only be applicable with jpeg images, right? I didn’t think picture control effects RAW images.
And yes, I do understand that the RAW files shouldn’t look like the processes jpeg images created in the camera, but I still thought the Apple camera RAW would be a bit better. I was just trying to figure out if I have a particular problem.
Ken,
Not seeing the images I can’t say if you do have an issue or not, but I’m going to guess that things are working fine. RAW files are by design a bit flat, so that you have the latitude to do what you want with the file, but the quantity of data and the headroom in a RAW file allows you to do much more than you ever could with a JPEG. If you ever shot with a digital film camera like the RED or the Viper, and looked at the RAW files that come out of the camera, you’d think there was something seriously wrong. But as soon as you stretch the whites to white and blacks to black, what you see is amazing.
Remember, just because you may think that a poppy, bright, contrasty image is “ideal”, someone else may want something flatter and less saturated. So the RAW file, and the default decoding to go with it, is designed to be quite neutral.
I would recommend you hit the auto-curves button (Luma; the black and white one) and swap the Grayscale mode between RGB and Luminance to see what you prefer [screenshot]. I’d wager one of these will give you something very close to what you want.
And if it is, you can save that as a preset (the “auto” is built into the preset, so it won’t be applying that same curve to every image) and then apply that preset on import.
To learn more about Curves, check out Live Training 011 — Curves.
@PhotoJoseph
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With regard to the Picture Control setting - yes it applies to JPEGs only. The reason I mentioned it was that if you were shooting RAW+JPEG and had Aperture set to “use embedded JPEG from camera when possible” (found in Preferences > Previews) then the JPEGs are what you would see while doing general browsing.
Robert Boyer has some presets he developed for the Nikon D7000. See them here:
http://photo.rwboyer.com/2011/11/09/nikon-d7000-presets-for-aperture-3/
Bob
Bob
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Bob Rockefeller
Midway, GA
www.bobrockefeller.com
Thanks SO much for the info, Bob.
As I suspected and you indicated, Aperture RAW processing is just providing a very neutral processed image. Thus, Capture NX2 is the way to go if one wants images processed with Nikon camera settings. Another item that was clarified by reading some of Mr. Boyer’s blogs, was the color difference between what Aperture processes and what Capture NX2 processes. I certainly could easily see the white balance and flatness issues, but now I also realize why on some images the color was a tad off.
I suppose I have various ways of dealing with this situation. Using Capture NX2 is one. Another is using some presets, either I create or use from what others created. Or, continue my current process of spending a bit a time on the images I really want to print or share and using a variety of available tools such as the Nik filters. Of course yet another viable option is taking both JPEGs and RAWs.
Thanks again for your response, as it will help me make some decisions on my workflow.
As a follow-up, I wish I had found this site explaining the differences between RAW processing in Aperture vs Capture before positing my original question.
http://www.andymumford.co.uk/blog/archives/1278
Of note is this comment:
“Another reason is that Nikon are (again, apparently) quite secretive about their NEF conversion algorithms, and don’t give them out to 3rd party software developers like Adobe and Apple, thus the RAW files have to be kind of backward engineered. Capture NX2 on the other hand has the advantage of being Nikon software and so obviously has the NEF conversion algorithms.”
This comment certainly would explain why NEF files are particularly flat when processing with Aperture.
Ken,
Read this discussion we’ve been having in another post. My explanation of how RAW is treated in Aperture and what the RAW file is meant to provide may help.
-Joseph
@PhotoJoseph
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Out of interest I downloaded the trial of Capture NX2. I must say that the rendering of RAWs out of gate is WAAAAY better than either Aperture or Lightroom. The workflow is not great and the software is a little clunky but the colours, detail and sharpening are much closer to where you want the final image to be.
I’m exploring the pros and cons of Aperture RAW conversion and coming late to the good discussions that have been held here. Question 1: Do I gather correctly that Nikon Capture NX2’s conversion algorithms actually enhance the NEF image to resemble the JPEG output I would see if, for example, I set Picture Control to “Vivid” or otherwise used D800 in-camera enhancements? Question 2: If I use Capture for initial importation and NEF conversion, is there anything tricky about then importing the converted NEF images into Aperture? Would Aperture run its RAW algorithms on my already-converted NEF file? Many thanks.
Tom Thomson