I just had to reply to this because I took the exact same photo as this the other year! I was gutted I'd not taken my D300 into the caves, my bf had his old Coolpix thing with him so I had to make do with that!

 

Aladdin's cave by dreamzscape, on Flickr

 

Cheddar Gorge Caves



 

Shooting in RAW will give you a stop either side when you do post production. ie if you under or over expose, you can recover the image to a surprising degree when you edit the image. it also has other benefits to image quality (you can even do a sort of pseudo HDR with some editing programmes) . definitely try it if you aren't shooting sports. In fact as I spend so much time shooting Kitesurfers and Jetskis, I have started to shoot even that in RAW as the changeable lighting conditions (from murky, or reflective water, to Dull or Bright ski all in one sequence) I find RAW probably double the amount of 'keepers'

 

With the correct workflow, it's possible to edit through a set of Raw image just as fast as you may do with JPEGs. I shoot all my work in Raw and have done for over eight years. I have no trouble filing pictures in a hurry working this way either. 

I find Phase One, Capture One is a really good Raw editor for speed, and for colour control also. There's a 30 day free trial available for anyone who hasn't tried it here: http://www.phaseone.com/en/Imaging-Software/Capture-One-Express-7.aspx Learning keyboard shortcuts also helps with speed. Typically I can bash through a full day of shooting in about half an hour.

With the correct workflow, it's possible to edit through a set of Raw image just as fast as you may do with JPEGs. I shoot all my work in Raw and have done for over eight years. I have no trouble filing pictures in a hurry working this way either. 

 

Since I started using Lightroom, I usually shoot everything in RAW for the same reason ^^ The only downside, apart from the file size (I'm guessing the Big Nikons must create truly massive Tiff files - I read something suggesting 250MB was possible for a single image!), is you need a decent amount of RAM on your pooter to handle a large batch of editing, at least in Lightroom.  

Since I started using Lightroom, I usually shoot everything in RAW for the same reason ^^ The only downside, apart from the file size (I'm guessing the Big Nikons must create truly massive Tiff files - I read something suggesting 250MB was possible for a single image!), is you need a decent amount of RAM on your pooter to handle a large batch of editing, at least in Lightroom.  

 

 Not using Lightroom, I could't say about system requirements for that, but my System is an older generation i7 laptop (I buy second hand and upgrade myself to I don't make as much of a loss) with 8GB RAM and SSD storage with my screen calibrated with an i1 Display Pro.

 

I find the biggest difference is made by importing over USB 3. I added an expresscard to my laptop for this and it flies when copying over the images. the computer ran just as well with 4GB in, so long as I didn't have many other programs open whilst editing. If you're using a traditional hard drive, and you have Windows Vista or later, then Readyboost can really help to speed up access times.

 

Once I'm done editing. I don't keep the Raw files. I used to, but when my edited archive went over a terabyte, you can only begin to imagine how much space the original Raw files were taking up! 

I use an i7 laptop  although I have usb3 I just transfer from camera, that way I get a peek at the pictures as they come across. It only takes a couple of minute for 16GB anyway. I use a Spyder 4 to calibrate, but fancy a Dell Ultrasharp monitor and then hardware calibrate it. Sadly Dell have locked down which devices work with the monitor, so I would also have to buy a i1 Pro (as far as I know it doesn't support Colour Monkey yet) :(  I stick all my Raw files onto a separate HDD, except recent files as it preserves the link with the Lightroom edit files easily. Trouble is I have so many portable 1TB HDDs (I buy one for every laptop or computer I get, so it builds up) I find it hard to keep track of what is stored where I will sort it out one day. I do know where all my jpgs and tiffs etc are though

 

now if I could only find my marbles?

Eizo and NEC wide gamut monitors both support the ColorMunki AFAIK, and will be a better choice for photo editing than the Dell Ultrasharps. Colour Confidence are a good place for stuff like that. Their staff are very helpful and knowledgeable also, or at least they were the last time I dealt with them.

Eizo and NEC wide gamut monitors both support the ColorMunki AFAIK, and will be a better choice for photo editing than the Dell Ultrasharps. Colour Confidence are a good place for stuff like that. Their staff are very helpful and knowledgeable also, or at least they were the last time I dealt with them.

