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RAW Image Conversion Benefits

Most professional photographers trust their clicks with nothing else than RAW format. Considered equal to the classic photographic negatives, RAW gives photographers the widest possible flexibility, as it is the digital equivalent of a negative film that retains all the details of an actual image as captured by the camera's sensor. The RAW format captures details better than any other formats and preserves the entire spectrum of colors in a particular click.

Advantages and Disadvantages Associated with RAW Images

RAW images are minimally processed, and are therefore a boon for the photographers. However, there are few things that are seen as disadvantages of the RAW images. Let's have a look at both.

RAW Image Advantages

RAW picture conversion allows maximum manipulation of white balance even after the click is made. Corrections can be made in RAW much easily than on a computer
RAW format of an image benefits you with greater flexibility and allows you to decide the look of your JPEG or TIFF file - in terms of color, white balance, saturation, depth and other image enhancements
RAW allows you to take full advantage of your camera, as it stores extensive data details of a particular photo click
It gives maximum control over photographs for finer correction and processing

RAW Image Disadvantages

Specialized software is required for RAW image format conversion or editing a RAW file
RAW files are not print ready and have to be converted into JPEG or TIFF for printing
Shooting in RAW format exhausts quite a memory of your camera. Since RAW files store much more data than any other formats, the files are bulky. As a result, photographers can shoot limited number of photos in RAW as compared to other formats within the available memory
Sports photographers might not prefer RAW format as it takes more time to save all details

RAW Conversion - Processing

One major differentiating factor in RAW format is that it is not processed by the camera and remains undeveloped until converted into a JPEG or TIFF file. All the benefits that you can avail from a RAW file lies in between the click and the conversion to JPEG - in the RAW conversion processes such as demosaicing (also de-mosaicing or demosaicking), white balancing,and sharpening, etc.

RAW Image Conversion Process Allows:

Adjustment of White Balance
Noise Reduction
Enhanced Options for Color Conversion and Contrast Adjustment
Enhanced Sharpness of Images
Optical Correction and Exposure Compensation
Minimum Loss of Details In The Image File Conversion Process from a RAW Image to Print Ready Format

There are few disadvantages that come along with RAW images, however, the advantages override the negatives. For someone who believes in image quality, converting RAW image into the desired format is one of the best options available for great photographic results.