Tell me something about Nikon NEF

[tim11]

Can someone tell me if NEF files degrade as I edit, save and then re-edit and save again and again? Or do they stay the same as the day they were taken? I use Photoshop and Capture NX.
Thanks.

[K1W1]

No they don't degrade because the editing in Capture is non destructive and in Photoshop you are not editing the .NEF file you are editing the Tiff or jpeg file that you import after using Abobe Camera Raw.

[StuartN]

Nikon calls there NEF files "visually lossless", meaning there is compression done when saving, but not to the extent that you should be able to see degradation. Unlike JPG where over time you will see quality deteriorate.

I shoot a lot of RAW and haven't had any issues editing and saving and seeing any loss of quality. Using PS3, Lightroom or Capture NX.

[erichlund]

The compression done on NEF files only occurs once, when the image is captured and stored on the card. You can choose no compression, which may or may not mean Zero compression, or you can choose Compressed NEF. Compressed NEF only loses a very slight amount of data that most people will not see (Thom Hogan claims he can, but he's a pro who's been doing this stuff a while), however, it does leave less overhead for cropping. CaptureNX does not edit the RAW data, it edits the EXIF data. You can always go back to the original. I presume that Adobe Camera RAW also only edits the EXIF. Paint Shop Pro also only edits the EXIF.

[Rooz]

agree with the above. i have also done some tests with compressed NEF in camera which is a feature in the d300 and i dont see any differeces either.

[tim11]

Thanks all for the confirmation.