Photographer Austin Mann Demos iPhone 12 Pro ProRAW Capabilities

[MacRumors]

Photographer Austin Mann, who is known for his camera-focused reviews of Apple's iPhones, today shared details on ProRAW, the new format that Apple enabled for the iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max with the iOS 14.3 update yesterday.

ProRAW is a RAW format for iPhone that also takes advantage of all of the computational photography features that Apple builds into the iPhone. As Mann explains, it combines the computations necessary for accurate imaging with user control over preference parameters like white balance, noise reduction, sharpening, and more.

To test the new ProRAW feature, Mann used the iPhone 12 Pro Max to shoot a meteor shower at night. He took the same photo in both ProRAW and standard mode and edited the photos in Lightroom. The ProRAW version captures more detail in the sky, highlighting the stars that were erased by noise reduction in the standard image.

Standard HEIC image on left, ProRAW image on right​

Mann includes a video on the benefits of ProRAW when it comes to HDR scenes that have bright sunlight and shadows, as well as the expanded color range. Images shot in ProRAW are 12-bit color, allowing for more nuanced shades and a significant improvement in color depth.

With 12-bit color, 14 stops of dynamic range, and dramatically more creative control, Apple ProRAW is a massive leap forward in professional imaging with iPhone. I'm now comfortable relying on my iPhone 12 Pro to capture a strong photograph in virtually any light conditions because I know I'm able to custom tailor the processing to my taste, instead of relying on computational generalizations designed for most users.

According to Mann, shooting in ProRAW makes the most sense in extreme scenarios where Apple's general algorithms are unable to do all the work. Indoor mixed lighting, extreme low light, and super high dynamic range images have the potential to benefit from ProRAW settings.

Mann points out that ProRAW files must be edited and are not ready to be shared straight out of the camera, and the feature is not available in Portrait or Panoramic mode. Mann has additional tips on shooting in ProRAW in his full piece on the new feature.



Article Link: Photographer Austin Mann Demos iPhone 12 Pro ProRAW Capabilities

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

This is just amazing wow! Mind-blowing.

 

[contacos]

Looks great! But I am scared my relatives will enable this only to complain half a year later how they cannot open their photos on their toshiba laptops or printing stations at the super market 😩 just like HEIC

 

[JosepPont]

Well, it is amazing for a phone but the limitation always will be the pixel size and the noise in long exposures. Maybe in a near future we will see a night/astrophotography discipline with photos taken with phones.

 

[GadgetBen]

It looks amazing, I still don't understand how to work it though.

 

[rmoliv]

Low-light and night photography has still a long way to go on phones.

 

[locrumo]

Pictures are small and the quality is awful and people are saying woow because of iphone and ProRAW. LOL
hypehpehype

 

[johnmarki]

I'm looking forward to using Apple ProRAW so much! His examples have re-enforced my decision to go with the Pro Max.

 

[hoodlum90]

Halide posted a detailed update today on how ProRAW works.

Understanding ProRAW

We make the most popular RAW camera for iPhone, so when Apple revealed their new ProRAW image format, we were beyond excited. Then they announced it’s coming to the built-in camera app. Many developers in our shoes would freak out, thinking Apple wants to gobble up their customers. We

blog.halide.cam

 

[Traderman09]

This is just amazing wow! Mind-blowing.

This is very cool

 

[Apple Knowledge Navigator]

It looks amazing, I still don't understand how to work it though.

If you own an iPhone 12 Pro/Max, shooting in ProRAW is an option that is available in the camera settings.

 

[lkrupp]

Looks great! But I am scared my relatives will enable this only to complain half a year later how they cannot open their photos on their toshiba laptops or printing stations at the super market 😩 just like HEIC

The ProRAW format is for professional photographers or photography nerds. Normal users would have no reason to use it. But maybe you should just your relatives to sell their iPhones and buy Android as I suspect that’s why you posted in the first place. Lemmings need conformity.

 

[LeadingHeat]

Halide posted a detailed update today on how ProRAW works.

Understanding ProRAW

We make the most popular RAW camera for iPhone, so when Apple revealed their new ProRAW image format, we were beyond excited. Then they announced it’s coming to the built-in camera app. Many developers in our shoes would freak out, thinking Apple wants to gobble up their customers. We

blog.halide.cam

Let me tell you, I have a new, profound appreciation for Apple’s dev team and engineers. That is some SERIOUS behind the scenes computational photography going on. And they made the format open sourced for other developers and photographers to use. Very very very cool.

