Oops - Thanks for moving this post to the Loss & Recovery area.

Yep - using the latest DNG converter - 3.3

Some files just appear to have weird color, others are just not appearing at all. Luckily, I'm not talking about a ton of files here. The strange colored preview or lack of preview appear to be consistent between the OS 10.45 finder, Bridge, and iView.

Because I was only using iView 2.64, Mac OS 10.28, and Photoshop for a long time, I never had anything in my workflow that confirmed file integrity unless I opened the file in Photoshop to edit. Now that I am experimenting with Bridge, the DNG converter, and especially since I'm on OS 10.45, I am all of the sudden identifying files I didn't know were corrupted.

I will check out Disk Warrior, but I don't think the HD is the problem. I also have DVD backups off-site, which is a relief.

Cheers,

Joe

That's a good deal - thanks for the tip!

I recently upgraded from Mac OS 10.28 to Mac OS 10.45 and had some interesting discoveries about RAW file integrity.

I have previously been using a workflow for Canon CR2 and CRW files that only includes iView Media Pro and Photoshop.

I read the DAM Book, and realized that looking at thumbnails in iView (with prefereces set to use the embedded preview instead of building a new one) does not confirm the integrity of the actual file. Opening the folder of images in Bridge confirms the file integrity because it builds the preview from the original. A good way to identify any corrupted RAW files.

I am not converting to DNG yet, but have read the DNG converter is also a good way to confirm file integrity.

When I upgraded to OS 10.45, now the operating system can render previews of my RAW files. I recently embarked upon a project to make yet another backup of the files on my machine by moving them to a second external Firewire drive. When I went to copy the files to the external drive, not all of them would copy over. Apparently the Mac OS will error out if the files are corrupted. This happened both when I tried to just drag and drop files from my HD to the Firewire HD, and when using the SuperDuper! backup program.

Here's a couple of interesting discoveries. After identifying a few corrupted CR2 files, I tried running them through the DNG converter to see what would happen. The files converted to DNG with no error message, both from Adobe Camera RAW, and in the Adobe DNG converter.

OK - Are you still reading this? Sorry for being long winded. To review, here is where file integrity is confirmed in my current workflow:

1. Files transferred to computer, open the file folder and OS 10.45 will not show a preview for RAW files it cannot read.
2. Files copied to an external Firewire harddrive. Again, when moving the files, the OS checks integrity.
3. Files opened in Bridge, builds the preview from the original file, confirming integrity. I am not using Bridge until migrating to a DNG workflow - if I open my files in Bridge, and don't convert to DNG, I am saddled with XMP sidecars, which I don't like.
4. Instead, I'm considering using iView with preferences set to render its thumbnails from the original file instead of the embedded preview. This will confirm file integrity, but of course take longer to import.

*Note: Again, I was able to run corrupted RAW files through the DNG converter without any errors. These were files where the preview in Bridge showed up, but the colors were all screwed up (maybe the camera was turned off when the file was still writing?). I have not tried the DNG converter on files that did not show a preview at all.

If you think this email is long, you should've hung out at my house last Saturday when it took me 10 hours to figure all this stuff out.  

Cheers,

Joe

Hi -

I have a G4 (mirrored drive doors) and want to add another internal hard drive. I have heard Seagate and Western Digital are good brands to buy, and that it's easy to install.

What is the exact type of hard drive I need to get for this machine? Is there anything else I need to buy before installing it? Good installation instructions available somewhere?

I looked at this page on lowendmac.com for specs: http://www.lowendmac.com/ppc/dualg4.html

Looks like I need an ATA/100 drive - would this be a good one?
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?A=details&kw=WEID80&is=REG&Q=&O=productlist&sku=386861

Thanks,

Joe

I have just started using Super Duper - so far so good. The basic version that will clone is free to download. Nice interface, good manual, too.

Cheers,

Joe

This would be a good feature request. It would be nice to be able to sort the Catalog sets alphabetically OR by the date they were created.

