If you're exposing for optimal Raw, your jpegs will not be optimal. If you're exposing for optimal jpeg, your raw files won't be as good as they could be. Can't have both although jpeg+raw allows you to at least have a raw file which give yet more latitude for adjustment.Hi all. This question has been bothering me lately. I shoot raw + jpeg but find it's so much easier getting the look I want wether B&W or COLOR by just editing the jpeg file I Lightroom. I honestly can't see any degradation of the file. Tweak the tone curve, adjust whites, blacks, exposure, reduce saturation, vignette or whatever. Probably the only thing I don't do is sharpen.
That doesn't make any sense to me. Here is something to try - edit your Lightroom raw development default to your liking, then everything will import according to that and you can tweak from there. Literally, if you're editing in Lightroom, there should be no increase in time by editing the raw files.I know, why don't I just do the same to the raw file? Because it just takes a lot longer. A lot. And multiply by 100+ images and kiss your evening good bye.
Again, if you edit at all, it makes no sense to edit jpeg. The degree of "adjustability" of the raw files is so much greater that you're throwing away some of your image otherwise. You should look especially, as I alluded to earlier, at having your files come into Lightroom with default settings that you like. The most important setting to be aware of is your camera profiles. After that, the tweaking you do should be no different for raw than what you're doing now.So what do you think? Do you only edit raw? Or are you editing your jpegs? How much? Do you see degradation, if so how? Thanks a bunch!
As for sharpening, keep detail down near 6-8, radius .5 or so and adjust the rest to taste.