Welcome to the Hands-On Working with Digital RAW workshop. This workshop starts at 9:30am and finishes in time to leave at 4:30pm Your instructor for today is Roger Buchanan. If at any time you have any questions feel free to ask away. Workshop Hand Out: On the table before you is a folio containing your Workshop Memory Card. This Memory Card contains copies of the images that you will be working with today. As well, there are several documents, in pdf format, that give even more insight into many of the topics covered today. The CD is blank, as you will burn a copy of your work, along with the pdf s to take home with you. Also included in the folio are several printed documents that you will be using during the workshop: Adobe Camera RAW Controls for Photoshop Elements (laminated) Hands On RAW schedule Hands On RAW Image Workflow Using Camera RAW Shooting RAW files RAW Image Workflow Checklist Using Editor Hands on RAW Optional Work Outline RAW Workflow Outline Evaluation of Workshop form All of these documents are also available at www.thenerdworks.com by clicking on the resources link, and then going to the Hands On RAW section. Please Note: NO Food or Drink is allowed in the computer lab area. However, we will be taking a morning and afternoon break (15 min) as well as a lunch break (30 min). During that time you may go out, stay in the lounge area, and enjoy food/drink that you brought along or purchased at any of the vending machine located throughout the facility. Have fun with your learning today!
Hands On RAW - Schedule: What follows is an estimated timeline for today s activities. Diverging from the topic will happen occasionally, as questions arise (please ask your questions as you think of them), but we will do our best to keep things on track so as to finish on time. Time: 9:30am 10:00am 10:30am 11:00am 11:15am Topic: Introduction: What is RAW? Why should you be photographing with it? What is entailed in doing so? Your Instructor for today is Roger Buchanan. Terms and Workspace Outline: Histogram, File Formats, White Balance, Bit Depth and Colour Space (these pertain to Camera and Software settings) Importing and Organizing: Rate, Tag and add MetaDATA Emphasis must be placed on proper In Camera Exposure and Colour. Morning Break Basic Camera RAW Edits. This will require the use of the pages entitled: Hands On RAW Image Workflow Checklist and Adobe Camera RAW Controls for Photoshop Elements 9 (very new) 12:45pm 1:15pm Lunch Time Eat well! Synchronized Processing, Double Processing and Graphics Tablet usage. 2:45pm 3:00pm 3:45pm Afternoon Break Output a Print: Process one of your images, or use one of the images that is provided, and have an 8x10 print made to take with you! REVIEW of Workshop material 4:15pm 4:30pm Work Shop Evaluation Good Bye until next time!
Discuss Photographic Aspirations Why are you taking the class? Hand On Intro to RAW Photography Are you new to the concepts of RAW? Really? Activity: What you already know about RAW! Chef-boy-ar-dee Home Made Lasagna Pro s Con s Pro s Con s What a sensor is and how it captures photo information: A sensor is a grid, much like a checkerboard, that is made up of light sensitive devices called photodiodes. Each photodiode takes a measure of the amount of light reaching it, and transmits this reading to the cameras image processor. Another name for a photodiode is a picture element most commonly referred to as a Pixel. Each photodiode can only record the amount of light reaching it, not the specifics of colour. To determine colour information each pixel is covered with a filter that only lets in a certain colour of light. Pixel filters total Red (25%), Green (50%) and Blue (25%). Green is represented twice as much because human eyes are far more sensitive to shades of Green. Bit depth 8-bit is used in your traditional jpeg image file. 8-bit files represent 256 tones per colour channel, or over 16 million colours. 16-bit files, like those in a traditional RAW file can represent many Trillions of colours.
RAW is not a format! There are no industry standards for RAW data, unlike the JPEG specifications that were put forward by the Joint Photographic Experts Group (i.e. JPEG). RAW is unprocessed data from the sensor, and each company has their own unique way of collecting image data from the sensor. Histograms: A histogram is basically a bar chart that represents the amount of tones that have been captured by the sensor. The Histogram is an objective representation of exposure data, showing the amount of detail captured, from Black on the left side of the graph, to White on the right side of the graph, with all the tones in between. Overexposed Underexposed Good Contrast Low Contrast The Pro s and Con s of shooting RAW photographs: (does this look familiar?) Shooting RAW Pro s Con s What kind of RAW processing Conveter should be used? The one provided with the camera? The one provided with the image editing software (ex. Adobe Camera Raw)? RAW Workflow: (in its simplest form) Capture Transfer and Organize Edit Output - Archive NOTE: Human eyes can see a range of about 30 f-stops, whereas a digital camera can capture between 8-10 f-stops of useable data. You make the choice of which 8-10 stops to capture and edit, not the camera! Resources: Ben Long Getting Started with Camera RAW ISBN 0-321-38400-8 published by Peachpit Press Adobe website for several white papers on the subject of RAW capture, technology and Digital Negatives. www.adobe.com/designcenter www.outdoorphotographer.com Intro level magazine website with good articles. www.peachpit.com an excellent publisher of digital photography books
Adobe Camera RAW Controls for Photoshop Elements 7. Figure 1 Basic Tab (See the page Camera RAW Workflow Checklist to use this) The various controls, shown in the screenshot above, are highlighted in different colours for easy explanation. The start at top left, and proceed clockwise. Grey from the left, Magnifying Glass, Move tool, White Balance tool, Cropping Tool, Straighten Tool, Red Eye Removal Tool, Preferences, Rotate left, Rotate right. Blue Histogram including clipping warnings (circled in red), RGB information, and camera image settings. Basic Tab as follows: Yellow White Balance selection drop down window and adjustment sliders. Orange Exposure control sliders and Auto and Default links. (Alt key works here) Green Image Enhancement sliders. Red Done, Cancel and Open Image buttons. (They change if you hold down the Alt key) Violet Bit depth selection drop down window.