Hi Peter -

One added benefit of the workflow you suggest in the DAM book is some metadata is kept private - here's how:

1. Bring RAW files into Bridge and apply bulk metadata (copyright and contact information)
2. Convert to DNG
3. Catalog in iView, but don't Sync Annotations

This workflow naturally keeps your keywords and catalog sets as private metadata (only in iView), but the important copyright and contact info is in the files already. Pretty cool.

Cheers,

Joe

Hi Peter -

Thanks for your thoughts on Stuart's article. When the ideal solution isn't out there, we have to use the best tools we've got. I don't see Nikon and Canon giving up on their proprietary RAW formats anytime soon. I think Canon's strong point is definitely camera design, not software.   If I'm considering who am I going to trust for file format support 5-10-20 years down the road, I'd be more likely to put my proverbial eggs in the Adobe basket. The Achilles heel of the Canon RAW format workflow is that I can't safely write metadata back to the file - which locks you in to whatever cataloging software you're using.

My current plan is to convert to DNG, but embed the original CR2 or CRW files for anything rated 2-3 stars or better. Another thought I had was to just make a subfolder called CR2 or CRW where I keep the higher rated original RAW files separate from the DNGs. Still testing & pondering what's going to be easiest. I really appreciate having these message boards for advice, too. So thanks!

This anti-DNG article covers a lot of interesting questions and history about DNG. I am on the fence about converting my Canon CRW and CR2 files, so it's interesting to hear different opinions on this topic. The "What Does Everyone Want" section is particularly incisive.

http://www.openraw.org/node/1482

Hi Peter -

I am on the verge of converting to a DNG workflow. As an iView user who shoots Canon digital, I was planning to do my metadata work in iView and use Sync Annotations to embed this info into the DNG.

Sounds like if I'm paranoid about file integrity, it might be better to add bulk metadata in Bridge, convert to DNG, backup the DNGs, and then catalog in iView without syncing annotations to maintain file integrity?

In this workflow scenario, what happens when:
 - I add caption or licensing information in iView for client delivery? [Convert to TIFF for client delivery & sync to TIFFs]
 - Prepare derivative jpegs for web use [Sync annotations to the JPGs]
 - Migrate from iView to other software in the future? [At this point I'd have to sync to the DNGs anyways]

Perhaps syncing to the primary copy of the DNG but not the backup copy is the answer? This could get confusing.

Your thoughts?

Thanks,

Joe

Hi Jonathan -

According to the iView documentation, you should be able to sync your annotations to Kodak RAW files directly, without having to convert to DNG. I would make a copy of some RAW files and test first by annotating in iView, Syncing Annotations, and then looking at File - Info in Photoshop to see what happened.

Cheers,

Joe

Hi Jonathan -

Once you Sync Annotations in iView, the star ratings and labels should be visible in Bridge.
What format are your image files, and are you on a Mac or PC?

Cheers,

Joe

Hi Scott -

Glad you've joined the DAM forum. My wishlist for MetaSync 2.0 would be to have the capability to sync files with the same root name in the same folder. I would import my CR2 RAW files into iView, add star ratings, labels, and metadata. Based on star ratings I would open the CR2s in Camera RAW and adjust. Then I would convert the CR2s to DNG, update the folder in iView so the DNGs show up next to the CR2s, and then sync the CR2 metadata with the new DNG files. Once the metadata has moved from the CR2 to the DNG, I would sync annotations in iView.

Many thanks,

Joe

iView doesn't show the lens Maximum Aperture information in DNGs that have been converted from CR2s, but if you open the DNG in Photoshop CS2 and look in the File Info, the Maximum Aperture is still there.

I've been trying to figure out if there's a reasonably priced camera scan attachment that works well with Canon EOS digital SLRs. I have seen attachments made for Nikon and other systems, and the $50-100 attachments on eBay that have a close-up lens inside (which in theory I don't prefer).

If you are doing camera scans with Canon digital, what adapter and lens are you using, does it work well with slides AND negatives, and where did you purchase it?

Many thanks,

Joe