Skip to main content

⚠️ Please note that this topic or post has been archived. The information contained here may no longer be accurate or up-to-date. ⚠️

Alternatives to Capture One 6 for Mac/Nikon NEF editing?

Permanently deleted user
After several exchanges with technical support regarding NEF compatibility on a Mac, I received this response explaining why only Capture One 6 (and not older versions of CO) can render NEF edits in Media Pro:

Capture One 6 includes the drivers, color profiles and other devices that allow Media Pro, using the 'Phase One' Render Engine, to read adjustments made in Capture One Software. Capture One, any version, is a read only software and does not embed a thumbnail reflecting changes into the NEF. Capture One saves the adjustments in Sidecar Files that can now be read by Media PRO when using Capture One 6. Alternatively, if you use a software that embeds a thumbnail into the NEF file, the Apple Render Engine should read this.


Nikon Capture NX2's NEF thumbnails are not in a format that Media Pro can read (on a Mac). Can anyone name an alternative software "that embeds a thumbnail into the NEF file" in a format that Media Pro can read?
0

Comments

6 comments

Date Votes
  • NNN634272722125339672
    Nope.. convert to DNG, use LR and embed preview... its the road I had to go down and it works really well.
    0
  • Permanently deleted user
    [quote="NNN634272722125339672" wrote:
    Nope.. convert to DNG, use LR and embed preview... its the road I had to go down and it works really well.


    As I said in my other thread, DNG workflow creates a huge problem for dealing with historical NEF edits (requires NEF ->TIFF -> DNG conversion [color=#800000:1lfsly3v][EDIT: this is not necessarily true and is dangerous; see Robert's comment below][/color:1lfsly3v]). Also, I rely on EM2 for custom Web galleries (custom fields, Javascript, etc.), which I believe is not possible (or extremely difficult) in LR.
    0
  • Robert Edwards
    requires NEF ->TIFF -> DNG conversion


    Do not do that as you create a linear DNG effectively throwing out your raw data.

    I too had a lot of Nikon Capture data embedded in my NEFs - over 30, 000 images. I converted them all to DNG and had to lose access to that hard work from Nikon Capture. The reason I moved to DNG was for the obvious benefits and because Phase One Capture One supported DNG, so there was an alternative to Adobe ACR.

    -- Robert.
    0
  • Permanently deleted user
    [quote="Robert2721" wrote:
    requires NEF ->TIFF -> DNG conversion

    Do not do that as you create a linear DNG effectively throwing out your raw data.


    Yikes! Thanks for correcting me and for the warning. I admittedly haven't taken the time to learn about DNG nuances.

    [quote="Robert2721" wrote:
    I too had a lot of Nikon Capture data embedded in my NEFs - over 30, 000 images. I converted them all to DNG and had to lose access to that hard work from Nikon Capture. The reason I moved to DNG was for the obvious benefits and because Phase One Capture One supported DNG, so there was an alternative to Adobe ACR.


    So I gather that while you lost your Nikon Capture work, you still retained the RAW data. Did you recreate the edits in Capture One? Must have taken a few months of labor.
    0
  • NNN634272722125339672
    of course you will lose your "edits" made to the NEF images... this is one of the major issues with RAW images at the moment and NOT creating JPG's of the finished work. The work you do in one RAW editor is meaningless once you change to another OR convert your image to a different RAW format.. no difference.

    Basically, when you converted your images, I assume you made backups of the NEF's and then created DNG's.. so you still have the benefit of you NEF's (with the edits) while also having the DNG's (with no edits).
    0
  • Permanently deleted user
    [quote="NNN634272722125339672" wrote:
    of course you will lose your "edits" made to the NEF images... this is one of the major issues with RAW images at the moment and NOT creating JPG's of the finished work. The work you do in one RAW editor is meaningless once you change to another OR convert your image to a different RAW format.. no difference.


    Ah, true. Just for background: the reason this fact became an issue for me is because I recently had to replace a Mac G5 running Tiger with a new Mac Pro running Snow Leopard. On Tiger, Expression Media could display NEF edits perfectly. After Tiger (Leopard, Snow Leopard) this capability was lost. My workaround now will be to create JPG versions of the finished NEF (if I don't want to change RAW editors).

    [quote="NNN634272722125339672" wrote:
    Basically, when you converted your images, I assume you made backups of the NEF's and then created DNG's.. so you still have the benefit of you NEF's (with the edits) while also having the DNG's (with no edits).


    No, I haven't done that since an unedited DNG didn't seem to be of any value to me (since my edited master is a NEF). Unless I'm misunderstanding something, DNG has value only if you make the conversion to DNG before editing the RAW file, then use a DNG-compatible editor. (Otherwise, as Robert explained, one would have to re-do the edits from scratch.)
    0

Post is closed for comments.