Our 18MB 14-bit Canon camera produces RAW images (converted to uncompressed DNG) that are about 22MB. On a Win7-64bit CS6 workstation, the PSD file that is created from the DNGs has the following sizes (single layer, no masks/paths, maximum compatibility):
- 16 bit, DNG as smart object: 207MB (10x of the DNG)
- 16 bit, DNG as rasterized layer: 187MB (8.5x of the DNG)
- 8-bit (less information than the DNG), DNG as smart object: 115MB (5.2x of DNG)
- 8-bit (less information than the DNG), DNG as rasterized layer: 95MB (4.3x of DNG)
Just for kicks, a blank 8-bit image with a white background layer saves as 818KB, adding a few scribbles with the brush tool saves the file at about 30MB.
Am I missing something? Is this normal? I know that storage is cheap these days, but sheesh! Does anyone know of a more efficient workflow?
thanks!
JP