April 20, 2020 | 5676 Views | By Dan Harlacher

Coming Soon – Power to the Preview

TL;DR
We all have tons of photos these days. We also keep them across many of our devices and platforms. Very soon, a new optional service (ON1 360° – Coming in June) will let you view and edit them on all your devices while keeping you in control of where the original files are stored. It can do this by using the upcoming ON1 compressed-raw file format, that you can view and edit on any device, without needing the download the original photo. These compressed versions take up much less space than the originals, meaning you can store a lot more of them in the same space, which means you spend less. The compressed versions have all the dynamic range and color of the original. They will be perfect for editing, sharing, and even printing standard sizes.

If you have more time…
I remember the days when all photographers had were one computer and one camera. The tech was super-expensive. Then laptops came along with better screens and more power, prices started to drop, and we began to have laptops and desktops. Every year, new and better digital cameras came out, tempting us with more megapixels. Suddenly we had more than one camera. Then the iPhone came out, and we had three cameras or more. Over a few years, we went from a simple one photographer, one camera, one computer world, to an involved community of creators, using multiple computers, tablets, cameras, phones, drones, networks, and drives. Today we create more photos than ever, and they end up all over the place.

This has created significant challenges for photographers when it comes to organizing photos. First, there are way more of them. Second, the file size of each photo has grown tremendously. Third, they may live in different places and on different devices. It isn’t practical to store copies of all your photos on every device. That’s where we can help. Coming soon to ON1, you will be able to choose to view and edit any photos that reside on any of your devices. That’s right, you can select which photos are viewable. You decide where they ultimately live. It gives you the power of cloud-based editing while leaving you in full control.

How do we do it you may ask? It’s powered by a special ON1 compressed raw version of your photos that we create on demand. These compressed versions maintain all the dynamic range (tone and color) and similar detail of the original files. Think of them as a compressed raw file. The compressed versions are securely stored in the cloud. When a device wants to view or edit a photo it doesn’t have, this version is sent to it. They are perfect for editing, sharing, and even printing standard sizes. Your original photo is safe however you choose to store and organize them.

Original Raw File Viewed at 100%
ON1 Compressed Raw File Viewed at 100%

The other great thing about the compressed versions is they require far less storage space. That means you need less storage for the same number of photos, compared to other solutions. For example, with solutions that require you to store the original raw images in the cloud to access them, you could store only 5,000 raw photos in 200GB of storage space. Compare that to ON1 compressed versions, and you can store 35,000. That’s enough space for many of us to have all of their photos viewable and editable remotely.

If you really need access to the original photos, you can always use the Original instead of the compressed version option as well. This lets you download the original file to any of your devices. The cool thing is you will be able to mix originals and compressed versions, you aren’t stuck with just one option. If you are going on a trip and you know you might need to send an original to a client of a job you are working on, just use the original option, and you can easily access it anywhere in the world.

Soon, with this optional service, it will be practical to have any of the photos you care about, accessible from any device, and any place you want. That is really what this is all about, what you, as photographers want. It’s about choice. You choose which of your photos you want accessible. It could be your portfolio, your current jobs, or every photo you have ever taken. You have the choice of where the original images reside. You have the choice of how to organize them. If you store your photos on external drives in sub-folders, great, why should you have to change that? Want to save money? Choose the editable compressed option, you can do the same stuff as the original. Want a choice about your editing, instead of cookie-cutter results and limited options, ON1 Photo RAW has all the professional controls and filters you need to make your photos look their best, all in one layered, non-destructive and now synchronizable workflow on all your devices.


2 comments on “Coming Soon – Power to the Preview”

  1. On April 20, 2020 at 3:49 pm Bernd Palmer wrote:

    Bernd Palmer

    Interesting, I’m eager to try it.

  2. On April 21, 2020 at 6:59 am Robert Benyon wrote:

    Robert Benyon

    “These compressed versions maintain all the dynamic range (tone and color) and similar detail of the original files. ”

    How? Can I then transfer my current RAW files to this format and delete originals to save disk space on my desktop computer if they are identical to this compressed RAW format?

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