July 14

9 comments

Another Example of Why I Always Shoot RAW

By Dan

July 14, 2010

Here’s an image that I shot while flying as a passenger in an Aeronca Super Chief on the north side of the Alaska Range. It’s one of my favorites of late, and it’s a great example of why I always shoot RAW in my digital photography.

I shot it with my Nikon D700, as a 14-bit RAW file, and processed the capture in Photoshop. The shot below is the same photograph, converted straight from the RAW file with no tonal correction, which approximates the results that I would have gotten if I had shot this image as a JPEG. Notice how much highlight detail I was able to recover in the shot, wonderful mountain and sky detail that would otherwise have been completely lost.

Shooting in RAW mode allows me to extract the maximum quality from my digital images.


Image converted and corrected from a 14-bit RAW capture
The same image, with no tonal correction






Like what you see here? Get my newsletter and have exclusive outdoor photo tips, reviews and pro insight delivered right to your inbox.

Subscriber Counter

About the author

Hi, I'm Dan Bailey, a 25+ year pro outdoor and adventure photographer, and official FUJIFILM X-Photographer based in Anchorage, Alaska.


As a top rated blogger and author my goal is to help you become a better, more confident and competent photographer, so that you can have as much fun and creative enjoyment as I do.


  • I wish I also could fly a plane to experience those amazing adrenaline-pumping ride. Those are amazing raw photos; I’d like the original better than the altered one. I know Nikon have this high quality shot because of the positive reviews on its quality and usability.

  • {"email":"Email address invalid","url":"Website address invalid","required":"Required field missing"}

    Never miss a post!

     Subscribe and get notified whenever I write something new!

    >