Can the Surface Pro 3 handle the D810's RAW files?

Disclaimer - I don't own a D810, and just downloaded a D810 RAW file from somewhere, and imported into Lightroom on my i5, 8GB RAM SP3 using battery power (would probably be quicker on mains power).

Initial import was a little slow (but that could be the USB drive I used to import from) at around 3 seconds. Once in, it was another 5 seconds before I lost the "please wait" spinny thing... once I did my first edit (moved the exposure slider), everything else worked instantly with no lag (I tried most of the sliders). Export to a 1600px JPG with normal screen sharpening, took about 5 seconds (though you can continue to work on your next file while this export happens). Overall, it felt a little sluggish right at the start of the process, but by my second adjustment, it was like butter.

I use the SP3 with my D7100 24MP files no problem. I never feel I'm waiting for it. The i7 would obviously be a bit quicker, but hte D810 files are much bigger.

I think if you had to process a lot of files, it might be a little frustrating, just with that initial process, but if you're like me, churning through them one at a time, and taking your time to optimize each one to your liking, I doubt you'd find it too slow or sluggish to work with.

Interesting and I really appreciate that!

When I edit on the MacBook Pro, I find that the first edit takes the longest but it begins to work effortlessly after, too. Can you tell me if there was any lag when zooming into 100% and back out? I find that the MBP has a lot of trouble doing that quickly and then coming out.

How about the brushes and spot removal? Lastly, do you find that the image goes a bit fuzzy/pixely when you're adjusting the sliders and then snaps back to clarity a moment or two later with your changes?

Apologies for the questions, but these are the little things that really annoy me with the MBP, as I really like I'm always waiting for the machine to catchup with what I'm doing.

I've read up a lot about the overheating, too -- has that ever been an issue for you? I don't mind the laptop becoming hot, but if it shuts down or throttles, that could get to me.

Hamilton NYC said:

Interesting and I really appreciate that!

When I edit on the MacBook Pro, I find that the first edit takes the longest but it begins to work effortlessly after, too. Can you tell me if there was any lag when zooming into 100% and back out? I find that the MBP has a lot of trouble doing that quickly and then coming out.

Click to expand...

Yes, a bit of lag there - about a second to zoom in. A touch quicker zooming out, but still noticeable lag. I guess I'm comparing to my normal 24MP RAWS that show no lag when doing these things.

Hamilton NYC said:

How about the brushes and spot removal?

Click to expand...

The act of brushing is very responsive, but seeing the result has a little lag. Spot removal works quite quickly, the adjustment brush a little longer. I'm guessing about half a second for the spot removal and maybe a second for a largish area with the adjustment brush.

Hamilton NYC said:

Lastly, do you find that the image goes a bit fuzzy/pixely when you're adjusting the sliders and then snaps back to clarity a moment or two later with your changes?

Click to expand...

The only time I see this is the act of zooming in - and the rime to pop back to full res is included in the 1sec. mentioned above. I don't see it when making adjustments, either global or from the adjustment brush or the spot removal. Only the actual action of zooming in.

Hamilton NYC said:

Apologies for the questions, but these are the little things that really annoy me with the MBP, as I really like I'm always waiting for the machine to catchup with what I'm doing.

I've read up a lot about the overheating, too -- has that ever been an issue for you?

Click to expand...

I have the i5 model, and I believe this has only been an issue with the i7. The fan doesn't even cut in much on mine. Certainly no overheating problems with my 24MP images.

Hamilton NYC said:

I don't mind the laptop becoming hot, but if it shuts down or throttles, that could get to me.

Click to expand...

Not on the i5.

richiebee said:

Hamilton NYC said:

Interesting and I really appreciate that!

When I edit on the MacBook Pro, I find that the first edit takes the longest but it begins to work effortlessly after, too. Can you tell me if there was any lag when zooming into 100% and back out? I find that the MBP has a lot of trouble doing that quickly and then coming out.

Click to expand...

Yes, a bit of lag there - about a second to zoom in. A touch quicker zooming out, but still noticeable lag. I guess I'm comparing to my normal 24MP RAWS that show no lag when doing these things.

richiebee said:

How about the brushes and spot removal?

