Setting iPhoto 09 to Externally Edit with RAW
When you import RAW files into iPhoto, the application stores those RAWs and creates speedy JPEG previews for your display and viewing. Luckily, that RAW data is what iPhoto goes to when you do an edit. However, when you tell iPhoto to use an external editor, by default it passes that file along as a JPEG and saves the resulting file as a JPEG. That loses a lot of information that could be used to make a better looking photo.
The quick solution to this is to open up the Preferences and from the Advanced tab select Use RAW when using external editor and Save edits as 16-bit TIFF files from the RAW Photos section.
From then on files you open in an external editor (like Photoshop or Pixelmator) will be RAW files, and the resulting edits will be full-size 16-bit TIFF files.
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Author: David Schloss
David Schloss is the director of the Mac Create Network and the Aperture Users Network, a professional photographer, writer, editor and photographic educator who specializes adventure sports, travel and lifestyle photography. Schloss is the author of the books Blue Pixel Personal Photo Coach: Digital Photography Tips from the Trenches and Blue Pixel Guide to Travel Photography: Perfect Photos Every Time. Schloss is the former Technical Editor for Photo District News, a position he held for six years.
