I’m honored that you chose me to help you document your special memories. A large part of that magic happens in post-processing- after the photo shoot.
I don’t give away my RAW files, and the best way I can think of explaining why is summed up nicely in the following excerpt:
“You see, photography these days is not just about the camera. Actually, it never was.
“Today’s photography is a process by which an original image is transformed into something beautiful and moving by the photographer. That post processing is part and parcel of the ‘photographer’s eye’, his or her artistic ability. When you purchase his/her photography talents, you are paying for the after the shot photographers skills. Granted there are some photographers who do everything ‘in camera’. However, more often than not, post processing plays a key role in the final photograph. Someone asking for the RAW files is asking the photographer to NOT FINISH his/her artistic process. Sounds like a bad idea to me.
“There’s a great debate going on in the photographic community about digital files, whether they should be released and under what circumstances. I’m not going there but I have observed that many of the most talented photographers – the gifted ones that we all admire, strive to emulate, and probably can’t afford – do not give their files away. Not because they are stingy. Not because they are trying to maintain snobbish exclusivity. I believe they are so committed to the high quality of their final photograph – that amazing, stunning imagery – that they refuse to allow someone else to alter it.
“You see, fine photographers don’t just create a product, they create something they love and one does not let the things one loves be tampered with. ” – from “Brides: Do you want RAW photo files?” at Wedding Photos USA