Open source RAW photography

Linux offers all the pro-level tools you could possibly need for better photos. Karsten Günther is your top-tips guide.

- Karsten Günther

Quick Tip

For large image collections, DigiKam’s filter functions are extremely useful. In the left sidebar, you can search for times, keywords, geolocations and similarities; search provides access to all EXIF tags. In the right sidebar, Filter offers additional options.

Professional photographers only use RAW photos when they’re working on high-quality images. But why and what for? How much extra effort do RAW photos entail, and is it worth it for hobbyist photographers? Let’s answer those questions here…

The good news is that Linux users are in an enviable situation: some of the best programs for managing and processing RAW photos are developed under Linux and only occasionally ported to other platforms. On the other hand, RAW photography itself is considered time-consuming and labour-intensive. Nevertheless, three weighty reasons speak in favour of dealing with the subject and taking RAW photos:

• For landscape photography, good illumination must be achieved across all tonal values, especially in difficult lighting conditions; both the sky should have structure, as well as the shadows in the foreground.

• With portraits, the overly smooth automatic mode is deactivated, resulting in more realistic, vivid images.

• HDR images can be created from one RAW photo, which often leads to results really worth seeing. We’re going to take you through a RAW workflow, looking at the tools available for each stage, from reviewing to converting and editing.

Reviewing