Using Raw images in iphoto

I am uploading RAW images to iphoto.
But I can't see what the benefit of that is.
It seems that you can edit jpegs in exactly the same way on iphoto.
Can anyone explain the benefit of uploading RAW images to iphoto?
Thank you

With jpeg, you are letting your camera do the image processing. With RAW you are saving the processing for the mac. If you are happy with the jpegs your camera produces and don't want to mess with it, maybe jpegs are the way to go. If you enjoy working on the mac to tweak your photos, go with RAW.

tiger roach said:

With jpeg, you are letting your camera do the image processing. With RAW you are saving the processing for the mac. If you are happy with the jpegs your camera produces and don't want to mess with it, maybe jpegs are the way to go. If you enjoy working on the mac to tweak your photos, go with RAW.

Click to expand...

Thanks so much for the reply.
But that's what I'm confused about.
Where on iphoto does it allow me to mess around with the unprocessed data?
It seems that it allows me only the same functionality to mess around with a RAW image as it does with a jpeg. Is that right?
Will I only get the benefit of the RAW image in a programme like Photoshop. Or do I get any benefits from taking RAW images and uploading them to iphoto?
eg when I upload a RAW image to Photoshop I get a whole different set of parameters to mess around with because the RAW image is unprocessed. But do I get anything similar when I upload a RAW image to iphoto? I can't see anything.
And if the answer is negative, would you advise changing any RAW images that I never intend messing around with into jpegs to save space?
And if you do advise that, what is the easiest way to do it? Or shouldn't I bother?!
Sorry for the bombardment. But I really appreciate your input. It's a steep learning curve all this!

I use Aperture, and in that program you can open the RAW converter it is using for your particular camera, and adjust it if you like. I used iPhoto only briefly, so I don't know if it gives you that option. (I kind of doubt it).

Even if not, a RAW file will give you a little more latitude in adjusting the exposure when needed, which you can do in iPhoto. There may be other benefits I'm not aware of. I don't think it will give you any more tools and options though.

My guess is that a high percentage of iPhoto users output jpegs from their cameras. Should you decide to go that route, I still wouldn't bother converting your existing pic files and re-importing them.

I think iPhoto is more of an organizer than an editor. I prefer to use the editor and convertor that came with my camera. I have Canon so I use DPP. I can adjust the white balance, exposure etc. I also like to keep the raw file in tact in case I want to make different edits later on.
So now I really only use iPhoto for organizing and some minor edits. I keep my raw files in a separate folder on my desktop and an external hard drive.
Hope that helps.

To the OP:

Check out this MacWorld article about RAW: LINK

Regards.

^^^ good article there

While iPhoto supports RAW to some extent, I don't find it to be the best tool for RAW. It just seems to slow things down a lot compared to JPEGs.

There are other programs that handle editing RAW files better IMHO (see my sig for an example).

Great answers and great link. Thanks so much for your help.

I'm not so sure iPhoto has an editor specifically for RAW files. In Adobe Photoshop (I use CS3) you can adjust white balance, hues, saturation, sharpness, noise, etc. with much much greater accuracy with a RAW file than you can with a JPG.

I shoot exclusively in RAW now, but if you don't plan on doing post processing and are satisfied with the jpegs straight from your camera, I'd say shoot jpeg and enjoy yourself.

If you chose to shoot RAW then you know about the format's potential.
Yes, they are much larger files (more data) allowing you to do so much more than with standard .jpg's.
iPhoto is a nice, easy to use, beginner's program. However, if you are shooting RAW you are ready to consider, graduating/upgrading, to other options. (Aperture, Digikam, PhotoShop, GIMP, etc.)

You don't need training wheels once you learn to ride!!!

iPhoto is probably not the best tool to handle RAW images. You really need to look at Photoshop, Aperture or Lightroom, to see the full potential.

The advantage of RAW images is they contain far more data than JPEGs and enable more "Processing" than a JPEG ever could. Now that's not to say that you should shoot RAW to make up for bad exposure, it simply means that you have considerably more control over the image and the final result.

Having said that if you are happy with the JPEG images from you camera then stick with those and save yourself some storage space.

Still not sure? Then download trial versions of Aperture and Lightroom and see what can be done. I would suggest however you have a look at some tutorials on the web first to see if these programs are for you. Plus you'll get more out of the 30 day trial period.