You’ve probably heard people throwing around the term RAW – and maybe telling you there’s no other way to take photos. But what exactly is it, and why does it matter?
RAW vs. JPEG
When you take a photo, your camera captures loads of information about the light, colours, and details in the scene. What happens to that information depends on the file type you save it as:
- JPEG: Your camera processes the photo for you. It adds contrast, adjusts color, sharpens things up, and then compresses the image to make the file smaller. The result looks good straight out of the camera, but some of the original information gets thrown away in the process.
- RAW: Instead of compressing and processing, your camera saves all the data it captured. Think of it like a digital film negative: untouched, unedited, and full of potential.
Why shoot in RAW?
- Better editing flexibility
RAW files store far more detail than JPEGs. That means if your photo is too dark, too bright, or the colors look off, you have a lot more room to fix it afterward in editing software without ruining the image quality. - More dynamic range
Ever taken a photo where the sky looks blown out and the shadows are pitch black? RAW captures more range between bright and dark areas, giving you a chance to bring back those lost details. - Accurate color control
With RAW, you can fine-tune white balance after the fact. Accidentally left your camera on ‘tungsten’ lighting while shooting outdoors? No problem – RAW lets you fix the light temperature without degrading the image. - Non-destructive editing
Editing a RAW file doesn’t permanently change it. You’re just creating instructions for how the photo should look, and you can always go back to the untouched original.
Why NOT always shoot RAW?
RAW sounds perfect, but there are a few trade-offs:
- File size: RAW files are much bigger than JPEGs, so they take up more space on your memory card and computer.
- Extra processing: You’ll need to use editing software (like Lightroom, Capture One, or even free options like Darktable) to develop the final image.
- Not instantly shareable: RAWs aren’t widely supported by apps or social media – you’ll usually convert them to JPEG before posting.
So, should you shoot RAW?
If you care about editing flexibility and want the most control over your photos, RAW is absolutely worth it. It’s like keeping all your options open, even if you don’t use them right away.
On the other hand, if you’re shooting casual snapshots, need quick turnarounds, or don’t plan to do much editing, JPEG can still be perfectly fine.
A lot of photographers even shoot RAW + JPEG at the same time – getting an easy-to-share JPEG right away, plus the RAW file for serious editing later.
Also, it can depend on what photo-editing software you use. For example, Photoshop can treat JPEGS pretty much as f they were RAW files: check out the ‘camera raw filter‘ in its ‘Filters’ drop-down menu. This lets you do to a JPEG a lot of what its RAW editor can do for your RAW files – using exactly the same interface. For example, you can add bokeh blur – even to an image that was shot at, say f22! And you can change the exposure, and light temperature, and much, much more besides – all without having a RAW file. So you may feel you don’t want that extra level of complexity, or the extra storage demands.
Final thought
Think of RAW as your safety net: it gives you more room to experiment, fix mistakes, and bring out the best in your photos. Once you get used to the extra step of editing, you might never go back.
There are even possibilities for taking and processing RAW files on your smartphone – ask Google to tell you what’s available for your phone.