Click to expand...

The act of brushing is very responsive, but seeing the result has a little lag. Spot removal works quite quickly, the adjustment brush a little longer. I'm guessing about half a second for the spot removal and maybe a second for a largish area with the adjustment brush.

richiebee said:

Lastly, do you find that the image goes a bit fuzzy/pixely when you're adjusting the sliders and then snaps back to clarity a moment or two later with your changes?

Click to expand...

The only time I see this is the act of zooming in - and the rime to pop back to full res is included in the 1sec. mentioned above. I don't see it when making adjustments, either global or from the adjustment brush or the spot removal. Only the actual action of zooming in.

richiebee said:

Apologies for the questions, but these are the little things that really annoy me with the MBP, as I really like I'm always waiting for the machine to catchup with what I'm doing.

I've read up a lot about the overheating, too -- has that ever been an issue for you?

Click to expand...

I have the i5 model, and I believe this has only been an issue with the i7. The fan doesn't even cut in much on mine. Certainly no overheating problems with my 24MP images.

richiebee said:

I don't mind the laptop becoming hot, but if it shuts down or throttles, that could get to me.

Click to expand...

Not on the i5.

Click to expand...

Wow, that all sounds great. I really, truly appreciate your answers! I think I'm going to give this a go and report back, thanks!

I'm actually considering the same thing! --- working on a (late 2012) macbook pro retina - and I would love to move to the SP3 for it's portability, touchscreen and tethering abilities. BUT, I'm concerned about lag --- also shooting with the 810 and trying to figure out workflow (45mb files, yowser!). I've watched just about every youtube video on the SP3 i5/i7 I could find.

Tempted to go with the $150 discount for black friday on the i7 :: so definitely report your findings. Are you going to go with the dock and type cover as well?? I'm also debating building a photo/video editing rig with some killer 'specs' -- which can be done for a lot less than the SP3 - but at the cost of portability (but maybe a lesser tablet could fill in the gap) If the SP3 came with 16gb of ram, I'd be all over it.

busdriverstu said:

I'm actually considering the same thing! --- working on a (late 2012) macbook pro retina - and I would love to move to the SP3 for it's portability, touchscreen and tethering abilities. BUT, I'm concerned about lag --- also shooting with the 810 and trying to figure out workflow (45mb files, yowser!). I've watched just about every youtube video on the SP3 i5/i7 I could find.

Tempted to go with the $150 discount for black friday on the i7 :: so definitely report your findings. Are you going to go with the dock and type cover as well?? I'm also debating building a photo/video editing rig with some killer 'specs' -- which can be done for a lot less than the SP3 - but at the cost of portability (but maybe a lesser tablet could fill in the gap) If the SP3 came with 16gb of ram, I'd be all over it.

Click to expand...

I pulled the trigger on this over the weekend and my initial impressions are mostly positive. There were some hiccups during the setup that made me scratch my head and the throttling DOES seem to occur, but it's not the worst thing.

Throughout the day I'll be putting together a review of the machine for my blog, but in the interim you can check out this video I made which shows the device editing a D810 RAW in Lightroom:

Hamilton NYC said:

I pulled the trigger on this over the weekend and my initial impressions are mostly positive. There were some hiccups during the setup that made me scratch my head and the throttling DOES seem to occur, but it's not the worst thing.

Throughout the day I'll be putting together a review of the machine for my blog, but in the interim you can check out this video I made which shows the device editing a D810 RAW in Lightroom:

Click to expand...

Oh man! This is great! --- It's exactly the process I'll be using so it's awesome to see it 'in-motion'. Am I hearing the fan in the background (comes on around 1min then kick off around the 5min?) -- does it always kick on immediately upon launching into editing the photos?

I'm leaning really heavily on picking up the i7 this week --- this vid is solidifying that decision. thanks!

busdriverstu said:

Hamilton NYC said:

I pulled the trigger on this over the weekend and my initial impressions are mostly positive. There were some hiccups during the setup that made me scratch my head and the throttling DOES seem to occur, but it's not the worst thing.

