CAMERA RAW FILE EDITING CC 2015 waligore2015

CAMERA RAW FILE EDITING CC 2015 waligore2015 LAUNCH ADOBE BRIDGE: Open the file folder with your Camera RAW images. BRIDGE MENUS: SETTING PREFERENCES ...
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CAMERA RAW FILE EDITING CC 2015 waligore2015 LAUNCH ADOBE BRIDGE: Open the file folder with your Camera RAW images. BRIDGE MENUS: SETTING PREFERENCES and SELECTING TOOLS

CAMERA RAW PREFERENCES: Save image settings in Sidecar ".xmp" files so that Camera RAW files and .xmp files will be saved to the same folder. In that way, metadata can be written to a DVD or external harddrive, along with the RAW file. XMP stands for Extensible Metadata Platform, which supports PIE, or user applied parametric image edits, and IPTC (copyright and keywords) (OR save as a DNG, digital negative file format, after processing.)

BRIDGE PREFERENCES: METADATA: Select the information you wish to include in the metadata that will accompany the image file. Select the Metadata Template from the Bridge Tools pulldown menu to add keywords.

DISTRIBUTE CACHE FILES TO IMAGE FOLDERS: Set Preferences for Camera RAW to keep track of your image editing in the Bridge. Select Checkbox to Automatically Export Cache to image folders. Using Automatically Export Cache to Folders when possible means that the data will accompany your files in the same folder, facilitating your movement of the data from computer to computer to DVD to external harddrive.

 

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FROM THE MAIN MENU IN BRIDGE: EXPORT CACHE TOOLS: CACHE: BUILD and EXPORT CACHE so that the bridge image editing data will be saved for future reference in the folder along with your images, to be copied to DVDs, external harddrives, etc..

EDIT FILENAMES USING THE BATCH COMMAND IN THE BRIDGE. TOOLS: BATCH RENAME (select files to rename first) OR use the contextual menu (right click or CTRL click) ENTER NEW FILENAME IN THE DIALOGUE BOX

SORT YOUR FILES BY BATCH RENAMING, RATING OR LABELING. You can batch rename your files in the same folder or in a new folder. You can also Label or Rate your files (with colors or stars) and then View: Sort: by Rating, Label or by Filename to speed your workflow. Sorted files can easily be moved into a new folder, inside the Adobe Bridge window.

 

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TOOLS: PHOTOSHOP: IMAGE PROCESSOR Quickly process a number of images as jpegs, tifs or psds. Select a New Folder location for the processed jpegs. Select Resize to Fit and set Width and Height at 1000 pixels, to restrict the dimension of the file both horizontally and vertically. To retain high quality while still minimizing file size, set Quality at 8 or higher.

 

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EDITING CAMERA RAW FILES The use of the Adobe Bridge to open Camera Raw files offers a great advantage over other methods of editing files in terms of controlling color balance, contrast and brightness, due to the use of a nondestructive digital workflow. First you must set your camera to shoot in the RAW file format--not all digital cameras offer this option, but most DSLRs do. These files tend to be larger than JPEG files, and may impede the relative speed of image capture when shooting. So RAW mode may not be the best option, depending upon your working method. 1) If your RAW files do not appear in the Bridge window, you may need to download the most recent version of the Camera Raw plug-in available from the Adobe website. 2) Highlight your files in the Adobe Bridge window and select OPEN WITH CAMERA RAW from the main menu or from the contextual menu (by right clicking (PC) or CTRL clicking (MAC) on the image files. 3) The Camera RAW dialogue box will now launch. The preview will reveal all the camera metadata that corresponds to a given particular exposure.

BASIC ADJUSTMENT SLIDERS WHITE BALANCE: Select the white balance eyedropper and click on an area of the image that should be neutral gray or black, to quickly color balance an image. Use of a grey card when shooting will facilitate color balancing when editing in the Camera RAW Dialogue box.

 

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TEMPERATURE AND TINT: Use the temperature and tint sliders to refine the image color and neutralize the color cast. Explore light temperature options from the White Balance pulldown menu (As Shot: camera’s white balance setting).

SLIDERS FOR EXPOSURE CONTROL: THRESHOLD PREVIEW Begin by setting the Exposure, Contrast, Highlights, and Shadows sliders. Fine tune the Whites and Blacks sliders to determine the amount of clipping in the extreme shadows and highlights. Hold down the OPTION (Mac) or ALT (PC) key as you move the sliders to see a threshold preview. Release the mouse when the color areas just begin to appear. Watch the clipping that appears as a spike on either end of the histogram, revealing the presence of pure white, on the right or pure black on the left. This technique is known as the THRESHOLD method, a procedure that can also be applied when using the Levels Dialogue box inside Photoshop. The aim is to avoid clipping, minimizing the spikes that appear on either end of the histogram. The EXPOSURE slider will allow you to render white values with tone, measured at around 225 or 230. Specular highlights, such as reflections on metal, should be left at 255/255/255. BLACK slider value settings may vary depending upon output, from 2-3 to 20/20/20.

