What does one do with PSD files?

KingBee (e2 Member)

7

6 Oct 2012 - 9:56 AM

• Options
  • Report Error / Abuse

0

When, after some tinkering in PSE 10, I end up with what I think is the perfect image (for me, at any rate) I save the Raw file with all changes as a .psd file. These, however, as we all know, take up an inordinate amount of room, both on hard disk and on my back-up DVDs. I know one can never say 'never', but if I'm certain that I won't make any further changes to a file would I be better off just saving it as a JPEG? God knows you can't print from a .psd file - well, I can't, at any rate, because the file size is too large - and so I have to convert to JPEG anyway.

I suppose it's just the nagging doubt that if I do dump the .psd I'll have lost the ability to make 'lossless' changes, and any changes I make subsequently to the JPEG will be 'lossy'.

The easy answer, of course, is to save the .psd files to DVD and only keep the JPEG versions on my hard drive, but I'm just wondering what others do?

Gaucho (e2 Member)

11

6 Oct 2012 - 10:20 AM

• Options
  • Report Error / Abuse

0

Yes, tiff is the way to go.

User_Removed

9

6 Oct 2012 - 10:30 AM

• Options
  • Report Error / Abuse

0

If it's a photograph and I've finished any cloning and touching up I'll save it as a full quality jpeg but I'll also always retain the original cr2 raw file.

If it's a complex Photoshop document that I think I might make changes to later then I'll save it as a .psd file.

If I process raw files in DPP, cropping, lens correction, cloning, saturation, levels etc etc all I save is the raw file. DPP stores my changes as metadata in that file and it's all non-destructive.

User_Removed

9

6 Oct 2012 - 10:38 AM

• Options
  • Report Error / Abuse

0

Quote: any changes I make subsequently to the JPEG will be 'lossy'.

In theory yes. In reality if you were to open a high quality JPEG, do a spot of cloning etc then resave (at high quality) you'd have trouble seeing any difference (apart from your deliberate changes). There's thousands of journalists shooting jpeg and their editors back at base do this all the time.

If you did this dozens of times each lossy re-compression would lose more original data and you'd start to see jpeg artefacts. If you only did it a couple of times it's not generally a problem.

Source material has a large bearing on this. Large areas of single colour - and the borders of such areas, (eg sky), can show up compression artefacts sooner than complex areas (eg foliage).

Focus_Man

3

6 Oct 2012 - 10:55 AM

• Options
  • Report Error / Abuse

0

I always back up my 'original files' to external hard disk drives so I can always start again if I want to change my mind at a later date. My completed files are left in .jpeg and are also backed up, again to external hard disk drives.

That way you don't need to worry about file protocols or even discuss which is best .Tiff, .Jpeg ot .Psd.

Jestertheclown

4

6 Oct 2012 - 11:12 AM

• Options
  • Report Error / Abuse

0

I save everything as high quality Jpegs. on here and a copy as Tiffs. on my external drives, although these get replaced with the Jpegs. once I'm happy that I'm finished with them.
I don't keep any RAW or Psd. files as I don't really have a use for them. Likewise Lightroom catalogues.
As Chris says, moderate editing of the Jpegs. doesn't do any harm that I can see and they take up so much less room.

KingBee (e2 Member)

7

6 Oct 2012 - 2:55 PM

• Options
  • Report Error / Abuse

0

That's all been most helpful. Many thanks to everyone who contributed.

User_Removed

9

11 Oct 2012 - 8:09 PM

• Options
  • Report Error / Abuse

0

Tiffs will preserve layers and offer lossless compression. They don't retain the same information that's present in an original raw file though. Some keep raws and tiffs. Raws are original from camera, tiffs have edits applied. They then generate a jpeg when needed for web etc from the tiff. Raw to fall back on if something happened to the tiff.

I never save tiff ever. It's bloated. Keep my raws with DPP adjustments stored but all original data still intact if I want to return it to the way it came out of the camera. Use .psd for work in progress files. Don't see the point of having a tiff too.