I looked at Eizo (at Calumet) and they support my existing colourimeter and some of the more expensive ones maintain the new hardware set up via inbuilt sensors, but some of the Dells are not only several hundred pounds cheaper, but provide 100% sRGB and 99% RGB, which if I am honest is more than good enough for me. I like the look of the 2413 version. Gets rave reviews on 'tinterweb Actually my current XPS Dell laptop is 100% sRGB and well into the 90+% for RGB too. This HP one I'm using at the mo, scrapes in at around 99%sRGB which is still good enough for most of what I do

I looked at Eizo (at Calumet) and they support my existing colourimeter and some of the more expensive ones maintain the new hardware set up via inbuilt sensors, but some of the Dells are not only several hundred pounds cheaper, but provide 100% sRGB and 99% RGB, which if I am honest is more than good enough for me. I like the look of the 2413 version. Gets rave reviews on 'tinterweb   Actually my current XPS Dell laptop is 100% sRGB and well into the 90+% for RGB too. This HP one I'm using at the mo, scrapes in at around 99%sRGB which is still good enough for most of what I do

 

 

When manufacturers quote figures like that, they generally quote what the panel is capable of displaying, rather than what it will actually display. Dell monitors can be very good, but I know of people who've had not so good ones also. In those cases Dell have insisted that the monitor is 'within spec'. Unfortunately, that's why they tend to be cheaper. Same goes for contrast ratio. Dell measure the contrast difference with whites at max brightness and blacks at min brightness. This artificially inflates the figures. I notice Dell have started calling that 'Dynamic Contrast Ratio' nowadays. You'll be lucky to get 600:1 in real usage.

 

As I'm forced to work to a tight budget, I tend to buy things like this used, from corporate IT recycling companies. There are some real bargains to be had. Another way to get the best for your money is to either re-purpose good quality kit that is aimed at different markets. Anything intended for photography, tends to carry quite a price premium. There are medical spec monitors available (NEC do quite a few, and there's EIZO Radiforce) that have all the same gubbins inside, but can be bought cheaper if you can find one. You just need to know what you're doing as far as calibration/profiling is concerned.

 

Saying all that, the Dell U2413 does look good. It really needs the i1 Display Pro and to be connected via Displayport to make the most of it though, as you already know 

When manufacturers quote figures like that, they generally quote what the panel is capable of displaying, rather than what it will actually display. Dell monitors can be very good, but I know of people who've had not so good ones also. In those cases Dell have insisted that the monitor is 'within spec'. Unfortunately, that's why they tend to be cheaper. Same goes for contrast ratio. Dell measure the contrast difference with whites at max brightness and blacks at min brightness. This artificially inflates the figures. I notice Dell have started calling that 'Dynamic Contrast Ratio' nowadays. You'll be lucky to get 600:1 in real usage.

 

As I'm forced to work to a tight budget, I tend to buy things like this used, from corporate IT recycling companies. There are some real bargains to be had. Another way to get the best for your money is to either re-purpose good quality kit that is aimed at different markets. Anything intended for photography, tends to carry quite a price premium. There are medical spec monitors available (NEC do quite a few, and there's EIZO Radiforce) that have all the same gubbins inside, but can be bought cheaper if you can find one. You just need to know what you're doing as far as calibration/profiling is concerned.

 

Saying all that, the Dell U2413 does look good. It really needs the i1 Display Pro and to be connected via Displayport to make the most of it though, as you already know 

One of the problems of buying a decent monitor is that it's tricky to find a shop that has several of them on display and even then, the lighting conditions will be different to my house :( Calumet do stock the Eizos though, so you can go see them. I did a fair it of research and read several reviews of the Dell and saw that when they squeaked the monitor they found it was pretty accurate and a genuine wide gamut display. Even the factory calibrated sRGB and RGB modes were reasonably accurate, or if not accurate, precise. As someone was said to me. Accuracy implies precision, but precision doesn't imply accuracy. But it shows that the monitor can deliver the goods if you spend the time on it.

 

I know Dell have relaxed the colourimeters than can tweak their monitors in, but it doesn't look like they will go as far as letting me hardware calibrate a Dell with my Spyder :( Also there is a new 100-400mm coming out from Canon possibly this year, so I might need the funds for that Oh and there even might be a new 7D II which would be nice if it improves on the current one (especially in the noise department-unlikely). So much stuff, so little money :(

hmm, Canon EOS 550D for around £300-£350 with lens 18-55mm &  some with warranties too or Nikon D60 for around £200 with an 18-55mm lens

You probably already have bought your camera, but the Nikon D3100 is a great starter DSLR and new it costs less tha £300 so I am sure you could get a used one for less than £200.

You can't go wrong with either the Canons and Nikons these days I don't think. There are several other manufactures all making great Crop sensor cameras too. We've never had it so good really

I bought myself a Nikon D3100 (with 28-55mm) and a Tamron 70-300mm lens at the end of January.  Despite it being the now twice updated entry level Nikon and used with cheap lens, I have managed to get some fantastic photos compared with what I ever managed with my bridge camera.  Shame is I can't figure how to post photos properly on here in they way others do (see Yosmite thread).

Shooting in RAW will give you a stop either side when you do post production. ie if you under or over expose, you can recover the image to a surprising degree when you edit the image. it also has other benefits to image quality (you can even do a sort of pseudo HDR with some editing programmes) . definitely try it if you aren't shooting sports. In fact as I spend so much time shooting Kitesurfers and Jetskis, I have started to shoot even that in RAW as the changeable lighting conditions (from murky, or reflective water, to Dull or Bright ski all in one sequence) I find RAW probably double the amount of 'keepers'

 

I went to South Yorkshire Air Museum with my boys on sunday afternoon.  I changed the camera to RAW and it worked rather well, no delay in writing to my card and in burst mode it didn't seem to struggle or slow down, my photo count dropped from 1000images to 500images on my card but still more than enough for me.

