iPad: view full-size raw on SD card (without import) for culling

[Olivier GALLEN]

Hi,

On iPad, is there a way to display (and delete) full-size raws stored on SD card without importing them?

I would like to use the better screen of my iPad Pro (2nd Gen) for culling (a bit like what Fastrawviewer or Photo Mechanic can do) while on the go to free space on my SD cards and make use of my idle time out.

I tried Files app but it cannot display full-size raw, same for Photos import dialog, and I tried Darkroom but it needs to import files first (useless for culling the SD card).

Any suggestion?

Thanks,

 

[Boomanbb]

Hi,

On iPad, is there a way to display (and delete) full-size raws stored on SD card without importing them?

I would like to use the better screen of my iPad Pro (2nd Gen) for culling (a bit like what Fastrawviewer or Photo Mechanic can do) while on the go to free space on my SD cards and make use of my idle time out.

I tried Files app but it cannot display full-size raw, same for Photos import dialog, and I tried Darkroom but it needs to import files first (useless for culling the SD card).

Any suggestion?

Thanks,

Lightroom for iPad and the USB 3 card reader. You can view an image full screen to decide if you want to import it. I’m on the subscription, nothing else even close for the iPad.

 

[Olivier GALLEN]

I use Lightroom on iPad to make quick adjustments/ratings on pictures I already imported through Lightroom Classic on my desktop (which is my workhorse with a 32" 4K calibrated screen).

I tested the import of Lightroom on iPad as you suggested and it uses the same embedded jpeg when you zoom in. Unfortunately I can't assess critical focus from a 1.6MP file.

So far it seems the best "tool" to cull my pictures on the go is still the camera itself.

Caution: immediately after deleting 2 pictures on the SD card with the iPad, my camera saw them as "unreadable" and became extremely slow when reading other pictures. Therefore, and to stay on the safe side, I will not use the iPad to cull pictures on the SD card.

To bad though, I'm sure there is a need for a real Fastrawviewer or Photo Mechanic on iPad.

 

[itsallBb2me]

Long press on any photo and it will go full screen. Scroll through one by one. Only import the keepers. However, please note that the on-screen display will be lower quality than the actual image will deliver once it’s imported.

 

[Boomanbb]

You can adjust sharpness on your default picture style to more closely match what your raw files look like. It only affects jpg images.

 

[mart1234]

Filebrowser for ipad will display the full size of the embedded jpeg, unlike the stock Files app.

However, I would be careful not to edit and resave images on card and then putting the card back in camera again. iOS can really mess up external storage. I usually format the card in camera after a visit to the ipad.

 

[Olivier GALLEN]

Thanks. I tried Filebrowser (Go, the trial version), activated Raw and HD options and got the same result as zooming in Files App or Lightroom import. So far my preferred one is Files App (already installed and keep the view zoomed in). But as you said and I experienced, I now prefer not to cull the SD card directly from the iPad as it can/will mess the SD card!

Still, I love the idea to cull (+learn&improve) with the iPad while on the go. A solution might be to import to the iPad, cull the raws there (I need to zoom at 100% to check critical sharpness), export the selected raws to a another SD card/storage, empty the iPad... and repeat (a way to solve the small space available on my iPad).

That way I should be able to cull the raws and keep the original SD cards if anything fail with exported raws.
I'll try to check what work best that way

 

[mart1234]

Writing back files to another card for import was an interesting idea.

If shooting raw+jpeg which I always do, I can then select which file to save back to the other card for import. Otherwise both raw+jpeg files will be imported to Photos which is very unneccessary. I do almost all editing on the iPad btw.

 

[Catas]

Hi,

On iPad, is there a way to display (and delete) full-size raws stored on SD card without importing them?

I would like to use the better screen of my iPad Pro (2nd Gen) for culling (a bit like what Fastrawviewer or Photo Mechanic can do) while on the go to free space on my SD cards and make use of my idle time out.

I tried Files app but it cannot display full-size raw, same for Photos import dialog, and I tried Darkroom but it needs to import files first (useless for culling the SD card).

Any suggestion?

Thanks,

There are Raw Power, one time purchase, with the ability for browsing, rating, than filtering and send originals in photos, directly in iOS files app. Yet you have to copy the content of sd card in one folder from files first. Which is better I think. Problem is if your iPad had only four gb of ram you will be able to send only five images in batch to photos. You should give it a try.

Regards

 

[Catas]

Hi,

On iPad, is there a way to display (and delete) full-size raws stored on SD card without importing them?

I would like to use the better screen of my iPad Pro (2nd Gen) for culling (a bit like what Fastrawviewer or Photo Mechanic can do) while on the go to free space on my SD cards and make use of my idle time out.

I tried Files app but it cannot display full-size raw, same for Photos import dialog, and I tried Darkroom but it needs to import files first (useless for culling the SD card).

Any suggestion?

Thanks,

There are Raw Power, one time purchase, with the ability for browsing, rating, than filtering and send originals in photos, directly in iOS files app. Yet you have to copy the content of sd card in one folder from files first. Which is better I think. Problem is if your iPad had only four gb of ram you will be able to send only five images in batch to photos. You should give it a try.