 

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HIGHLIGHTS: retrieves detail in the highlight areas, similar to the earlier Recovery slider in CS5. SHADOWS: retrieves detail in the shadow areas, similar to the earlier Fill Light slider in CS5. WHITES: specifically allows control over extreme highlights, such as reflections in shiny surfaces, known as specular highlights. BLACKS: specifically allows control over extreme shadows CONTRAST: alter modestly to increase contrast, especially in midtone areas. CLARITY: adds depth by increasing contrast mostly in midtone areas. View at 100% to avoid introducing halos near edge details. VIBRANCE: increase saturation in areas with hues of lower intensity, with minimal clipping SATURATION: increase in saturation may introduce clipping and noise, and affects all areas equally, so use with caution SAVE SETTINGS: Various settings for correcting brightness, contrast, and white balance also can be saved in the Camera RAW window. These settings can be applied to a set of files in order to facilitate the digital workflow.

SYNCHRONIZE SETTINGS: A given custom image setting can be applied to all the images that have been opened in Camera RAW. Alter a selected image file. Then, from the pulldown menu, simply click "Select All" to highlight all the images in the Camera Raw Dialogue Box and then “Sync Settings.” All the images are now color-balanced, and adjusted in terms of exposure, matching the current edited file. This custom setting can also be saved in the Basic Adjustments pulldown menu.

 

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CAMERA RAW WORKFLOW OPTIONS

Select options for opening the files in Photoshop (file size, color space, bit depth).

COLOR SPACE Profile

Adobe RGB

RESOLUTION: Set the resolution to match your output.

This setting can later be changed in Photoshop by selecting Image: Image Size. Print resolution is usually 150 – 300 ppi.

BIT DEPTH: Working in Photoshop with a 16 bit file is preferred, at least for initial image corrections. A 16 bit file will be TWICE as large as an 8 bit file.

FILE SIZE: You will aim for your final flattenedl 8 bit file to be at least 10 megabytes in size. [ By comparison, a 16 bit file would be 20 megabytes.]

 

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A 3 MEGAPIXEL (MP) setting will produce a file size of approximately 9 MEGABYTES, or three times larger than the indicated MEGAPIXEL setting. A 6 megapixel image will produce a file size of about 18 megabytes:

SMART OBJECTS: (optional) Remember to render the SMART OBJECT in Photoshop after you have completed your main editing. Layer: Smart Objects: Rasterize Inclusion of Smart Objects does increase the size of Photoshop files! Check the Open in Photoshop as Smart Objects button in Workflow Options. OR holding down the SHIFT key, transforms the OPEN button into an OPEN OBJECT button, transforming the Photoshop image layer into a Smart Object.  

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SAVE OPTIONS

DONE: save the "unopened" RAW files with corresponding image alterations OPEN: edit the files in Photoshop.

SAVE: archive versions of the files in a specific format: TIF, JPG, PSD, or DNG. You can also rename your files in the save window. Always archive as Photoshop (PSD), or TIFF files, or DNG files--NOT JPEGS.

WAIT as the files are processed.

 

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DNG FILE FORMAT The DNG or Digital Negative format is used by many photographers for long-term archiving, given that it serves as a container for the RAW file, the user applied parametric image edits (PIE) and the jpeg preview. The original RAW file can also be included in this “package.”

PRINT OUTPUT: If preparing a file for print output, save the file in the TIFF file format. Some consumer level service bureaus will prefer a JPG file; in that case, set compression to maximum quality.

ARCHIVE: Don't forget to ARCHIVE your final images. Save and backup your final copy on external harddrive, blue-ray, or DVD).

LOSSY VERSUS LOSSLESS FILE FORMATS: All of your editing should be done with the file saved in a PSD (Photoshop) or TIFF file format. Use of a LOSSLESS file format ensures that data will not degrade as you edit and resave your images.

 

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NOTE WELL: Remember that a JPEG has lossy compression, so NEVER EDIT & REPEATEDLY SAVE a JPEG file. You will notice a loss of image quality when re-saving a JPEG--by viewing gaps in the histogram or the appearance of resulting artifacts. The JPG format is best suited for sharing files or posting photographic images on the web.

OTHER CAMERA RAW ADJUSTMENTS

ADJUSTMENT BRUSH:

To activate the Adjustment Brush, select the Brush icon in the Camera RAW Dialogue Box. The Adjustment Brush permits editing of small or local areas, where selective darkening or lightening is preferred. The Auto Mask facilitates limiting the adjustment to specific areas.

 

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TONE CURVE:

an extension of the Exposure sliders, provides nuanced control over shadows and highlights

   

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SHARPENING: YOU MUST WORK at 100% enlargement in the Camera RAW Dialogue Box to enable the Preview function. Hold down Option key (MAC) or ALT key (PC) to the preview effect of the sharpening in terms of LUMINOSITY only, i.e. in grayscale.

Be wary of oversharpening, which introduces artifacts and contrast.

AMOUNT: varies the intensity of the sharpening, as in edge definition DETAIL: adjusts how much high-frequency information is sharpened, especially in terms of how edges are affected Set HIGH: emphasizes texture Set LOW: suppresses detail, as in removing blurring, to sharpen edges

RADIUS: adjusts how sharpening is applied based upon the size of the detail Set HIGH: larger details within image can benefit from a higher setting Set LOW: fine detailed images do not generally require sharpening

MASKING: Hold down Option key (MAC) or ALT key (PC) to the preview effect of the Mask for Sharpening. Sharpening is limited to areas adjacent to the most pronounced edges. White areas will be sharpened while Black areas will not. This tool can be advantageous for work in portraiture, where sharpening of a specific area, as in the pores of the skin, is not desired. NOISE REDUCTION: This tool can be crucial when processing files exposed at a high ISO that exhibit excessive noise.

 

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