jpeg to tiffs?

how do i change a jpeg to a tiffs? i cant find how or where to do it... or does it really even make a noticable difference in quality? any help greatly appreciated...

[dcclark]

What software are you using? Why do you want to save JPEGs as TIFFs? (If you don't have a specific reason... it's probably unnecessary).

TIFFs are a funny format. There are many variations. Most variations on the TIFF format are lossless (i.e. you don't lose any information from the image). As you probably know, JPEGs are lossy (you do lose information), however that lost information is chosen very carefully so that the human eye basically can't see it.

Overall, I either store my images in a lossless format which I can use for editing (I use gimp, so I save in its XCF format -- but Photoshop's PSD is similar), or else I store them as JPEGs for the final project. I have never noticed an actual loss of quality when saving a file as a 90% quality JPEG, and I make large-sized prints from them all of the time.

[acedrew]

The rule of thumb for file formats is that if you're not done editing, you need to save in a lossless format: TIFF, PSD, XCF. Once you have saved something in JPEG, there is no benefit in converting it to TIFF, the compression damage has been done. Another thing to keep in mind is JPEG is only 8 Bit, if you have an HDR you're planning on printing on a wide gamut printer, you should save in a 16 Bit Tiff, TIFF is the closest thing to a High Bit-Depth Standardized format we've got.

Andrew Rodgers
Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers | Andrew Rodgers (acedrew) on Twitter

Originally Posted by acedrew

The rule of thumb for file formats is that if you're not done editing, you need to save in a lossless format: TIFF, PSD, XCF. Once you have saved something in JPEG, there is no benefit in converting it to TIFF, the compression damage has been done. Another thing to keep in mind is JPEG is only 8 Bit, if you have an HDR you're planning on printing on a wide gamut printer, you should save in a 16 Bit Tiff, TIFF is the closest thing to a High Bit-Depth Standardized format we've got.

Andrew Rodgers
Perfected Perspectives -- Photography by Andrew Rodgers | Andrew Rodgers (acedrew) on Twitter

i understand that,i was wanting to know how to save photos as tiff.

Originally Posted by dcclark

What software are you using? Why do you want to save JPEGs as TIFFs? (If you don't have a specific reason... it's probably unnecessary).

TIFFs are a funny format. There are many variations. Most variations on the TIFF format are lossless (i.e. you don't lose any information from the image). As you probably know, JPEGs are lossy (you do lose information), however that lost information is chosen very carefully so that the human eye basically can't see it.

Overall, I either store my images in a lossless format which I can use for editing (I use gimp, so I save in its XCF format -- but Photoshop's PSD is similar), or else I store them as JPEGs for the final project. I have never noticed an actual loss of quality when saving a file as a 90% quality JPEG, and I make large-sized prints from them all of the time.

im using corel paint shop pro and picassa 3. i hear all the time that you loose detail every time you save a jpeg image, and that you should save a jpeg as a tiff BEFORE you edit, that it will allow you crop, edit, and save without loosing quality with each save. but like i said, if you cant see a difference than i'll just stick to the jpeg....

[Digidave]

Originally Posted by ntinlizi

im using corel paint shop pro and picassa 3. i hear all the time that you loose detail every time you save a jpeg image, and that you should save a jpeg as a tiff BEFORE you edit, that it will allow you crop, edit, and save without loosing quality with each save. but like i said, if you cant see a difference than i'll just stick to the jpeg....

This all true. The thing is, if you want to save the file in order to open it in another software program it is best to save it as a tiff file, then open that tiff in the other program.

When you open a jpg file in your programs, make adjustments, & then click on "Save" it changes the original jpg. Technically speaking, you are recompressing the already compressed file. That's where you lose quality. If you are just making all your adjustments & only saving once, you probably will not notice the loss. If you resave between every adjustment, you most likely will see the loss. If you want to keep the original jpg file intact, you have two choices.

1) Make all your adjustments to the file & then click on "Save As". This will create a new, separate jpg file. In Paint Shop Pro, you need to click on "File"(upper left-hand corner) & you'll see "Save" & "Save As".

2) Open the jpg in your program,click on "Save As". Then you will get the box that asks where to save & at the bottom of that box you will see a drop-down menu that will give choices of jpg, tiff, etc... Then you would open the tiff file & work on that. Tiff is a lossless format so then you can click on "Save" as many times as you want without any loss of quality. You can also move it to another program without worry.

Hope this makes sense!

Originally Posted by Digidave

This all true. The thing is, if you want to save the file in order to open it in another software program it is best to save it as a tiff file, then open that tiff in the other program.

When you open a jpg file in your programs, make adjustments, & then click on "Save" it changes the original jpg. Technically speaking, you are recompressing the already compressed file. That's where you lose quality. If you are just making all your adjustments & only saving once, you probably will not notice the loss. If you resave between every adjustment, you most likely will see the loss. If you want to keep the original jpg file intact, you have two choices.

1) Make all your adjustments to the file & then click on "Save As". This will create a new, separate jpg file. In Paint Shop Pro, you need to click on "File"(upper left-hand corner) & you'll see "Save" & "Save As".

2) Open the jpg in your program,click on "Save As". Then you will get the box that asks where to save & at the bottom of that box you will see a drop-down menu that will give choices of jpg, tiff, etc... Then you would open the tiff file & work on that. Tiff is a lossless format so then you can click on "Save" as many times as you want without any loss of quality. You can also move it to another program without worry.

Hope this makes sense!

thank you, that definately made sense, my next question is.... is it really worth it? if you held a jpeg and a tiff together, how much difference in quality is really noticable?

[dcclark]

Originally Posted by ntinlizi

thank you, that definately made sense, my next question is.... is it really worth it? if you held a jpeg and a tiff together, how much difference in quality is really noticable?

If the JPEG was saved at a reasonable quality level (say, 90%), no visible difference.

As some will tell you, saving and re-saving images as jpegs will cause them to degrade in quality, but I still have never been able to see any difference.

I personally print 16x20's from jpegs, and have never noticed any artifacts. You are much more likely to notice sensor dust and water spots on your lens, before you notice jpeg compression artifacts.

[Digidave]

Originally Posted by ntinlizi

thank you, that definately made sense, my next question is.... is it really worth it? if you held a jpeg and a tiff together, how much difference in quality is really noticable?

If the tiff file was created from the jpg, absolutely not. Compressing a file to create a jpg means throwing out some of the information within the file. That is why they are smaller in MB size. Once that info is gone, it's gone for good. So when you create a tiff file from a jpg, even though the size may be bigger, it can't possibly be any better in quality. If the tiff file was created from a RAW file, it would absolutely be better in quality because it is a lossless file. Is it enough to see a difference? That's debatable.