Let’s Talk About Cat Photography

A series of posts that gets back to basics for cat photographers starting on their feline photography journey.

Let’s Talk About Camera RAW Basics

Camera outline on a brown background

Let’s talk photo editing woes. You take a picture, you love it on your camera, then you open it on your computer and it’s so disappointing.

Maybe the colours seem wrong, the lighting needs help, and overall it just feels…meh. It happens to all of us, but it can be super frustrating, especially when you were so excited about capturing that perfect moment.

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

But. Did you know your DSLR or mirrorless camera (and maybe your smartphone) has a secret super power that can rescue a lot of your images? Let me introduce you to Camera Raw. It sounds a bit scary but stick with me to the end of the post to discover if RAW might be useful, knowing about it certainly is.

What is Camera Raw?

Camera Raw is a different way to take photos because it captures your image as data. Imagine it as something out of the Matrix movies, streams of numbers that are impossible to interpret until they are processed using a raw processor/editor.

DEFINITION. How to take photos in raw. A raw photo editor is software designed to process and enhance raw image files captured by digital cameras. Using raw editors/processors preserves the full data from your camera sensor, providing a lot of flexibility for post-processing. This ensures that your photos look their absolute best.

Fix the Photo
My Photo Might Look Like This? Oh My….

Do I Need a Raw Processor or Editor?

Yes. The data you see here is transformed from this scary jumble of data into an image when you open your photos using the raw processor.

Let me suggest three processors/editors when you want to explore camera raw. These will be helpful if your own software might not ready be ready to open the images. All of these are cross-platform compatible, which means they work on Windows PCs and Macs.

  • Here’s the kind of transformation you can make using camera raw. Your usual photo software might lighten the image but there would be a lot more blur, not the lovely definition of fur and eyes like you see in Toulouse and Jack below.
  • Under exposed image of a tabby cat
  • Clear image of a tabby cat against a blurry green leaf background
  • Ginger cat sat in the sunshine
    Original Capture
  • black and white portrait of a cat. Closeup.
    Black & White (Edited)

What Camera Raw Cannot Do

You cannot take a very rapid series of cat photos if your cat is running very fast and you want to capture and freeze its motion. Many cameras fall over their own digital feet processing the data ‘on the go’. Like me you might prefer to practice changing your shutter speed instead.

How Do I Add Raw to My Camera Settings?

To experiment with Raw and see if it is a function you can make use of, you will need to add the Raw option (aka RAW in capitals) to your image settings on your camera.

Here you can see a DSLR menu from my Canon camera menu. Look for something similar to these in your own camera’s menu. If you can’t find it, check your manual or an online resource.

A DSLR camera screen showing a menu including image quality

You will have an Image Quality button that stores your image options. You may have a lot more options but this list gives you an idea of image settings and file sizes.

  • Small – 720x 480 pixels. This takes up 0.3MB (megabyte) of space per photo
  • Medium 3456 x 2304 pixels 8.0MB (megabytes) of space per photo
  • Large – 5184 x 3456 taking up 10MB of space per photo.
  • RAW – 5184 x 3456 taking up 18MB per photo

Remember that a higher image size like 18MB means a larger picture and a much larger file size than 8.0MB.

Camera rear screen showing image quality settings.

Raw in Summary

It is easy to get swamped by discussions about RAW and JPEG formats that you find in dozens of photo blog posts. Most of these you will not need as you are on your own photo journey, at your own pace.

So, raw may not be something you will use immediately but the power it brings to your editing (called post-processing by expert photographers) can make a difference to your photographs, when the opportunity arises.

Explore it to see if you would find it useful. It’s an interesting next step to take in your camera and software exploration.

Let’s Talk About Shutter Speed

Camera outline on a brown background

Shutter speed can make real difference to your photos. If you are clueless or intimidated then let me give you a quick introduction to what your shutter can do.

Let’s Talk About Aperture

Faint Cat on a coloured background

New to cat photography? Let me introduce something you might like to explore. Aperture. What is it? How can it make a difference? Let me give you a quick run down.

Let’s Talk About ISO

Faint Cat on a coloured background

What is ISO? Do I need it? What is it anyway and should I even care?

For someone just starting out with cat photography in Auto mode on a DSLR, mirrorless, or smartphone camera, ISO might not be a concern. However, as your passion for capturing your feline family grows, you will naturally want to expand your photographic skills.

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

That’s where ISO comes in – it’s an essential part of your growing skillset.

  • ISO adjusts your camera’s light sensitivity.

What does ISO mean?

Let’s start with a short (and helpful) description of ISO.

If you look, you will find a lot of definitions and explanations online so I saved you a job by finding the best explanation (I think), and the easiest to understand.

The founders of the International Organization for Standardization (the group that created ISO standards for cameras) tried to find a universally understandable acronym, but it proved difficult with so many member countries and languages.

Instead, they chose ISO as a shortened version of the Greek word “isos” which means “equal.” This reflects their goal of creating international standards that would be equal and consistent across the globe.

ISO/Google
ISO on Canon Camera Rear Screen

How do you measure ISO?

Light is measured though your camera lens. This might seem obvious but cameras have so many buttons, bells and whistles that it is easy to get confused.

You adjust the camera’s sensitivity to light by changing your ISO. The lower the ISO number you set the less sensitive your camera is to light.

With all cameras, not just those used for cat photography ISO, starts at 100 and goes to 6400 on the cameras most of us cat lovers will use. A good place to start your explorations, especially using A or Av mode (which I love) is with ISO 100 or 200. This is great for a bright day outside, on a catio or a close to the window portrait.

Then start changing your settings and see what happens!

How do I set my ISO?

The best way to become more confident about setting your ISO is to play with your own camera. ISO will be adjusted with a dial, or as part of your camera menu screen. Check your manual if you are not sure or refer to your camera company’s web site.

Give yourself permission to fool around and play with your ISO. See what happens as you change the light sensitivity, in a spirit of exploration and fun.

This photo has an ISO of 200 and it is too low.

Raising the ISO to 800 gives a better picture.

Low ISO (100-400)

This is like turning down the sensitivity. Great for bright sunny days outdoors or well-lit rooms. It creates clean, crisp photos with little to no grain (also called noise). However, you might need a slower shutter speed which can blur moving cats. (1/250 is a good shutter setting for moving cats).

Medium ISO (400-1600)

This level of ISO turns up the sensitivity in your camera. It’s good for cloudy days, indoors with some light, or action shots where you need a faster shutter speed to freeze your cat’s movement. There might be some ‘noise’ also known as grain, but this shouldn’t overpower the photo. It is up to you, the photographer to decide how much noise suits your purpose.

What is Digital Noise? “Noise is a grainy veil in a photograph, obscuring details and making the picture appear significantly worse.”

Photography Life

Successful portrait of Thomas ISO 400

Thomas The Tuxedo Formal Adoption Portrait

High ISO (1600 and above)

Here you are really pushing your ISO (sensitivity) to cope with low-light situations. A high ISO will be great for capturing indoor cat naps or playful moments in the evening but, you can expect to see more digital noise, which can make photos look textured or rough. It is up to you to decide how you shoot and how you adjust your own ISO.

I could pack my short post with pictures to demonstrate each ISO but I know you will learn more by grabbing your camera or smartphone and doing something yourself. So get out there, tinker with your ISO and make this your first step out of Auto mode!

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