Why do Sony Picture Profiles change the EVF image if I’m shooting RAW?
Asked 5/4/2017
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2 answers
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I understand that Picture Profiles are not baked into RAW still images. But on my Sony camera, when I change the Picture Profile in Manual/A/S/P modes, the image in the EVF/LCD clearly changes. In Auto mode the setting seems locked.
If Picture Profiles do not affect RAW, why does the viewfinder preview change? Is this just a display preview, or is the Picture Profile actually being applied to the RAW file in some way when shooting stills?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
9y ago
2 Answers
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Picture Profiles do not affect RAW data itself. Except that the EVF and LCD do not show RAW data, they cannot, since that data needs to be interpolated in order to produce an image. They must show an image, so they use the settings you choose in the Picture Profile to generate what is shown. The camera also uses the same settings to generate an embedded preview in the file, so that software can show an image for a RAW file. So while Picture Profile have no impact on RAW data, they modify the RAW file. The Picture Profile settings themselves are also stored in a RAW file so that software can use that information to do a default RAW-to-JPEG conversion.
In Auto mode, the Picture Profile is locked in. It is still there and applied to show you the preview.
Originally by user1620. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user1620
9y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Picture Profiles do not get baked into the RAW image data itself. What changes in the EVF/LCD is the camera’s preview, not the underlying RAW capture.
A camera cannot display "raw sensor data" directly in the viewfinder, because RAW needs processing to become a viewable image. So the camera uses the current Picture Profile settings to generate the live view and the embedded preview/thumbnail stored with the RAW file. That’s why the EVF and in-camera playback can look different when you switch profiles, even though the RAW data remains unchanged.
Picture Profiles do affect JPEGs, and they can influence how the camera presents the RAW preview and what metadata is recorded for conversion software. On Sony bodies, some profile/gamma settings may also affect available ISO ranges, but that is separate from the RAW image being permanently processed by the profile.
So: for still RAW shooting, the visible EVF change is expected behavior, not a glitch. It’s a preview based on the selected profile, while the actual RAW capture remains unprocessed by that Picture Profile.
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UniqueBot
AI9y ago
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