DNG - removing RAW

[paulpowici]

Lightroom Version Number

10.4

Operating System

1. macOS 11 Big Sur

Sometime ago I decided to change all my RAW files to DNG and took the option to embed the original RAW file, although I have that backed up separately. Now am a little concerned about the file sizes and the memory they take up so would prefer to remove the RAW file from the DNG. Have tried the "extract" option and indeed that leaves me with the RAW file as a separate file, but seems to leave it embedded in the DNG file.
Does anyone know a way I can convert the DNG files so that it is as if I never embedded the RAW file to start with?
If it helps I keep all my files on OneDrive.

 

[Jimmsp]

I doubt if you can do that. If you really want just the dng file, you could basically "start over" by extracting the raw file, tossing the combined dng file, then converting the raw file to dng only. But that seems like a lot of useless work to me.

If it were me, and I was worried about space, I'd extract the raw file and leave it on OneDrive, then move the combined raw/dng files to an external hard drive.

 

[clee01l]

I think Jimmsp is correct. You can not reverse the process. I think it is important to understand the DNG format. Inside theDNG are several blocks or containers. First, there is the DNG header block. It contains the metadata and descriptions of all the following blocks or containers. One of the containers in hour case will be a complete copy of the original RAW file including its containers for metadata, JPEG thumbnails, perhaps even a full size JPEG and a container for the RAW Photosite values. Other containers besides this Original RAW file container can be can be an RGB (i.e. not RAW) data block, thumbnail RGB data blocks. And a RAW container of photosite values.

The important part her is that the DNG format is very versatile and very extensible.

Your best solution would be to extract the original RAW file from your DNG OR if you have it the Original proprietary RAW file itself.

You do not need the DNG at all especially this bloated DNG. There is very little if any benefit from copying the metadata and RAW Photosite data blocks from a Proprietary RAW file format that Lightroom can already read perfectly. Well to a Public file format (DNG) that the camera manufacturer will certainly not be able to process with their RAW processing software.


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[paulpowici]

Thanks to both - is what I thought. I will put up with it for now as need to keep all the processing I have done available in Lightroom.

 

[clee01l]

Thanks to both - is what I thought. I will put up with it for now as need to keep all the processing I have done available in Lightroom.

You can extract the original RAW file from your current DNG , store it in the same folder, remove the DNG from that folder and point the catalog to that new RAW file when the Catalog reports the ‘original’ as missing. After that, you can toss the huge DNG and keep the smaller proprietary RAW file.


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[Johan Elzenga]

You can extract the original RAW file from your current DNG , store it in the same folder, remove the DNG from that folder and point the catalog to that new RAW file when the Catalog reports the ‘original’ as missing. After that, you can toss the huge DNG and keep the smaller proprietary RAW file.


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It may not be so easy to ‘relink’ an image to one with a different file extension. I am not so sure Lightroom will do that, so try this first before you do anything drastic.

 

[Jimmsp]

It may not be so easy to ‘relink’ an image to one with a different file extension. I am not so sure Lightroom will do that, so try this first before you do anything drastic.

Probably true.
The brute force method I mentioned above - remove the raw, toss the combined dng( or first move it to an external), & reconvert the raw to a dng without the embedded raw will probably work , and you may not even have a missing file. Then he can take the raws to an external drive.