TASK 2: EXTENDED ANSWER

TASK
AIT unit 1 – application skills and managing data

DUE: 11/6/2019
LEONARD YAU
Task 2: extended answer task

What is a RAW image file format that is proprietary to the camera he is using and why
would a professional photographer use this file formant – discuss using image
examples?
The Olympus PEN E-PL9 uses a ORF.RAW file format. An ORF.RAW is an Olympus raw
image file that stores unprocessed image data from Olympus digital cameras. A professional
photographer would use this file format as it is used to develop an image through processing
software. Doing tasks such as changing the exposure, contrast or white balance. The major
benefit of using this file format that would benefit a professional photographer as it applies
no compressions or lossless compressions and image processing in the ORF. This file format
is not as compresses as a JPEG file resulting in the file size being much larger than a JPEG
file. Usually the benefit of having a file size that is larger when shooting an image in an ORF
is that it allows you to control the exposure compensation, white balance, sharpness, contrast,
saturation and colour space as you convert the image into another different file format such as
a TIFF file format or a JPEG file format.

What are the issues the photographer is facing in terms of being able to transfer the
images, from a technical point of view? Assume internet connection is stable.
Despite the fact that the assumption that the internet connection is stable, it is a basic speed of
3.7MB/s and thus, it is not the most ideal speed to have to transfer large file formats such as a
raw image. RAW images are usually very large in size and an email does not allows a file
size as big as a RAW image to be sent. So, this would mean that the photographer is limited
with how large his image file size can be and how he sends his photograph. A solution to this
problem would be for the photographer to compress the image as it reduces the size of the
image and thus the amount of data that needs to be transferred. This is a lossless compression.
However, high-resolution lossless compressed images can still take up large amounts of
space and uploading this would take quite an amount of time. Potential problems that could
arise would be that if the photographer is under strict time constraints and needs to quickly
send the image. As lossless compression is essentially compressing an image to later
reconstruct it, there is a loss of data and thus this could affect the image quality.

What does the photographer need to accomplish in order to send the images, but also
keep them viable for use by the National Geographic?
The photographer needs to be able to reduce the images file size to a maximum of 20mb
which is the maximum file size that National Geographic can take. This file size may
potentially have to be smaller than that to be able to send the image to them. to be able to
send the file, the photographer would have to perform lossless compressions on the image.
Converting the image from a .orf into a TIF file. However, Nation Geographic requires the
image to be in the JPG or JPEG file format. Therefore, the image will require a higher
resolution to compensate for the image quality lost. Higher resolution means that there are
more pixels which would then mean that the image quality is higher.
Create a walkthrough (step by step) following the process for converting a RAW image
using Photoshop for publication. Discuss the appropriate file format converted to and
considering that the magazine will need to maintain the highest quality for its high gloss
photographic nature but also compatible across applications.
1. Obtain image from camera and transfer it onto laptop or computer

2. Open photoshop and open raw image file

3. Open image that you want to be converted into another file format

4. At the bottom of the tab press save image

5. Find file extension and change it into a .jpg file

6. Make changes as you see fit to the resolution and press save and the image can be sent
 The most idea file format would either be a TIFF file format as it has lossless
compression, however, I chose JPG because National Geographic requires its images
to be in a JPG file format. As a JPG file has lossy compression, I had to increase the
resolution on the image into a high to compensate for the loss of quality in the image.

Provide a zoomed in visual features comparison between the initial RAW image and the
manipulated one and discuss their differences including features of both file types.

RAW image Description

There is not much of a difference between
the raw image and the manipulated image.
The manipulated image has been converted
into a JPG file while the RAW image
remains in an ORF file format. There isn’t
much difference as this image in on a small
scale but if it were to be printed onto a
large surface area such as a billboard, the
difference would be easily seen. The JPG
Manipulated Image would have an overall lower quality than
the ORF image.
In terms of file size, the JPG file does not take up as much file space as the ORF file. This is
because the ORF file has more information on it while the JPG has less. By converting the
image into a JPG, the advantage is that it takes less space and can be uploaded faster on an
email or even cloud storage. the ORF file is about 18,000,300 bytes while the JPG file is only
639,681 bytes. There is a huge difference as you would be able to store more JPG files
however, if a JPG file were to be used on something such as a billboard, the image quality
would be significantly lower than the ORF. So the advantage of using a ORF file is that the
quality would be better on something as large as a billboard while the JPG file would be ideal
on something like a small magazine.

Bibliography
Lifewire 2018, ORF FILE, accessed 10 March 2019, <https://www.lifewire.com/orf-file-2622118>.
National Geographic 2018, How can i submit or upload a photo to your shot, accessed 10 March
2019, <https://help.nationalgeographic.com/customer/en/portal/articles/1142311-how-can-i-
submit-or-upload-a-photo-to-your-shot->.
Olympus 2018, Olympus Australia, accessed 10 March 2019,
<https://www.olympus.com.au/Products/Interchangeable-Lens-Cameras/Olympus-Pen/E-
PL9/Specifications>.
Olympus 2018, WHY SHOOT IN RAW, accessed 10 March 2019,
<https://learnandsupport.getolympus.com/learn-center/photography-tips/technique/why-shoot-in-
raw>.
Photography Blog 2018, How can i submit or upload a photo to your shotOlympus OM-D E-M1
Mark II Sample Images, accessed 10 March 2019,
<http://www.photographyblog.com/previews/olympus_om_d_e_m1_mark_ii_photos/>.
Photoreview 2018, Olympus PEN E-PL9 - Photo review, accessed 10 March 2019,
<https://www.photoreview.com.au/reviews/advanced-compact-cameras/interchangeable-
lens/olympus-pen-e-pl9/>.