Converting NEF files

[mpoletti]

I have the Nikon D40x and photoshop 5.5 first of all.

How do I convert nef files so I can work on them?

I tried shooting in Raw for the first time and I cannot seem to get by "Could not open the document because photoshop can not recognize the file extension".

Thanks

 

[Phyl]

My version of Photoshop (latest) opens the NEF just fine. Otherwise you can use a program like CaptureNX to open them. Did the cam come with any software?

 

[gregr]

You may be able to install the Adobe Camera RAW [ACR] patch though I'm not sure it will work with such an old version of Photoshop. Worth a try though.

 

[mpoletti]

Thanks Greg, but I guess mine is too old. I guess I will shoot in raw + jpeg mode.

 

[griffithimage]

you may be able to find some beta versions of a raw convertor software for the short term, try google

 

[VoidRaven]

If you install Nikon Picture Project (which may or may not have come with the camera) it may put the patch into PS for you. If not you can convert them in PP.

 

[mpoletti]

I have Nikon picture project installed. I started playing around with it, but I got frustrated with it so I stopped processing my pictures. Maybe I will pick it back up tomorrow while watching college football.

 

[VoidRaven]

Try using it to convert the NEF's to TIFF's and then work on the TIFF's in Photoshop.

 

[mpoletti]

Thank you.

 

[jthnhale]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11287806#post11287806 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by VoidRaven
Try using it to convert the NEF's to TIFF's and then work on the TIFF's in Photoshop.

I use PS CS2, I have PP 1.6 it came with my camera. I never used it before but just opened a NEF file and saved it as a TIFF. It took a long time for it to do this so I hope you are patient, but it does work

 

[nanocube24]

Well if you are using Nikon and shooting RAW the best software is capture NX, some people say it is slow but for the best results you can't beat it. capture does such a better job especially when shooting higher ISO images.

They have a free trial online and even if you do not want to spend to much time per image you can get some great results with presets.

There is a small learning curve but you will find it worth the effort.

I use Capture NX then output the image to PS3 for resizing and printing.

 

[KurtsReef]

Also Lightroom from Adobe.

Not sure if PS 5.5 can work with DNG files but I think you can get a free conversion tool from Adobe's website and turn your NEF files into DNG files which will still allow you to work with the RAW files.

Capture NX does a nice job, great job with the colors but it is slow as a dog even on a beefed up system.