Viewing Canon 7D RAW images on iPad

Question

Viewing Canon 7D RAW images on iPad

I'm a photographer and I'm interested in getting an iPad if it will let me view the RAW images on a memory card in the field to determine their quality. I don't want to use the iPad as a backup storage device; I just want to view the RAW images in a large enough size to determine whether I should keep them or throw them away. Then I want to delete those images *+from the memory card and from the iPad.+*

From what I've read so far, it seems that you must actually download the images onto the iPad before you can view them large (i.e. you can't zoom the thumbnails displayed from the card itself.) Is this correct?

Then, presumably, once I've reviewed the images on the iPad, I'd have to reconnect the memory card in order to delete the ones I don't want. Would I have to re-download these selected images to the iPad in order for it to give me the option of deleting them from the memory card or can I just instruct it to delete the selected images directly from the card? I have a Canon 7D that produces 18MP RAW images, so I want to do as little unnecessary transferring of files as possible.

I'm also trying to find out if the iPad handles RAW images from the 7D. I've seen conflicting information about this.

Thanks for any help.

MacMini, Mac OS X (10.5.8)

Posted on Sep 1, 2010 1:12 PM

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Answer 1

Sep 1, 2010 2:10 PM in response to imageinnovations

Using the camera connection kit you can download the raw files and the iPad will show them, but you will not actually see the raw data. What you see is the same that you see on the LCD on your camera (when you shoot raw). It is the JPG preview that is embedded into each raw file. There is no raw editing on the iPad.

Using the camera connection kit you can download selected images and then decide to delete those from the camera or card. It is not a file manager, though. The only functionality you have is to select them, copy them onto the iPad, then after that's complete delete the ones you copied from the card. If you decide not to delete them right away I think you have to go through the procedure of downloading them again to be able to delete them.

I don't have a 7D so I can't confirm if the iPad recognizes those raw files properly.

I'm a photographer as well and I found the iPad to be not useful to use as a device to check images during a shoot. You have to initiate a file copy each time by hand and since there is no raw processing whatsoever you can't inspect the raw photo to fine tune exposure. I still use a normal laptop running Lightroom tethered to my camera when I shoot in a studio.

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Answer 2

Sep 1, 2010 2:38 PM in response to David_o99

Thanks for your feedback but I'm still a bit confused. You say the iPad will "show" the RAW images once they're downloaded, but then you say that "what you see is the same that you see on the LCD on your camera...it is the JPG preview." What do you mean by "showing" the RAW images -- is it just the filenames?

I don't mind viewing the JPG preview as long as I can see images large and high-res enough to determine whether they're good quality or not (e.g. check for focus, DOF etc.). That's all I want to do. I don't want to edit or process them or do anything else with them -- just inspect them to decide whether to keep or toss them. This would typically be done on longer photo trips after each day's shooting is done; I'm not looking to use the iPad to fine-tune the actual shooting process.

I've seen videos where the images on the iPad are zoomed to the full size of the iPad screen. I presume you can do this with the JPG previews of the RAW images; what I can't tell is whether the image quality is sufficient for me to make the keep/toss decision. Have you tried this?

It would be a pain to have to download 18 MP files twice to the iPad just to delete them from the card, though.

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Answer 3

Sep 1, 2010 3:18 PM in response to imageinnovations

Sorry if that was a little confusing. The embedded JPG preview images is a full size image. It has the original resolution from the camera, but since it's a JPG it is pretty fast on the iPad. Yes you can zoom in to check focus and detail. But then you can do the same on your camera LCD. The iPad just gives you a bigger screen to do that.

I have done that with my camera (Nikon D3) and it works well. The download is pretty fast on the iPad, unless you copy a lot of files, speed is not really an issue IMHO.

Another thing you could do (although I haven't tried that myself yet) is to shoot RAW+JPG and then only copy the JPG files, inspect them and then delete the bad ones from your camera based on that. That would save you some transfer time.

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Answer 4

Sep 1, 2010 3:44 PM in response to David_o99

Okay, that makes things clearer. "A bigger screen to do that" is exactly what I'm looking for. I find being able to view the whole image at a large size is important to make that keep/toss decision in many cases. The LCD is okay for pictures that are clearly bad but not so good for the iffy ones.

Unfortunately, I would be transferring large numbers of files -- probably at least one and maybe two 8G cards per day. I really wish I could just view large images directly from the card like you can do with a laptop.

Re: the RAW+JPG option -- one review I read said you can't download just the JPG to the iPad; the RAW file has to go over too.

Thanks for your help. If anyone else can tell whether the 7D RAW files are supported, I'd sure appreciate it.

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Answer 5

Sep 1, 2010 5:34 PM in response to imageinnovations

Yes I see your point and as a photographer I can totally relate that seeing a photo on a larger screen (larger than the tiny LCD on a camera) is very important to judge an image. Let me try the JPG+RAW thing to confirm. My camera has two card slots and I can set it to save RAW on one card and JPG on the other so I don't have the problem, but I'll test it.

I hope either an App or Apple will allow automatic import from a tethered camera. It would be extremely useful rather than having to manually import.

If you want, you can email me a raw file from your 7D and I can import it and see if it works.

david AT lightonkids DOT com

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Answer 6

GBsLaw

Level 1

30 points

Oct 6, 2010 10:38 AM in response to David_o99

The app "Photogene" supports RAW file editing at the native file size. Anything the connector kit will import, in fact. However, once you make adjustments, the output file is limited to JPEG and to a maximum size of 2048 pixels in the long dimension.

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Answer 7

limsgp

Level 1

10 points

Oct 6, 2010 8:01 PM in response to David_o99

try these..

http://www.dslrphoto.com/dslr/3-easy-steps-to-tether-your-dslr-camera-to-an-appl e-ipad,17026.html

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/07/shuttersnitch-and-eye-fi-wireless-camera- tethering-for-ipad/

Rgds

David_o99 wrote:

I hope either an App or Apple will allow automatic import from a tethered camera. It would be extremely useful rather than having to manually import.

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