Throughout the day I'll be putting together a review of the machine for my blog, but in the interim you can check out this video I made which shows the device editing a D810 RAW in Lightroom:

Click to expand...

Oh man! This is great! --- It's exactly the process I'll be using so it's awesome to see it 'in-motion'. Am I hearing the fan in the background (comes on around 1min then kick off around the 5min?) -- does it always kick on immediately upon launching into editing the photos?

I'm leaning really heavily on picking up the i7 this week --- this vid is solidifying that decision. thanks!

Click to expand...

I believe it is -- I hadn't noticed it initially, but that's more than likely the fan.

And of course! Something I always look for when buying a large purchase is how it works "in-motion". In our case, finding reviews of this laptop alongside Lightroom 5 proved difficult, so I decided to take matters into my own hands

Do you have any other questions about it? I don't mind taking more videos if it'll help.

I have the D800 and tether to the SP3 and do minor retouching with Photoshop CS5. CC has better scaling features.

Photoshop is reasonably fast for my files, I usually only have 1-3 layers. I use Nikon View to convert files since I prefer the color rendition, it's kind of pokey, especially compared to my screaming i7 desktop with 32GB RAM. But once in Photoshop, my 256/8GB SP3 is fine. Clients are pleasantly surprised to see Photoshop on a tablet.

The fan seems like it's always on, I've had it lag for a second on some zooms.

robertfel said:

I have the D800 and tether to the SP3 and do minor retouching with Photoshop CS5. CC has better scaling features.

Photoshop is reasonably fast for my files, I usually only have 1-3 layers. I use Nikon View to convert files since I prefer the color rendition, it's kind of pokey, especially compared to my screaming i7 desktop with 32GB RAM. But once in Photoshop, my 256/8GB SP3 is fine. Clients are pleasantly surprised to see Photoshop on a tablet.

The fan seems like it's always on, I've had it lag for a second on some zooms.

Click to expand...

That's great to hear -- I'll have to give the files a shot in ACR and see if that nets out a bit better, too.

You're on the i7 as well, I take it? My fan definitely seems like it's always on, as well, and although I don't personally mind it, my girlfriend has already made comments about it.

Overall though I'm still pretty happy with it.

The only kicker is that, for the same price (1549+130), you can buy a MacBook Pro Retina with 16GB and a 3.0GHz i7 (with 128GB HDD). This is really the only thing hanging me up about being dead certain that I'll keep the Surface Pro 3. Is the portability worth the potential sacrifice of raw power?

busdriverstu said:

Hamilton NYC said:

I pulled the trigger on this over the weekend and my initial impressions are mostly positive. There were some hiccups during the setup that made me scratch my head and the throttling DOES seem to occur, but it's not the worst thing.

Throughout the day I'll be putting together a review of the machine for my blog, but in the interim you can check out this video I made which shows the device editing a D810 RAW in Lightroom:

Click to expand...

Oh man! This is great! --- It's exactly the process I'll be using so it's awesome to see it 'in-motion'. Am I hearing the fan in the background (comes on around 1min then kick off around the 5min?) -- does it always kick on immediately upon launching into editing the photos?

I'm leaning really heavily on picking up the i7 this week --- this vid is solidifying that decision. thanks!

Click to expand...

Thank you for the video! Interesting to see how you use the pen. I have the SP3 i5/8 GB 256 SSD and haven't been using the pen much as I'm still in the habit of using the mouse. Looks really smart. I don't see any storage device on your video, where do you keep your raw files? With big raw files the SSD will very soon be full. Anyway it's a fantastic little computer and LR5 works very quick with no delays at all with my 16 MP raw files at least.

Mine is the i5.

It's a tough comparison, I guess it depends on how much you value the touchscreen. Add that to the cost of the Macbook. Doing a quick retouch to a headshot in front of the client is totally worth it.

I also use mine as a field monitor when shooting video. I'm looking forward to Microsoft's wireless video transmitter, plugging it into a client's TV and showing them stuff from your computer is very slick.

I have 3 computers so I don't need it to do all things.