Figure 2 Detail Tab (See the page Camera RAW Workflow Checklist to use this ) The various controls for the Detail Tab, shown in the screenshot above, are highlighted in different colours for easy explanation. The start at top left, and proceed clockwise. Grey from the left, Magnifying Glass, Move tool, White Balance tool, Cropping Tool, Straighten Tool, Red Eye Removal Tool, Preferences, Rotate left, Rotate right. These are the same as with the Basic Tab. Blue Histogram including clipping warnings (circled in red), RGB information, and camera image settings. These are also the same as the Basic Tab. Detail Tab as follows: Yellow Sharpening Sliders, a) Amount, b) Radius, c) Detail, and d) Masking Orange Noise Reduction Sliders, a) Luminance; b) Colour Red Done, Cancel and Open Image buttons. (They change if you hold down the Alt key) Violet Bit depth selection drop down window.
Hands On RAW - Image Workflow Using Camera RAW In Camera RAW click on the preview box, and also on each of the Clipping warning triangles above the histogram. Stage Task # 1 # 2 # 3 # 4 # 5 # 6 # 7 #8 1)-White Balance Use one of these three options. a) As Shot Drop Down List b) Eye Dropper Tool Click on Grey c) Temperature & Tint Sliders BASIC TAB Temperature balances Cyan Yellow, Tint balances Green Magenta 2)-Exposure Be sure to activate the Highlight/Shadow warnings by clicking on the black triangle above the Histogram. Alt-click the exposure slider to get a better view of the clipping area 3)-Recovery Drag to the right to save Highlights from being blown out. Use the Alt-click technique with the slider. 4)-Fill Light Used separately for shadows/underexposure. Use of Fill Light often requires working with Blacks. 5)-Blacks Drag right to increase blacks. In a washed out photo use this before the exposure slider. Also works with the Alt-click technique. Use of Blacks slider often causes colours to have an increase in saturation. 6)-Brightness Use this AFTER Exposure/Blacks adjustments 7)-Contrast 8)-Clarity Adds Pop to the image by increasing only mid-tone contrast. 9)-Vibrance Saturates the pale colours much more than the already vivid colours, and mostly leaves skin tones alone. 10)-Saturation DETAIL TAB View Image at 100% when Sharpening Stage Task # 1 # 2 # 3 # 4 # 5 # 6 # 7 #8 11)-Amount Controls how strong the sharpening will be applied. Shown as a percentage, with 100% a recommended starting value 12)-Radius Controls the size of the edges you sharpen, a smaller radius value sharpens smaller-scale detail. The smaller the detail in your image the smaller you set the starting Radius value. 13)-Detail Avoid Sharpening Halos, Alt-click the slider to get a better view. Controls the relative sharpening of fine versus coarse detail (within a given radius value) Higher values emphasize fine detail, but also increase the overall sharpening effect. You will likely need to adjust this setting in conjunction with the amount/percent setting. 14)-Masking Drag right to reduce sharpening on non-edge areas, also works with the Alt-click technique. 15)-Luminance This reduces the blotchy noise found in shadow areas of the image. 3rd party Plug-ins are a good option! 16)-Colour This reduces all other types of noise. 3 rd party Plug-ins are a good option! 17)-Open Image Click on Open Image button to have image open in the Photoshop Elements Editor.
