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Is it possible to batch convert camera raw (mainly Nikon and Sony) to DNG files?

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newmoon

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Premium Cloud Member
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May 16, 2011
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78
Lightroom Version Number
LR CC Classic
Operating System
  1. Windows 10
Can I batch convert from NEF or ARW to DNG in LR CC Classic please?
If not is the best option to install and use Adobe Digital Negative Converter?
Thanks for my advice.
 
You can convert to DNG on import. After import it is a sub-menu item under Library in the Library module


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
Yes, you can batch convert in Lightroom Classic. You can do it on import, or later on.
 
Check your Classic book, Appendix E8 (2nd Edition). If you want to convert after Import, then it's like Cletus said. You can select multiple photos in Grid and do that in one go.
 
Great, thanks everyone. It’s after import I want to convert, so converting raw files I’ve already edited or downloaded.
I’ll have a look tomorrow (been a wet and windy day here so spent a lot of time on the computer today trying to learn Photoshop!).
 
Looking at this again and the Library>Convert Photo to Dng menu:
Capture.JPG

A couple of questions about what boxes to tick please:
  1. Do I want 'Use Lossy Compression' ticked
  2. Does 'Embed Original Raw File' makes the DNG file enormous?
The aim is to have a library of DNG files rather than proprietary raw, but not to lose any detail or have a degraded image file.

I'm using a Sony A7R4 so the files are quite large to start off with, but that isn't a problem as I'm not someone who snaps and keeps thousands of images a year, in a productive year I won't take more than 3000 images (including bracketing shots) and wouldn't keep more than 1000 and in time I'd reduce the keepers down to below 500. Storage isn't the issue or a driving concern.

However speed of processing DNG files in LR CC Classic and PS are considerations. My computer is decently powerful with plenty of Ram and a decent graphics card and I don't have processing speed problems with the Sony raw files, unless I do loads of LR processing, in which case I close the program and start it up again, which usually clears any lag that seems to build up.

Having the best quality image files I can manage for large prints in the primary consideration.

Thanks again.

David
 
1. That's your call. I personally don't, and as "best quality image files" is a primary consideration, then I'd think you wouldn't want to tick that box either.

2. Yes. I guess it might be useful for some, but I tend to keep a copy of the original raw files separately, so I have no need or desire to blow up the size of the DNG files by embedding the raw file in the DNG.
 
The generally accepted reason for converting your original RAW files is to reduce the footprint taken by the original RAW file A Lossless compressed DNG is a suitable replacement for the losslessly compressed original RAW. Lossy compression will create an even smaller size image file BUT at the loss of data the uncompressed and is not a suitable replacement for the original proprietary RAW file. This is not much better than shooting lossy compressed JPEGs and IMO defeats the purpose of shooting RAW. 'Embed Original Raw File' will create a separate data block copying the original RAW data block into the DNG wrapper. The end result is a DNG wrapper, one or more JPEG thumbnail preview data blocks , a DNG raw data block and a proprietary RAW data block. A much larger file than the original proprietary RAW file format. So, what is gained with 'Embed Original Raw File'?

FWIW, the wisdom and benefits of converting to DNG escapes me. I would never want to destroy my copy of the RAW image file that came out of the camera. So if I converted to DNG I'd still keep the proprietary RAW NEF like Jim Wilde does. Lightroom can work with the proprietary RAW file format just as easily as the non proprietary DNG, so no advantage there. The cost of disk storage is trivial today. You can store a whole lifetime of RAW shooting on a HDD costing less than $100USD.
 
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