Whats So Great About RAW?
[Craig Stark] On the OSS, RAW is a 16-bit dump of exactly what was on the CCD. When you convert it to color on the fly and when you convert it to color after the fact, you run through the same process. The file gets 3x as large as a result, as it turns into 16 bits per color per pixel. Digital camera’s RAW’s are larger, as noted, because the alternative is JPG compressed. You’ll never get an image straight off the OSS — RAW or color — that has been JPG compressed. RAW is better than converting on the fly because (some of these noted): • Files are 1/3rd the size • You don’t debayer hot pixels because you • Did your dark subtraction on the RAW or • Did what you really should do which is Bad Pixel mapping (this results in less noise in your final image relative to dark subtraction). • You open yourself up to a broader range of possibilities (e.g., the above noted Bad Pixel mapping, Colors in Motion, all sorts of neat things). • When you look at the captured histogram you’re seeing your
