Camera Raw Files
If the explanation…
“Camera Raw files are magical time machines”
…is enough for you, you can skip over this semi-technical explication.
All digital cameras have a rectangular Light Sensor right behind the lens. It collects a huge amount of information about the scene being shot, which — even on Earth — can range from the blinding glare of the sun to the blackness of a cave. The sensor detects more colors than your eyes can see; some sensors even detect infrared and UV light.
Then the camera’s built-in computer takes over. The electronics analyze all of that data, boil it down, make some educated guesses about White Balance, Contrast and a dozen other things… and the final product is a JPEG file that you can upload to Instagram™.
Most of the time it looks great and that’s the end of it, but not in space. Fortunately NASA — being NASA — saves every scrap of data. They actually archive the “raw data” from the Light Sensor, before it has been processed. So you can download the auto-everything JPEG in a few seconds, or you can download a huge Camera Raw file, which takes eleven minutes. Most people choose the JPEG.
Having a Camera Raw file is like being able to go back in time
and adjust the camera perfectly, just before the click.
A Camera Raw image can be adjusted to expose
surprising details in the bright and/or dark areas.
The center photo is the only browse image on the NASA website.
That’s another reason that these photos have been overlooked for decades;
it takes an experienced eye to understand the potential of an unpolished gem.
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