Adobe updates Camera Raw CS2 plug-in

[wingsley]

Adobe updates Camera Raw CS2 plug-in

http://www.macworld.com/news/2005/05/06/raw/index.php



Does this plug-in apply to Photoshop CS "1", or is it for CS "2" only?

[MacHeadCase]

It's for Photoshop CS 2 only which makes me very angry. :mad:

Tomorrow I am going to put a down payment on a Canon Digital Rebel XT and this Adobe news is making me think that I should ditch Photoshop and try to find alternatives for once and for all. I am tired of the Adobe tactics. Like they couldn't make this plugin compatible with CS 1?

I have seen that you can download and use this converter (been told this works in CS 1) Adobe DNG Converter and Camera RAW 3.1 (http://macupdate.com/info.php/id/16064) and then continue to use CS 1 but the problem I see with this (and I would appreciate all sources of info on this, I am totally lost...) is that it compresses your RAW files. Now why would I buy a 8.2 megapixels camera like the Rebel XT if I end up compressing my photos? :confused:

[jaykinghorn]

It's for Photoshop CS 2 only which makes me very angry. :mad:

Tomorrow I am going to put a down payment on a Canon Digital Rebel XT and this Adobe news is making me think that I should ditch Photoshop and try to find alternatives for once and for all. I am tired of the Adobe tactics. Like they couldn't make this plugin compatible with CS 1?

Adobe Camera Raw v2.x (CS1) and ACR v3x (CS2) are very different programs. ACR 3.1 has several significant features that ACR 2.x does not. It really wouldn't be feasible for Adobe to make Camera Raw updates backward-compatible.

I have seen that you can download and use this converter (been told this works in CS 1) Adobe DNG Converter and Camera RAW 3.1 (http://macupdate.com/info.php/id/16064) and then continue to use CS 1 but the problem I see with this (and I would appreciate all sources of info on this, I am totally lost...) is that it compresses your RAW files. Now why would I buy a 8.2 megapixels camera like the Rebel XT if I end up compressing my photos? :confused:

I would suggest downloading the latest version of ACR 2.4 for your copy of CS1. I would avoid using the DNG format. I think it is a great idea, but unless the camera manufacturers decide to make it the default format, it wont survive very long. DNG does use lossless compression, as do the Canon cameras, for space savings without a loss of quality. You could certainly look at other Camera Raw programs, but the only one I've tested that is on par with ACR is Phase One's Capture One Program. It has a steeper learning curve and even the LE version will set you back almost as much as the cost of upgrading to Photoshop CS2.

I hope this is helpful.

Best regards,

Jay Kinghorn

[MacHeadCase]

Thank you for your input! I really appreciate you taking the time to let us know this.

And I do have the latest RAW plugin for CS1. The problem is that this RAW plugin does not recognize the Digi Rebel XT, or so I've read. So this leaves me with very little options unless I go completely Adobe-less and use some other app or I go to Photoshop Elements 3 or I upgrade to CS2 which is a lot of money for me all at once. :(

[wingsley]

Interesting feedback, folks.

Does Photoshop Elements 3 work with the newest digicams' RAW files?

Is Adobe keeping the ACR plugin up-to-date for PSE?

[MacHeadCase]

From what I've seen this Raw plugin 3.1 is compatible with Photoshop Elements 3 or CS 2.

[wingsley]

I have both PSE 3 and CS1, so at least I'm partially covered.

Thanks.

[MacHeadCase]

Yeah you're lucky! ;)

[MacHeadCase]

Well folks I think I found a workaround for the RAW file format problem! But it'll be a little bit more tedious work then simply opening the file in Photoshop CS, though...

It seems that I can use one of the apps Canon gives away on the CDs when you buy the Digi Rebel XT (EOS 350D), Digital Photo Professional, and save your file as a .tif and then, since Photoshop sees .tif's just fine, I can work on the photos in Photoshop CS!

So me pretty happy! :D

[jaykinghorn]

I don't know whether or not the ACR plugin is compatible with Photoshop Elements 3. The cameras that are included with each version of the Plugin are included on the download page of the Adobe Website.

Digital Photo Professional is a great program for working with your raw files. The only real knock against it is that it is slow for processing a large number of raw files, which may or may not be important to you.

Best regards,
Jay Kinghorn

[MacHeadCase]

Yes I agree that Digital Photo Professional is rather slow and a little bit quirky (like it doesn't understand too well the menubar sticky in OS X on the first try...) but for now it will have to do till I can find the money to upgrade to Photoshop CS 2 or buy Adobe Photoshop Elements 3.

I had read somewhere that the RAW 3.1 plugin is accepted by Elements 3 and/or Photoshop CS 2.

[Bluedog]

How 'bout just using RSE: RawShooter essentials 2005. Its FREE and has way more options for tweaking RAW files than DPP.

[MacHeadCase]

I had a look at RawShooter Essentials and it's Windows-only software so really not for me! :D

Thanks for the suggestion though. :)

[aleon]

For all the CS1 users which hate Adobe for not updating the new camera types (in my case Canon 350D) in the Raw Plugin for the old version: you can download (without necesarly logging in) a version 3 (for CS2) DNG converter, for it works independently. Once converted to DNG, you can open the files with older versions.