Canon Raw and Jpeg files

That will always be the case because when you are looking at a RAW file, you are looking at an interpretation of the RAW data, and depending on what software you are using to view it with, it can look different than how the camera interpreted the RAW data when creating the jpeg. Jpegs from cameras tend to add more saturation and sharpening than the default settings on RAW converters.

What are you using? Canon DPP? Adobe LR? Bridge?

Hi Tommy,

Yeah, I always new there was a difference between the two, but correcting it is proving to be a pain in the ass. I’m using photoshop to work on them. I just wondered if i was missing a simple way of matching the colours.

Thanks

Jason

Jason…A jpeg image loses about 30% of its color info. right at the starting line and keeps losing info every time you work and save. The Raw file has all the info that your camera is capable of producing thus giving more subtle color variations to play with. If you need to work on the jpeg file, convert it to Tiff first, then back to jpeg when you’re finished.

Try opening your RAW files in Canon’s DPP software. The settings used for your in-camera JPEGs should produce the same result when applied to your RAW files.

Photoshop is not a RAW converter, as mentioned, the issue lies with what you are using to convert the file. I’m guessing ACR? If so, you can change the default settings and “calibrate” it there. If not, David’s suggestion is a good one in trying DPP.

Jason

Your 5D is applying a specific tone curve,saturation setting,sharpness setting depending what you have selected in the cameras menu.
You can select a combination of the above settings,in camera, that will ‘dull down’ your jpegs to look more ‘raw’ but I suspect you are more interested in getting
your Raws to have the punch you are seeing in your jpegs.

If that’s the case,you can very easily create a similar default profile for your 5D files if you are using Adobes CameraRaw.
Load a representative Raw file from your 5D into Camera Raw. Since you are trying to ‘mimic’ a processed jpeg look which is generally more contrasty and saturated
than any raw you can adjust the contrast and saturation slider in ACR to suit your taste. As well,you might also want to go to the curves window and create a curve that
gives a look that is a little more punchy than the default setting.
When you have these setting set to more accurately reflect the jpeg look you like you just have to go to the dropdown menu in ACR (the small icon is to the right of the word
‘Basic’ in the main window of ACR-just below the histogram) Scroll to the bottom and select ‘Save New Camera Raw Defaults’. By doing this you are instructing Camera Raw
to apply your preferred settings to any,and all, 5D Raw files that you process through ACR.
These settings are in no way permanent and can be altered anytime but it is a simple way to have your Raws appear like your Jpegs with no further work once you set these
processing parameters.

You should make sure your camera colour space is AdobeRGB (which is a wider colour space than sRGB).

Make sure your workflow: ACR (or other Raw converters), and/or PS, LR, Aperture, DPP are also set to Adobe RGB otherwise you are throwing colour information out.

Carry the largest amount of colour information for as long as possible.. If end result web or your printer require sRGB then CONVERT TO sRGB before saving a less colourful version. (Assigning a colour space is NOT the correct way to make something sRGB)

Once a file has been saved as a JPG, quality information(colour/gradients, sharpness) has been thrown out of the file by the compression process. Saving a JPG as a TIFF cannot put any information back into the file..

All this having been said – going back to your original question: why are the RAW/JPGs different. The Raw file is your unaltered negative/diapositive(slide) while the JPG is the Canon 5D internal raw converter’s idea of what your raw file should look like.. Unless someone knows what algorithm curves Canon uses to do this conversion, it will be very difficult to make an exact match. there is more on this subject here from Canon’s Chuck Westfall http://digitaljournalist.org/issue0805/tech-tips.html

Hi everyone,

Thanks for all the info, thats great. I really should start reading the manual!

Jason