The camera of a mobile phone is currently one of the most determining factors in choosing a phone. At first, people wanted the mobile to take simple captures. But with the arrival of VSCO, Snapseed, Lightroom Mobile, etc., there are people who take high-quality photographs with their mobile phone and more and more Instagramers and influencers of different kinds use it, and why not say it, maybe you. So at this point, Android manufacturers decided, a few years ago, to incorporate the option to shoot in Raw with your camera. But… is it really worth it?
But let's see, let's go in parts. What is the Raw format? Easy. The Raw (from the English Crudo), it is an uncompressed image, this image saves all the quality and all the information that a camera can capture, be it from your mobile phone or from a camera such as an SLR or a mirrorless camera. But then ... Does it have any disadvantage against the jpg with which you usually shoot? Well yes, like everything, it has its advantages and disadvantages. We explain everything so you can see what you need.
RAW vs JPG. What are the differences?
You can find a lot of information on the Internet, but we summarize it quickly, RAW, as we have said is the image in its maximum splendor, with all its quality and information, on mobile phones it is usually in the .dng format. While the JPG, with its well-known .jpg extension, it is an image that the phone processes and makes an interpretation of what could be an edit. That is why each manufacturer has a cool different.
So… If a jpg is already edited, can't it be edited? No, it's not that, of course you can. But the jpg discards all the information you don't need, so there aren't that many options. But that allows the file to weigh much less than a Raw. In my case a RAW weighs 31MB while JPGs between 3MB and 4MB
But before starting you have to warn that If you are not going to edit the photos, it is not recommended to use Raw at any time, since the format has less support, and the colors are notoriously less beautiful, since they are made to be edited, here we see the differences. Where the top one is the RAW and the bottom one is the JPG, both unedited.
Field tests
We start with the topic, I have done some tests with my OnePlus 5 and Lightroom Mobile, all without leaving my phone, although they can also be edited on the computer. To teach different things that we will try to see what is best for you. We will start with color, one of the most important things in a photograph to make it attractive.
Colour
Whatever we discuss here, we will have more possibilities and options with Raw, but what we will assess here is how important it is to you. I have tried to give a similar style, the edition is not the same, clearly, but I have tried to follow a pattern of colors, etc. That it transmits something similar.
For a better visualization I have put one below and one above and not on the side. Above we have the one that I have edited with a photo the photo in Raw, while below we have the one edited in jpg.
In Raw I have had more versatility for hair color, and a smoother and more uniform color has been left, I have been able to add a more beautiful noise and I have put something more than in the jpg. With the colors of the grass, more of the same, a more natural tone remains.
However the color of the jpg is still colorful and prettyIn fact, by lowering the saturation of the colors in the jpg a bit, we could have achieved a similar effect, and I think it is a photo that is most suitable for uploading to social networks. You may even like jpg more than one.
So, as we do not want to modify even the smallest detail, the jpg gives us very good results in color correction, but it doesn't allow us to make big changes like changing one whole color to another, etc, that is destined for RAW.
Photo lights recovery
The main asset of RAW is to be able to recover illuminations from photos or get more information. In the photo below we can see how the RAW has been able to save much more information from the shadows than it has been able to save with the JPG, yes, the noise produced already depends on the dynamic range, which we will not touch now.
This is one of the main reasons why RAW can save your life many times, but it is better to try to expose well during shooting than in editing, and more with mobile.
Quick Edit
If you only want to give your photo four strokes and you don't want to spend a lot of time on it… Is it feasible to do it on Raw? Well possibly not. Because if you want to make four quick touches and even filters, better apply them on a jpg, since the changes will be more noticeable.
Maybe the RAW does look better, but it already has certain modifications, and the JPG is unmodified, so you can see the difference.
Conclusion. It's worth it?
I think it depends on the user, but to upload to social networks in a simple way, perhaps it is not necessary. Yes, if you enjoy editing Or you want to have it as much good as possible, Raw is a fun and viable option.
Perhaps using the Raw is more of a replacement for a higher performance camera. You can start shooting photos with your phone without having a camera and thus practice, and you can edit, even with your computer.
So in conclusion, the Raw will serve you for very specific things in editing (in the case of a mobile, in the case of a camera, things change completely). If it is to do a quick edit, apply a VSCO or Instagram filter and upload it, without complications, a jpg will give you better results.
We leave you a few apps to edit so you can fiddle with your photos!
What do you think? RAW or JPG? Leave it in comments!