Adobe Intros New Digital Camera File Format
September 29, 2004
Los Angeles, CA - Adobe Systems introduced a new digital camera format, called the Digital Negative Specification, for raw digital camera files, and has launched a free software tool to translate many raw photo formats into the new .DNG file format, compliant with the Digital Negative Specification.
Raw files, which contain the original information captured by a camera sensor prior to any in-camera processing, have become popular due to their promise of greater flexibility and image quality. Until now there has been no standard format for these files, which vary between manufacturers and individual cameras. The Digital Negative Specification solves this problem by introducing a single format that can store information from a diverse range of cameras.
Major camera manufacturers and industry leaders have expressed support for the format, among them Canon, Nikon, Fulifilm, Epson, Corbis, Microsoft, HP and Natinal Geographic.
Current raw formats are unsuitable for archiving because they are generally undocumented and tied to specific camera models, introducing the risk that the format will not be supported over time. The unified and publicly documented Digital Negative Specification ensures that digital photographs can be preserved in original form for future generations, the manufacturer describes.
The new .DNG file format also simplifies digital imaging workflows for creative professionals who today have to juggle multiple file formats as they bring raw images, from different cameras, into print and cross-media publishing projects.
The Digital Negative Specification is based on the TIFF EP format, an accepted standard, and already the basis of many proprietary raw formats. The power of .DNG format lies in a set of metadata that must be included in the file to describe key details about the camera and settings. .DNG-compliant software and hardware can adapt on the fly to handle new cameras as they are introduced. The new file format unifies conflicting raw formats, enabling the preservation of a pristine version of the original raw image and the metadata associated with it. .DNG is also flexible enough to allow camera manufacturers to continue to add their own "private" metadata fields.
The Digital Negative Specification is being posted to the Adobe Web site free of any legal restrictions or royalties, enabling integration of the .DNG file format into digital cameras, printers, and software products. By adopting .DNG, camera manufacturers eliminate the need to develop new formats, simplify product testing and ensure new cameras have a raw format immediately compatible with tools such as Adobe Photoshop CS and Adobe Creative Suite.
The Adobe DNG Converter is available now as a free download. This translates raw formats from more than 65 cameras, including recent models such as Canon PowerShot S60, Epson RD-1, Fujifilm FinePix S20 Pro, and Nikon Coolpix 5400, into the new .DNG file format.
Adobe also announced an update to the Camera Raw Plug-in, extending raw file support in Photoshop CS to more than 65 digital camera models and enabling Photoshop CS to handle files in the new .DNG format. Available as a free download from Adobe's Web site, the plug-in builds on the raw file functionality already available in Photoshop CS. Adobe Photoshop Elements 3.0 also supports .DNG files.
For more information, visit
www.adobe.com
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