 

[cub4bearin]

So the real advantage is mainly for iPhone 12 Pro Max.
iPhone 12 Pro due to its hardware (lack of sensor stabilization) might not be as good during night pictures, right?

 

[MEJHarrison]

It looks amazing, I still don't understand how to work it though.

Same here. I'd turn it on, but editing the file is beyond my skills at this point. I'd end up with something horrible looking I'm sure. I might play with it at some point just to experiment, but I'm not a photographer and don't pretend to be. There would be a large learning curve for sure. It's a skill I'd love to pickup, but that won't happen this evening.

I love these threads. It's always nice to see the "pros" mocking people for wanting to use their iPhone and bragging about how large their equipment is. Every time there's a story that suggests an iPhone isn't the worst camera in the world to have in your pocket for an amateur, they come along to school us. I learn sooooo much.

 

[jz0309]

highlights the reason that professionals and hobbyists with DSLR (or mirrorless) shoot in RAW and not in jpeg ...

 

[jz0309]

So the real advantage is mainly for iPhone 12 Pro Max.
iPhone 12 Pro due to its hardware (lack of sensor stabilization) might not be as good during night pictures, right?

no, it's marketing positioning ... stabilization is nice for low light but one could use a tripod, and the processor is the same

 

[contacos]

The ProRAW format is for professional photographers or photography nerds. Normal users would have no reason to use it. But maybe you should just your relatives to sell their iPhones and buy Android as I suspect that’s why you posted in the first place. Lemmings need conformity.

huh? I don’t even have an android phone. In fact I have three iPhones sitting next to me on the couch right now

 

[bigboy29]

Looks great! But I am scared my relatives will enable this only to complain half a year later how they cannot open their photos on their toshiba laptops or printing stations at the super market 😩 just like HEIC

That might not be an issue, as it is mentioned in the review:

After you turn on ProRAW, it doesn’t stay on forever. It’ll stay on for that session, and even if you lock your iPhone and return to it within a few seconds, ProRAW is still on. But after a few minutes, ProRAW is turned off. This is probably a good thing because ProRAW isn’t essential for all iPhone pictures, but keep an eye on this if shooting in ProRAW is important to you.

 

[PictorGuy]

I guess it's just me but there is quite a bit of noise in those photos. For a phone, that's impressive. But I wouldn't go shouting about the quality.

 

[Cosmosent]

For clarity, the Data is 12 bits, while the Container File Format is 14 bits.

 

[hugodrax]

Well, it is amazing for a phone but the limitation always will be the pixel size and the noise in long exposures. Maybe in a near future we will see a night/astrophotography discipline with photos taken with phones.

Iphone 14 will have a micro peltier cooling mechanism.

 

[[AUT] Thomas]

According to Mann, shooting in ProRAW makes the most sense in extreme scenarios where Apple's general algorithms are unable to do all the work. Indoor mixed lighting, extreme low light, and super high dynamic range images have the potential to benefit from ProRAW settings.

This is the best summary one could possibly write for ProRAW. "have the potential to benefit" is the icing on the cake...

 

[ericinboston]

Pictures are small and the quality is awful and people are saying woow because of iphone and ProRAW. LOL
hypehpehype

I agree. If you're a photographer or simply really into photography (or heck, even just night shots), why spend $1400 on a phone when the same amount (or easily less) on a DSLR will yield far, far better results.

I live in a rural area and have a great view of the sky. I would love to have the time to learn more about night photography and take some great shots. We have the most awesome views of the moon a few times every single month.

 

[HiRez]

I agree. If you're a photographer or simply really into photography (or heck, even just night shots), why spend $1400 on a phone when the same amount (or easily less) on a DSLR will yield far, far better results.

I live in a rural area and have a great view of the sky. I would love to have the time to learn more about night photography and take some great shots. We have the most awesome views of the moon a few times every single month.

Well because even photographers aren't going to have their pro cameras with them all the time but still find themselves with interesting opportunities. I'm not a pro photographer, but I shoot with a Nikon and some expensive glass and also have a much more compact Ricoh GRIII, which is great, but I still find myself in a lot of situations where my iPhone is all I've got, so having it be capable of taking better photos, and editing them later in Lightroom, is very appealing.