RAW and the newbie

[azzajay77]

Hi I just searched converting RAW files and found 100 threads but non that answered my question, so apologies if i'm repeating

I have been thinking of shooting in RAW so that i can see what the extra PP benefits are.

My question is how do i get the RAW images into my photoshop software for editing.

I have an older version of Adobephoto shop and also a version of Jasc paint shop pro.

I've downloaded a program with converts my Pentax PEF files to DNG but when i open them in either of these programs they're extremely pixelated and don't look much like a photo at all. Where do i begin with the editing of the photo.

[AnneWynne]

Will your version of PS not import your camera raw file? If it does, try that. Then you can save in any format (i suggest .tif so you save your levels).

[azzajay77]

As far as i know it won't let me do it ... if it does i don't know how

I clicked on open as and it asked me to put in all the values for the image ie pixel height, width whether i wanted 8bit of 16bit ...

[navcom]

What version of Photoshop do you have? I think most of the recent versions (last 8 years or so) support RAW formats.

Also, your camera should have come with a program for converting. What type of camera do you have?

[azzajay77]

It's Adobe Photoshop 7.0

I don't have a usb cable for the camera anymore. Someone was walking around talking photos with the usb lead plugged into the camera and it got caught on a door and ripped the connection out of the camera ( so the sd card has to be removed now and the photos removed from the card by a card reader.

It's a Pentax K100D. Unsure of the software that came with it as it's my wifes camera and was purchased a few years ago. Only learning how to use it now.

[navcom]

I'm a Pentax user as well....nice choice!

Looking online, it appears Photoshop 7 may not have RAW processing unless it is the latest version (7.01 or something like that).

I would recommend going to Pentax's site and downloading Pentax Photo Laboratory/Browser. It can do the RAW conversion for you. You can download it here I believe. It's at the bottom of the page. It's a free download.

The best way is to do it straight from Photoshop or Lightroom. If you can afford it, I would purchase CS2, 3, or 4...or Lightroom 2. You can go to Adobe's website and download a fully functional 30-day trail copy for free. At least you will know what you are getting.

Personally, I absolutely love Lightroom and couldn't live without it now

[fletch]

Is it Photoshop 7, which is quite old. Or Photoshop Elements 7 as this is the newest version of a more basic program but will open RAW files from all of the latest cameras.

[bmaher]

You may want to download and use Picassa. It's free and a pretty good program.