RAW Workflow Outline Stage Task Tools or Commands Importing with Organizer Select Source Alt+F, G, right-arrow, Enter Select Save Destination Alt+B Select file name style Alt+R Add MetaDATA Fill in fields, click Get Photos Rate Favourites as One Star Click on photo, press 1 Add Captions, add to Collections Alt+E, t, click OK. Sorting with Organizer Tag One Stars Appropriately Ctrl+click photos, drag tag to photo Finding Photos with Organizer Camera RAW (if needed) Process RAW files Process steps from Top to Bottom Photoshop Elements will not let you do a lot of editing while the file is still in 16-bit mode. When you are done processing the RAW file to change the file to 8-bit mode click Open Image then click Alt+I, M, A. Basic EditsAlt+E, Q (Quick Edit) Save as Photoshop File Alt+F, A, Alt+F, PSD Rotate Alt+I, E Crop Alt+I, P Adjust Tone Ctrl+Shift+L Contrast Alt+Shift+Ctrl+L Colour Ctrl+Shift+B Saturation Ctrl+U You can always use the Auto Buttons, or Sliders. For Saturation, when using CTRL+U, use the sliders for Hue, Saturation and Lightness, but also note that you can do each Colour Channel ON ITS OWN! Clean & RetouchAlt+E, I, (Full edit) Healing Brush J Clone Stamp S Full Adjustments Colour Curves Alt+N, C, adjust colour curves Dodge, Burn or Sponge O With colour curves, when the graph is the shape of a mild S slope the results are generally quite pleasing. Of course, mileage may vary depending upon taste. Add Canvas border Crop Tool Crop inside image, Drag borders outside, OK Add Text Text Tool T, select font and size, enter text Output Sharpen Alt+, Unsharp Mask Get Creative with the Image! For sharpening there are some things to know. View Image at 100% Sharpening settings for: Amount % Radius pixels Threshold levels Average 125 1 3 People up close 75 2 3 Medium Scenic 225 0.5 0 General Purpose 85 1 4 Web at 72ppi 400 0.3 0 Edges, lots of edge detail 65 4 3 Soft fuzzy subjects 150 1 10
RAW - Image Workflow Checklist Using Editor Stage Task # 1 # 2 # 3 # 4 # 5 # 6 # 7 #8 Camera RAW (if Process RAW files needed) Basic Edits Save as Photoshop File Rotate Crop Adjust Tone Contrast Colour Saturation Clean and Retouch Healing Brush Clone Stamp Full Adjustments Colour Curves Dodge and Burn Add Canvas Border Add Text Output Crop a small box INSIDE image Drag handles OUTSIDE of image Select Text tool, font, size Click tool on image and enter text Sharpen Get Creative with the Image! Image Number 1 2 3 Image File Name and Format
Sharpening Info Output Sharpen Alt+N, Unsharp Mask Get Creative with the Image! For sharpening there are some things to know. View the Image at 100%. Use the settings below for type of content. Photo Style of Amount % Radius pixels Threshold levels Sharpening Average 125 1 3 Soft fuzzy subjects 150 1 10 People up close 75 2 3 Medium Scenic 225 0.5 0 Edges, lots of edges 65 4 3 General Purpose 85 1 4 Web at 72ppi 400 0.3 0 DIY 50-150 1-2 3-20 If at all possible, produce your final output but DO NOT FLATTEN your layers. This will allow more edits to be done later on if needed.
Hands On RAW - Optional Work Outline: Side by Side Photo Comparison: 1. Select Photo s in Organizer (Ctrl+Click); 2. Press F11; 3. Press OK in View Options Dialog box; 4. Click on the side by side icon on the toolbar that floats near the top of the screen; 5. Click on the Bad photo; 6. Click the Next button on the toolbar to replace the bad photo with the next photo; 7. When finished press Esc. Optimize your Sample Size: 1. Press I for Eyedropper tool; 2. On Option bar at top, Click Sample Size and select 3 x 3. Optimize Colours for Printing: 1. Click Edit and then Colour Settings; 2. Select Always Optimize for Printing and press ENTER; Tips for Making Better Selections of Parts of your Image: Make changes to Selections of an Image with Marquee tool: 1. Use the Marquee tool (Press M) and click-drag an area to be selected: 2. Get additional sections selected by Shift+Click+Drag 3. Make adjustments to image in ONLY the selected area. Make changes to Irregular shape Selections of an Image with Lasso tool: 1. Use the Lasso tool (Press L) and click-drag an area to be selected: 2. Get additional sections selected by Shift+Click+Drag 3. Make adjustments to image in ONLY the selected area. Save Complex Selections: 1. Make selection completely; 2. From the Select menu, choose Save Selection, name the selection and Click OK. Soften the Edges of Selections (it helps them blend in with background): 1. Make selection; 2. To Feather the selection press Alt+Ctrl+D Select by Colour: 1. Choose Magic Wand (Press W) check off a) anti-alias and b) contiguous; 2. Click in coloured area of choice; 3. Shift+Click to add areas to selection; (note: if not enough is being selected increase the tolerance option.) 4. To change the selected area of colour Press Ctrl+U; 5. Change the colour and press OK 6. Press Ctrl+D to deselect.