Why does Raw file exported from Photos to desktop via “Export>Export Unmodified Original For 1 Photo” show up on the desktop as a jpeg?

Larry,

I have no reason to believe that somehow I replaced the original Raw file with a jpeg. I have never used CleanMyMac, MacKeeper, Gemini or other such programs to save space or clear my Mac. I have purposely stirred clear of all such trashy programs!

The images in this particular library were shot Raw + jpeg in 2008 with a Nikon D200 dslr. The Raw + jpeg pairs sit side by side. The Raw file I exported to the desktop is one that I had never worked with previously.

With iPhoto I have had no problems in editing Raw images in this library using Photoshop Elements as external editor. I was hoping to have equal success using Photoshop Elements as external editor with the Raw images migrated to Photos, but so far my efforts have not been successful. I have no idea what might be causing the problem.

Bob

Leonie,

I tried to edit the Photos Raw image in Photoshop Elements 15 using both the External Editors For Photos route and the Image>Open route. Both methods failed when the image opened up in Elements as a jpeg! The image should have opened as a Raw file in the Adobe Camera Raw plug-in of Elements. I thought that I would try a workaround by exporting the Raw file to my desktop and then opening that up in Elements. That procedure failed when the exported Raw file ended up on my desktop as a jpeg!

These problems have surfaced only after I recently upgraded from Sierra to High Sierra. Shortly before that I migrated the iPhoto library to Photos and successfully edited four Raw files in the Photos library by opening them up in Elements via the External Editors For Photos route. The upgrade to High Sierra seems to have nullified my attempts to edit my Photos Raw images in Elements by whatever method I use!

This is the only problem I have had with my iMac since upgrading to High Sierra. As usual, I waited several months after High Sierra was released before making the upgrade to help insure that most of the bugs had already been worked out. I can’t help but wonder if some bugs still remain!

Bob

Shortly before that I migrated the iPhoto library to Photos and successfully edited four Raw files in the Photos library by opening them up in Elements via the External Editors For Photos route.

When I select "Source Image (.RW2)" in External Editors, Photoshop Elements vanishes from the list of external editors in "External Editors". But for other RAW formats, like .DNG, I can open the RAW file in Photoshop Elements. External editors will launch Elements in Camera RAW.

https://discussions.apple.com/content/attachment/992377040

Leonie,

Thanks for the reply.

A long time ago I considered the possible advantages of converting my Raw (NEF) files to DNG files, but I was never able find a strong case for doing so. Most of the articles I read were not in favor of it. I just read an article titled “Why I No Longer Convert RAW Files to DNG” by pro photographer Nasim Mansurov. One of the reasons he moved away from DNG back to Raw files is compatibility. He found that most software either has limited support for DNG, or it cannot properly read DNG files at all.

Nikon has never adapted the DNG format. Having to convert my Nikon NEF files to DNG in order to edit them in Elements strikes me as a backward step. It hasn't been necessary with NEF files in iPhoto, and it wasn’t necessary with NEF files in Photos prior to the upgrade to High Sierra. Why should it be necessary now?

Still unanswered is the question of why the Raw file I exported from Photos to my desktop via “Export>Export Unmodified Original For 1 Photo ended up on my desktop as a jpeg. Presumably this export would not have involved the External Editors for Photos program.

Strange things have happened to Photos with the upgrade to High Sierra! I’m glad I can still operate with iPhoto Version 9.6.1.! Hopefully the issues with Photos will be resolved before iPhoto is no longer operable.

Bob

Leonie,

OK, I can understand why it was necessary for you to convert your Raw images to DNG because they weren’t supported by Apple. I’m not in the same situation and much prefer to not convert my NEF files to DNG.

I tried exporting several of the Photos Raw files to my desktop, and they all ended up on the desktop as jpegs. I had never edited any of these Raw files.

I decided to call Apple technical support to see if they could shed some light on this subject. Some interesting facts emerged! It turns out some of the Raw files in the Photos library I was working with had somehow been converted to jpegs! I say some because Raw files shot on 6/28/2007, 7/6/2007, and 8/2/2007 were converted to jpegs, but Raw files shot on six subsequent dates between 8/3/2007 and 11/22/2007 were not converted to jpegs. Weird! We found the same thing with the Raw images in the iPhoto library that was migrated to Photos. The Apple tech couldn’t explain this situation, and I can’t either. Maybe my Nikon D200 malfunctioned temporarily. No wonder I’ve been experiencing problems! The reason I was able to I successfully edit Photos Raw files in Elements before upgrading to High Sierra was because I happened to choose Raw images that had not been converted to jpegs.

While on the phone with the Apple tech I migrated another iPhoto library to Photos. The images in this library were taken much later in 2012 when I was shooting Raw only. The images in Photos remained Raw and had not been converted to jpegs like the Raw images in the earlier (2007) Photos library where I had shot Raw + jpeg. Here I was able to successfully edit a Raw image in Elements 15 using External Editors.

Incidentally I tried to revert those Raw files converted to jpegs back to Raw, but when I clicked Image the resulting menu showed Revert to Original grayed out.

I hope that this information may be of some use to you in responding to others who report strange things happening when they try to edit their images in Photos!

Bob

Leonie,

In shooting Raw + jpeg on the three dates between 6/28/2007 and 8/2/2007 all of what were supposed to be the Raw files somehow showed up in iPhoto as jpegs before any editing commenced. By the way, at that time I hadn’t gotten into editing Raw files, so any editing I did was of the jpeg images.

For your information here is a screenshot ( When I tried to insert the screenshot it wouldn't insert!) showing info on one of the supposed-to-be Raw files that showed up in iPhoto instead as a jpeg. Neither it nor its original jpeg twin next to it on the right has ever been edited. You’ll notice that the image has the Raw file name of RBB_0090.NEF, but the Apple tech support rep I talked with said the information in the rectangular box indicating it to be jpeg was the correct designation.

I have other iPhoto libraries containing images where I shot Raw + jpeg later in 2007. In all cases the Raw images showed up correctly in iPhoto as NEF files and not jpegs. The oddball instances where the Raw files ended up in iPhoto as jpegs appears to have been confined to the three dates specified above. Did the camera cause this or was it due to the way iPhoto handled the Raw files when they were downloaded from the camera? At this late date we’ll probably never know for sure!

Bob