Workflow and software....

[cwilt]

I have been tinkering with post processing with individual apps instead of the standard Photoshop. Since I purchased the D2x my post work is much less.

My flow would be.....

Raw Magick Lite for RAW conversion to tiff.
Picture Window Pro for the minor editing I am doing.
Qimage for printing or resizing for web.

After experimenting last night with this flow I can say that processing time from RAW open to print or upload to gallery is faster than normal with improved output.

Am I the only one that doesn't like the overhead of bloated apps with features that you don't need?

 

[Ken-L]

I use Nikon Capture for RAW conversion to JPG.
Adobe Photoshop Elements for minor post processing and editing.
Irfanview for resizing and signature for forum posting.

With NC I get to use the curve and other settings I used for the shot, so the post-processing is very little.

 

[greyflash]

I like the features in Nikon Capture and use it exclusively for RAW conversion and tweaking then convert to Tiff. Process the TIFF in PS CS and then convert to JPEG.

 

[sbuttrick]

Charles...good post. Ken and Gordon, you both use NC, do you find it to be slow? I have tried it and it is soooo sloooowww that I switched to ACR 3. I have a Mac Powerbook with 1.2 gigs of memory which I think would be enough.

 

[Ken-L]

Slow is such a relative term.... with a "clean" (rebooted) system, I find the speed to be okay.

It's slower than I would wish on my DELL desktop PC, because it only has 512MB RAM and is a Pentium 4 - 2.00GHz, so I don't expect it to be "fast" with NC.

When I replace this system (hopefully I can wait until "Longhorn" is shipping with new systems) I will get a much faster CPU, and will have 2GB of RAM. If it still isn't fast enough with NC, I'll just have to accept that!

In 1986 I opened a business and was using a Panasonic "portable" 8088 PC with 2 floppy drives and no HD. It took nearly 3 minutes to sort my client database, and compared to doing it without a computer, it was wonderful - all my billing was done automatically on that PC too! Then I bought a 286 PC with a 10MB hard drive - how gigantic! It would sort my client database in 10 seconds. And, when I sold my business in 1995 and retired, my computer would sort that database so fast that my finger would still be on the enter-key when it finished! So, fast and slow are relative.

 

[Chris101]

After experimenting last night with this flow I can say that processing time from RAW open to print or upload to gallery is faster than normal with improved output.

Am I the only one that doesn't like the overhead of bloated apps with features that you don't need?

I disagree. I have RAW Developer, Nikon Capture, Print Buddy, but I use good old Photoshop CS2. I've been using the program since v4 and so I am very comfortable with the interface Photoshop uses. (This is not to say that other photographers aren't just as happy with other software.)

I build and use use my own actions to do batch processing. The new program Bridge, makes it very easy to sort my images into half a dozen or so bins for different batch processes. On my last job (dang! it was 3 WEEKS ago!) I took 152 RAW images. Then using CS2 I culled them down to 130 keepers and semikeepers, in 8 different bins. Using batched actions, I converted (with exposure and WB adjustment, as well as croping and sharpening) all 130 shots and saved them on a CD for taking to a printer in a single afternoon.

Now granted, they were all taken under the same lighting conditions, but most required cropping, and all needed some sharpening. A handfull needed individual attention (such as a clone-out or curving outside of ACR. I converted two to black and white as well.)

Now that the new, improved and faster Bridge is out - zoom, zoom!

On some images though (for example digital cosmetic surgery, an elaborate clone-out, or major re-purposing) I can still spend hours tinkering.

 

[cwilt]

Slow is such a relative term.... with a "clean" (rebooted) system, I find the speed to be okay.

It's slower than I would wish on my DELL desktop PC, because it only has 512MB RAM and is a Pentium 4 - 2.00GHz, so I don't expect it to be "fast" with NC.

When I replace this system (hopefully I can wait until "Longhorn" is shipping with new systems) I will get a much faster CPU, and will have 2GB of RAM. If it still isn't fast enough with NC, I'll just have to accept that!

In 1986 I opened a business and was using a Panasonic "portable" 8088 PC with 2 floppy drives and no HD. It took nearly 3 minutes to sort my client database, and compared to doing it without a computer, it was wonderful - all my billing was done automatically on that PC too! Then I bought a 286 PC with a 10MB hard drive - how gigantic! It would sort my client database in 10 seconds. And, when I sold my business in 1995 and retired, my computer would sort that database so fast that my finger would still be on the enter-key when it finished! So, fast and slow are relative.

My first computer I built by hand, soldered every chip, and it ran CPM. I think I just dated myself. :shock:

I don't have any apps that run slow, just some run faster than others.

 

[cwilt]

I build and use use my own actions to do batch processing. The new program Bridge, makes it very easy to sort my images into half a dozen or so bins for different batch processes. On my last job (dang! it was 3 WEEKS ago!) I took 152 RAW images. Then using CS2 I culled them down to 130 keepers and semikeepers, in 8 different bins. Using batched actions, I converted (with exposure and WB adjustment, as well as croping and sharpening) all 130 shots and saved them on a CD for taking to a printer in a single afternoon.

Now granted, they were all taken under the same lighting conditions, but most required cropping, and all needed some sharpening. A handfull needed individual attention (such as a clone-out or curving outside of ACR. I converted two to black and white as well.)

Now that the new, improved and faster Bridge is out - zoom, zoom!

On some images though (for example digital cosmetic surgery, an elaborate clone-out, or major re-purposing) I can still spend hours tinkering.

I do the same sorting in Raw Magick. I guess it all comes down to personal preference , much like sharpening.