Importing RAW to Mac from D7000?

I want to shoot with Card 1 as Raw and Card 2 as JPEG...I set the camera up so that it would do this and took a few shots. I plugged my D7000 into my Macbook, which automatically opens up iPhoto and transferred all of the photos it showed me on the camera. When done, they were all JPEG files?

I was going to, after importing them, open up a RAW file (pic of the cat I just took) and play with it in CS5.

What am I doing wrong?

Jason

I'll risk an answer for you Jason.
Try removing the jpeg card from your camera if you want to work with RAWs. But after opening in iPhoto, the files become jpegs in iPhoto but the raw files are still somewhere on your disk. You have to search from iPhoto to get the original file and then open it in CS5.

My way around this is "Don't let iPhoto automatically open your camera's files". Or better yet, just take the card out of the camera and insert it in a card reader in the computer, copy the files to a place on your computer where you will store all your pictures. You can then import that particular file in iPhoto if you still wish to. Or, use Aperture. Aperture will keep all your raw files and let you use CS5 as an editor if you want to.

Good post processing!

So...you are saying that iPhoto automatically converts my RAW photos to JPEG when I import them? Is there a way that I can set iPhoto to import in it's original form?

(I don't have a card reader)

I think iPhoto converts to jpeg but it only creates a jpeg copy. The original is stored somewhere in your photo files. That is unless it selects the card with the jpeg for importation. That's why I suggested to remove the jpeg card and try to import to see what happens. Try iPhoto help to find where your files are stored.

Ok...I even installed the Nikon software that came with the camera and it transferred them as JPEGs too? So confused...

Jason

jayradio said:

Ok...I even installed the Nikon software that came with the camera and it transferred them as JPEGs too? So confused...

Jason

Click to expand...

As soon as you do some changes with a raw file, you have to convert it to save your changes as raw files are not editable (not sure it's an actual word but…). When you plug in your camera, can you just go into it to copy and move your raw files to a folder in your desktop? If yes, then you can open your raw file with CS5. But, you'll first have to use Adobe Raw Converter "before" your file opens up in CS5. It's then only a matter of saving your modified file to a different name or extension (jpeg,psd,tiff)
Give it a try. It should work out OK.
Don't forget that if you want to display or print, you'll eventually have to use jpegs.

Step 1 - Take picture
Step 2 - Plug in camera & turn on
Step 3 - Nikon Transfer 2 opens
Step 4 - Select slot 1
Step 5 - it only shows 9 JPEG files in Slot 1? (I have the camera set to do RAW1/JPEG2)

Now what?

Marcel said:

As soon as you do some changes with a raw file, you have to convert it to save your changes as raw files are not editable (not sure it's an actual word but…). When you plug in your camera, can you just go into it to copy and move your raw files to a folder in your desktop? If yes, then you can open your raw file with CS5. But, you'll first have to use Adobe Raw Converter "before" your file opens up in CS5. It's then only a matter of saving your modified file to a different name or extension (jpeg,psd,tiff)
Give it a try. It should work out OK.
Don't forget that if you want to display or print, you'll eventually have to use jpegs.

Click to expand...

Give me a minute, I'll have to try it on my computer just to know what you are talking about. I've been using the sd slot in my iMac for ages. I never plug my camera to my computer so I don't know what it does exactly.
I'll be back in a jiff.

When I open iPhoto with the D7000 plugged and turned on, I see both raw and jpegs… Try removing the card with the jpegs from your camera if you're saving jpegs on card 2, remove card 2. If you're writing jpegs on card 1, remove card one and try again.
Other than this, I can't seem to be able to help you more… Sorry.

Well...I'm an idiot...I figured out one problem...

I still had my "image quality" set to "JPEG Fine"...I needed to switch it to "RAW + JPEG Fine" in order for the RAW in Card Slot 1 instruction to be followed.

I then needed to download a new plug-in for my CS5 in order to open the .NEF files...

So now using either iPhoto or NXView2 I can import the RAW files...NXView2 dumps them in their own folder for my Nikon transfers. iPhoto, I have to find the file in "finder".
Likely what I will do is transfer the files with NXview2, and when I save as JPEG after editing I'll save them in iPhoto.

Don't like that it this complicated to transfer/open/save things...perhaps I just have to get used to it...or just use my Card 2 jpegs more for things that only need light editing.

Thanks for the help Marcel...you got my brain going in the right direction...

I've heard Aperture is good for organizing things like this...hmmm...

jayradio said:

Well..<snip>

Thanks for the help Marcel...you got my brain going in the right direction...

I've heard Aperture is good for organizing things like this...hmmm...

Click to expand...

Aperture is the Apple equivalent to Lightroom (slight differences, although some may disagree and say it's very different), but it's not very expensive and nice to use.

I'm glad you figured out what your problem was.