 

I've found FastStone Image Viewer allows me to see my RAW images and has some basic functions to tweek the images, I've not had much time to look into it any further though.

 

All this talk of i7's is really making me want to replace my laptop even more than I do now, currently running a dual core 1.6ghz, 3gb ram Dell Inspiron :(

 

I'll have a proper dig through my photo's from the air museum and see if there are any that warrant posting (although I doubt it). It was a very overcast/rainy day and the light in the hanger was very dark, I refused togo onto Auto but wish I had of done just to see what settings the camera chose for the light.

 

Matthew

All this talk of i7's is really making me want to replace my laptop even more than I do now, currently running a dual core 1.6ghz, 3gb ram Dell Inspiron  :(

 

 

If you're handy with computers (they're really much less complex than cars) Novatech's barebones bundles are very good value. Simply choose the processor/case combo you want, install a hard drive, and a DVD drive and start it up with a Windows DVD in the drive. You can sort yourself a brand new computer for pennies that way.

 

Your Raw files will probably look a little 'flat' straight out of the camera, and I think Fastone's options for editing are a little limited. There are a couple of free Raw editors about. They should give good results, but may lack some of the more advanced features found in Lightroom/Capture One/Apreture.

 

Here's a couple to try to get you going..

Raw Therapee

http://raw-therapee.en.softonic.com/

 

Scarab Darkroom

http://www.scarablabs.com/scarab-darkroom

If you're handy with computers (they're really much less complex than cars) Novatech's barebones bundles are very good value. Simply choose the processor/case combo you want, install a hard drive, and a DVD drive and start it up with a Windows DVD in the drive. You can sort yourself a brand new computer for pennies that way.

 

Your Raw files will probably look a little 'flat' straight out of the camera, and I think Fastone's options for editing are a little limited. There are a couple of free Raw editors about. They should give good results, but may lack some of the more advanced features found in Lightroom/Capture One/Apreture.

 

Here's a couple to try to get you going..

Raw Therapee

http://raw-therapee.en.softonic.com/

 

Scarab Darkroom

http://www.scarablabs.com/scarab-darkroom

 

Thanks for the links, I'll take a look at them.

 

Yes, I'm handy with computers, I've worked in IT since '97 (Windows & Unix support/Build/Deployment), I feel rather embarrased using such old kit but I've lost my enthusiasm for building my own PC's, I found it to be a worse bug than modding cars

 

 

Yes, I'm handy with computers, I've worked in IT since '97 (Windows & Unix support/Build/Deployment), I feel rather embarrased using such old kit

My Grandfather was an electrician (a Linesman) all his working life and probably had the worst house electrics I have ever seen. 2 pin Bakelite mains plugs everywhere and half of them weren't even fused I think it must be normal to have a bit of a dinosaur of a pooter if you work in IT.

Thanks for the links, I'll take a look at them.

 

Yes, I'm handy with computers, I've worked in IT since '97 (Windows & Unix support/Build/Deployment), I feel rather embarrased using such old kit but I've lost my enthusiasm for building my own PC's, I found it to be a worse bug than modding cars 

 

 

 

Those Novatech barebones bundles should be right up your street then. They're ready built and tested, so it's plug and play.

http://www.novatech.co.uk/barebonebundles/

On another note, I took delivery of a 17" Eizo L568 monitor from a corporate IT recycling company on eBay today... and it's fantastic. Average DeltaE after calibration is 1.2, which is very good indeed. Not bad for £25 including delivery. I like a bargain! 

I went to South Yorkshire Air Museum with my boys on sunday afternoon.  I changed the camera to RAW and it worked rather well, no delay in writing to my card and in burst mode it didn't seem to struggle or slow down, my photo count dropped from 1000images to 500images on my card but still more than enough for me.

 

I've found FastStone Image Viewer allows me to see my RAW images and has some basic functions to tweek the images, I've not had much time to look into it any further though.

 

All this talk of i7's is really making me want to replace my laptop even more than I do now, currently running a dual core 1.6ghz, 3gb ram Dell Inspiron :(

 

I'll have a proper dig through my photo's from the air museum and see if there are any that warrant posting (although I doubt it). It was a very overcast/rainy day and the light in the hanger was very dark, I refused togo onto Auto but wish I had of done just to see what settings the camera chose for the light.

 

Matthew

The beauty of RAW in this situation is that it really doesn't matter whether you got the setting 100% right. so long as the photos are not blurry (motion blur) and in focus, RAW will allow you to move exposure by potentially 2 stops up or down (1 stop=double/half the light) with no loss of image quality.