Hamilton NYC said:

The only kicker is that, for the same price (1549+130), you can buy a MacBook Pro Retina with 16GB and a 3.0GHz i7 (with 128GB HDD). This is really the only thing hanging me up about being dead certain that I'll keep the Surface Pro 3. Is the portability worth the potential sacrifice of raw power?

Click to expand...

I think the implementation of touch screen is pretty valuable. The i7 wasn't available when I got my SP3 but I do remember thinking I'd made the right decision to go with the i5 when it did come out. I think the i5 is the best value/performance ratio, and is fast enough. Also I hate Apple, but I did consider a MBA before I saw how good the i5 SP3 was. I didn't really consider the MBP... portability is important to me in this case. It would be different in a desktop, and not surprisingly (for lots of reasons) I'm not about to get an iMac.

richiebee said:

Hamilton NYC said:

The only kicker is that, for the same price (1549+130), you can buy a MacBook Pro Retina with 16GB and a 3.0GHz i7 (with 128GB HDD). This is really the only thing hanging me up about being dead certain that I'll keep the Surface Pro 3. Is the portability worth the potential sacrifice of raw power?

Click to expand...

I think the implementation of touch screen is pretty valuable. The i7 wasn't available when I got my SP3 but I do remember thinking I'd made the right decision to go with the i5 when it did come out. I think the i5 is the best value/performance ratio, and is fast enough. Also I hate Apple, but I did consider a MBA before I saw how good the i5 SP3 was. I didn't really consider the MBP... portability is important to me in this case. It would be different in a desktop, and not surprisingly (for lots of reasons) I'm not about to get an iMac.

Click to expand...

I had a Sony Vaio i3 4GB which was very slow with Lr5. I was looking for either a Ultrabook or a MacPro Retina when I happened to stumble upon the SP3 in a shop. I found the SP3 screen better than both the MBP 13" Retina and the screen on an Asus UB. High resolution and maybe most important, less sensitive for different viewing angles. I choose the i5 8GB 256 SSD which I considered being the most cost effective. I've got a 256 GB Samsung Micro SDHC card (eBay, 250 SEK=30$) wich gives me a total of 500 GB inside the SP3. Upon that I've ordered a WD 1TB wireless portable HDD. It has a SD slot so I can load pictures from my camera directly into it and then import to Lr. We'll see if that turns out to be a good workflow.

As to the original question. I downloaded a D810 raw file of 86 MB and imported it to Lr5. Import was very quick. In develop module everything also is very quick. When I click 100% it takes less than one sec until the picture is updated. All other actions I tried were performed instantly. So I would say that also a not top-spec SP3 with i5 and 8GB handles D810 raws very nicely.

MatsP said:

richiebee said:

Hamilton NYC said:

The only kicker is that, for the same price (1549+130), you can buy a MacBook Pro Retina with 16GB and a 3.0GHz i7 (with 128GB HDD). This is really the only thing hanging me up about being dead certain that I'll keep the Surface Pro 3. Is the portability worth the potential sacrifice of raw power?

Click to expand...

I think the implementation of touch screen is pretty valuable. The i7 wasn't available when I got my SP3 but I do remember thinking I'd made the right decision to go with the i5 when it did come out. I think the i5 is the best value/performance ratio, and is fast enough. Also I hate Apple, but I did consider a MBA before I saw how good the i5 SP3 was. I didn't really consider the MBP... portability is important to me in this case. It would be different in a desktop, and not surprisingly (for lots of reasons) I'm not about to get an iMac.

Click to expand...

I had a Sony Vaio i3 4GB which was very slow with Lr5. I was looking for either a Ultrabook or a MacPro Retina when I happened to stumble upon the SP3 in a shop. I found the SP3 screen better than both the MBP 13" Retina and the screen on an Asus UB. High resolution and maybe most important, less sensitive for different viewing angles. I choose the i5 8GB 256 SSD which I considered being the most cost effective. I've got a 256 GB Samsung Micro SDHC card (eBay, 250 SEK=30$) wich gives me a total of 500 GB inside the SP3. Upon that I've ordered a WD 1TB wireless portable HDD. It has a SD slot so I can load pictures from my camera directly into it and then import to Lr. We'll see if that turns out to be a good workflow.

