Very often couples ask us about photo delivery. How many photos do we receive? Do you edit the photos? How do you edit the photos? How long does it take to receive them? How do we get them? Can we print them? And other variations. Every once in a while we’re asked a rather odd question, and we’ve noticed that we’ve been getting it more and more frequently. Also, we’ve heard from other photographers that they too have been asked this new question a lot more often in recent months. So we thought we’d go ahead and help clear up the RAW photo topic today and answer the question “Can we have the RAW pictures?”
It doesn’t seem as if couples really understand what they’re asking for when they ask to have the “raw files”. It’s quite possible this question is one couples only think they should be asking their photographers. They saw it online somewhere, or have a great Uncle’s friend who swears they will need copies of the RAW files. Maybe if we clear up what a RAW file actually is, couples will realize they don’t need them, and probably don’t want them either.
RAW files are not pictures. Plain and simple. They are unprocessed data from our cameras. These types of files can only be viewed on specialized computer software designed for professionals. RAW files cannot be posted to social media, nor can they be printed. So again, these files are not pictures. The RAW files still need quite a bit of processing before they become anything close to a picture. Post production editing also requires specialized photography software to even begin working with RAW files. Not to mention, we shoot thousands of images each wedding day. There’s a good chance this much data wouldn’t fit onto your personal computer, as each raw file is very large.
Plus… RAW files aren’t finished! Who wants a product that’s only halfway finished? Didn’t you invest a large portion of your wedding budget on high quality photography? Get your money’s worth and wait to see the finished, gorgeous, powerful product your photographers create. There’s so much of a photographer’s style that goes into the post production of his or her images. A vast majority of what you love about a particular photographer’s work is done in camera, but editing styles can bring an image into so many different zones, it makes editing just as important as shooting. You wouldn’t ask your baker to give you the cake before it’s assembled, frosted and decorated would you?
In short, we do not provide RAW files. Simply put, they are unfinished products and we do not deliver anything that’s unfinished. And as we explained, there’s really nothing you could do with them anyway. Unless of course, someone is interested in editing or re-editing the photos. Then we guess the RAWs would be necessary. In that case, we will still be unable to deliver the RAW files, but we will wonder why there’s a desire to re-edit the photos we’ve taken. If the editing style of a photographer you’re considering isn’t exactly what you’re looking for… keep looking until you find someone with a style you love. If you feel the need to re-edit the photos, they’re not the right photographer for you.
So what do we deliver to our couples? High resolution JPEG files that are ready to print and ready to share online. The finished, edited, prettier versions of the RAW files 😉
Just take a look, on the left you’ll see a copy of what comes straight out of our cameras and all you would get from a RAW file. On the right you’ll find the finished product.
We hope that clears up the mystery of RAW files, why we don’t offer them, and why no couple ever needs them.
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