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jpg why?

nostatic

New member
I posted this at "that other" place but figured I'd maybe get a more coherent response here :D

Why would anyone shoot jpg with an A7(r)? There is so much discussion about quality of the engine, etc, but I'm at a loss for why there is *any* talk about it. If you're going to spend the money to buy a FF camera and invest in the system, why would you then shoot jpg and lose much of what you bought the camera for?

Maybe there are good reasons for it or workflows that I don't use or understand. But given the seamless nature of "raw processing" in LR/Aperture/C1 these days along with cheap storage space, I'm not seeing the argument. But maybe I'm missing something.

I admit that I shot a fair amount of jpg with my u43 cameras, but frankly one reason I had the 6D and now moved to the A7r/RX1r is to get all that DR to use/abuse in order to get images under bad conditions.

So am I missing something? Wouldn't be the first time ;)
 

jonoslack

Active member
Hi There Todd
I've gradually realised that many many people shoot jpg - and because they do, then it's incumbent on the Camera companies to make sure that the output is good.

Like you, I always shoot RAW, but it's by no means universal, even amongst professionals.

Some because they can't be bothered to learn a decent DAM, others because work means shooting thousands of images, and post processing isn't cost effective.

Whatever
 

Bob

Administrator
Staff member
I have wondered about jpegs.
Some cameras produce terrible jpegs (A7r for example) other are so-so, a few are pretty good (nikon D800, DF) but I almost never shoot jpegs mainly because I like to process images to look the way I like them. OTOH, I have been pleased with some of the jpegs I have seen, especially those done by noon in-camera. Would I shoot both, well for me, when a good crop from a shoot is perhaps 2-3 out of 300 images, sorting out jpeg vs raw seems just not a good way to spend my time.
I know of a few photographers who shoot thousands of images in a job. I am sort of glad that is not me but I imagine that a good quality jpeg offers a significant advantage to the volume shooter.
-bob
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
Well when your shooting 15 k images in 4 days and need to upload fast to the web for purchase reasons. Jpg sure is handy but my A7 shots are just okay. Next time I think I can just do huge batches from raw and do it in bulk. I think given the speed of C1 processing I can get it done fairly quickly. When I shot the jpegs I had to run a action to reduce the file anyway and that took time. C1 I can just process to the exact size. PJ shooter and Sports guys jpegs are a way of life as there going to press quickly so time is of the essence. The other issue is people do not want to learn and take the time to process.

Bob my files where from the A7 not the 7r. If this is what your basing your comment on and I also had noise on low, sharpening at +1 which turns out was my mistake. Plus they where in crop mode for extra reach. Lesson learned but I have not tried it again either.
 

MGrayson

Subscriber and Workshop Member
With Olympus cameras, I shoot both RAW and jpeg. Oly's jpegs are usually a very good suggestion, and frequently plain good enough. Aperture loads both, but only displays one image, letting you choose which one the engine starts from. I believe that behavior is configurable, and Aperture also will import one, or the other, or keep them separate, as you choose.

--Matt
 

nostatic

New member
I could see shooting jpg with the Fujis, and I'll admit that I've done jpg shooting in the past with the Olys because often they would get me close enough and I was in situations where I worried about storage and file management. I can see the sports/journalist angle, as well as the high volume problem though seems that batching should be viable depending on the details.

I think the one that confuses me is the "don't want to learn how to do it." With any of the major software packages, there isn't much that you *have* to learn, but as I believe Guy has said, doing PP is often half (or more) of getting the image. I'm a hack at it and am slowly getting better, but fiddling with some sliders in Aperture or LR isn't exactly rocket surgery to get the basics down.

Then again, as they say in the car biz, "there's a butt for every seat" and how people use their stuff should never surprise me. Now where's my crescent wrench? I need to hammer some nails...
 

alajuela

Active member
Hi

I shoot jpegs with my Canon, Fuji and M, - it makes it easy to upload to an iPad, for review while out and not back at the desktop.

If the question is really to use the jpegs to print - then the answer is never.

I agree the fuji are almost generally good enough to just send out over the internet.

When I get anal, and compulsive at the same time, I go back on my hard drive delete all the jpegs - to save space.

Thanks
Phil
 
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