As to the original question. I downloaded a D810 raw file of 86 MB and imported it to Lr5. Import was very quick. In develop module everything also is very quick. When I click 100% it takes less than one sec until the picture is updated. All other actions I tried were performed instantly. So I would say that also a not top-spec SP3 with i5 and 8GB handles D810 raws very nicely.

Click to expand...

Can you link me to the external HD you mentioned? I'd LOVE to have an SD slot again.

I went ahead and purchased the SP3 i7 and am so far very much in love with it. You can read my review here: http://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/3757711

The D810 RAW files are taken care of much faster on the SP3 than my rMBP, which I'm grateful for, as it was incredibly tedious to wait for things to happen. You don't think "5 or 10 seconds" matter initially, but when you're going through 500 photos to edit and release, it adds up very quickly.

Hamilton NYC said:

Can you link me to the external HD you mentioned? I'd LOVE to have an SD slot again.

Click to expand...

It's a WD My Passport Wireless. I ordered it at wdstore.eu. I guess there is a similar US site. There was a 20% discount and free shipping during the Fotomässan (Stockholm Photo Fair). Total price 1300 SEK (175 USD) for the 1TB model. I haven't got it yet, but it's on its way.

Hamilton NYC said:

I went ahead and purchased the SP3 i7 and am so far very much in love with it. You can read my review here: http://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/3757711

The D810 RAW files are taken care of much faster on the SP3 than my rMBP, which I'm grateful for, as it was incredibly tedious to wait for things to happen. You don't think "5 or 10 seconds" matter initially, but when you're going through 500 photos to edit and release, it adds up very quickly.

Click to expand...

I read your review. I agree it's an excellent device. Fantastic screen, fast and powerful. Only thing I miss is ports. Just one USB and one video port are too few. The dock is ugly and expensive. You can use a USB hub of course but you need a powered one if you want to connect HDDs, CD drives and such. It works but the desk becomes crowded with cords. I tried to find a cheap bluetooth mouse but couldn't. The wireless HDD will work well I hope. Maybe more wireless devices are coming.

MatsP said:

I read your review. I agree it's an excellent device. Fantastic screen, fast and powerful. Only thing I miss is ports. Just one USB and one video port are too few. The dock is ugly and expensive. You can use a USB hub of course but you need a powered one if you want to connect HDDs, CD drives and such. It works but the desk becomes crowded with cords. I tried to find a cheap bluetooth mouse but couldn't. The wireless HDD will work well I hope. Maybe more wireless devices are coming.

Click to expand...

Did you get a typecover?

I passed on that, and spent about the same amount of money on bluetooth keyboard and mouse, and it's just like using my desktop... only much more portable.

richiebee said:

MatsP said:

I read your review. I agree it's an excellent device. Fantastic screen, fast and powerful. Only thing I miss is ports. Just one USB and one video port are too few. The dock is ugly and expensive. You can use a USB hub of course but you need a powered one if you want to connect HDDs, CD drives and such. It works but the desk becomes crowded with cords. I tried to find a cheap bluetooth mouse but couldn't. The wireless HDD will work well I hope. Maybe more wireless devices are coming.

Click to expand...

Did you get a typecover?

I passed on that, and spent about the same amount of money on bluetooth keyboard and mouse, and it's just like using my desktop... only much more portable.

Click to expand...

Yes I did, and it works quite well, not much difference to the keyboards of Ultrabooks or MacBooks. A desktop keyboard is of course better for serious typing and I may get one later (I'll probably need it as I'm planning to be writing a book). The typecover is good to have on travel anyway, so it's not wasted money I think, even if I get a real keyboard.

I have the I7 / 528 & use a 2tb Ext HD.

The slowest part of the process is the import followed by the preview rendering. Once that's done, everything else is snappy. The touch screen w the pen is great for editing in PS.

I vet the fan on import and preview editing, but rarely after that.

it's the perfect tool for traveling.

I also got the docking station for the office.

Great tool IMO

Len