Regards

I have to update.

After latest update of RP, you can access folders in files app, without copying images in app, and memory bug has or will be fixed. There are many new additions to the app.

 

[rmbfotography]

Curious to know if anyone has any updates on viewing/culling/deleting files from a memory card on the iPad (without importing the files). One user here mentioned Raw Power ($9.99) as one app that might work. Any other additional suggestions? Thanks!

 

[DigGary]

Depending on the app you could use the ipad to copy the images from the SD card to an SSD and then cull there.

I cull on the ipad using an app I’ve created, see my website, but not sure if it will end up in store but with it I can copy from SD card to SSD and cull from the SSD with no issues. I have a 512GB pro so I cull on my ipad as it is faster and then copy culled images to an SSD.

 

[Greybeard2017]

Depending on the app you could use the ipad to copy the images from the SD card to an SSD and then cull there.

I cull on the ipad using an app I’ve created, see my website, but not sure if it will end up in store but with it I can copy from SD card to SSD and cull from the SSD with no issues. I have a 512GB pro so I cull on my ipad as it is faster and then copy culled images to an SSD.

Interesting app - I've also written a culling app for the iPad (although it has a completely different workflow). I like the approach you have taken to compare images.

My app (optionally) allows the culling to take place on the SD card and then only the selected images are exported to either the iPad, Apple Photos, another device via AirDrop or an external SSD (requires a hub).

The main reason I wrote my app was to support all types of images from all Fujifilm cameras. Apple has limited support for Fujifilm raws (especially compressed raw and they are slow to support new cameras) and they have limited EXIF support (don't handle Fujifilm Maker Notes for example).

 

[DigGary]

Depending on the app you could use the ipad to copy the images from the SD card to an SSD and then cull there.

I cull on the ipad using an app I’ve created, see my website, but not sure if it will end up in store but with it I can copy from SD card to SSD and cull from the SSD with no issues. I have a 512GB pro so I cull on my ipad as it is faster and then copy culled images to an SSD.

Interesting app - I've also written a culling app for the iPad (although it has a completely different workflow). I like the approach you have taken to compare images.

Cool, is it in the store? Thanks, I like the compare as I do a lot of macro and birding so always comparing to get sharpest. I can also cull in the tab that shows thumbnails if I want to just see one at a time but I don’t find myself doing that very often.

My app (optionally) allows the culling to take place on the SD card and then only the selected images are exported to either the iPad, Apple Photos, another device via AirDrop or an external SSD (requires a hub).

Do you actually delete the photos from the card or just select the images to copy off?

The main reason I wrote my app was to support all types of images from all Fujifilm cameras. Apple has limited support for Fujifilm raws (especially compressed raw and they are slow to support new cameras) and they have limited EXIF support (don't handle Fujifilm Maker Notes for example).

Was the Fujifilm file format easy to find documentations for? Do you use the embedded jpg or decode the raw image? I’ve done a bit of Exif parsing over the years.

 

[Greybeard2017]

Depending on the app you could use the ipad to copy the images from the SD card to an SSD and then cull there.

I cull on the ipad using an app I’ve created, see my website, but not sure if it will end up in store but with it I can copy from SD card to SSD and cull from the SSD with no issues. I have a 512GB pro so I cull on my ipad as it is faster and then copy culled images to an SSD.

Interesting app - I've also written a culling app for the iPad (although it has a completely different workflow). I like the approach you have taken to compare images.

Cool, is it in the store? Thanks, I like the compare as I do a lot of macro and birding so always comparing to get sharpest. I can also cull in the tab that shows thumbnails if I want to just see one at a time but I don’t find myself doing that very often.

No - not yet in the store

My app (optionally) allows the culling to take place on the SD card and then only the selected images are exported to either the iPad, Apple Photos, another device via AirDrop or an external SSD (requires a hub).

Do you actually delete the photos from the card or just select the images to copy off?

I never touch the original card or images - during the culling I use a database to store details of changes and then export as needed

The main reason I wrote my app was to support all types of images from all Fujifilm cameras. Apple has limited support for Fujifilm raws (especially compressed raw and they are slow to support new cameras) and they have limited EXIF support (don't handle Fujifilm Maker Notes for example).

Was the Fujifilm file format easy to find documentations for? Do you use the embedded jpg or decode the raw image? I’ve done a bit of Exif parsing over the years.

No - documentation is almost non-existent - especially for the raw files - the app currently works with the embedded jpg which is large enough for culling - much of the EXIF extract logic was ported over from my web site:

https://solentsystems.com/

Phil Harvey's Exiftool web site is a great source for EXIF documentation and in return I pass back to him the details of any new Fujifilm EXIF tags I discover.

 

[lemonette]

the post is literally about that lower quality and how to avoid it

 

[DigGary]

Concerns I would have are:

- camera might not be happy when images are deleted. My Sony keeps track of the files it expects to be there so a simple delete doesn’t make the camera forget it existed.

- when deleting files with files app may not free up the memory as the images get put in “Recently Deleted” and I believe must be removed from there to free the memory.