RAW is the unadulterated, unprocessed image file type that SLR and prosumer cameras use.

Unfortunately, RAW files are huge and take up a lot of storage space.

Without compression, a 12-megapixel camera would produce a RAW file of 12MB at least and editing becomes cumbersome.

Still, RAW files provide the serious photographer tremendous depth for editing. Over-exposed - also known as "burnt" or "hot" - areas can be recovered while the "black point" can also be adjusted to remove "cold" spots (areas where the black is not properly exposed). Because of the "lossy" (where photographic details are lost with each compression) nature of JPEG files, such recovery is not possible with photos shot in the popular JPEG format

Is it worth shooting in RAW? Yes, if you are serious about your photographs.

The good news is that Aperture 2 from Apple handles RAW photographs with ease and with speed. While the original Aperture was the first complete RAW workflow software and made waves with features like the Loupe tool and 100X magnification, its handling of the huge RAW files was slow at best and the biggest bugbear.

Aperture 2 will be known for making light work of RAW files with Quick Preview. Essentially, Aperture 2 displays a JPEG preview to make it faster to run through its collection of images. Stop at a particular image and Aperture loads the RAW file so that it can be edited.

Adjustments are made on data layers so the original unedited master remains intact. Image processing is far speedier, unlike Photoshop which manipulates every pixel of a photograph. This changes the original and works more slowly.

Also, while the original Aperture worked only on the "pro" Macs, Aperture 2 ran easily on my non-pro MacBook with no noticeable slowness.

If any adjustment made is deemed unsuitable, it can be switched off with a click of the mouse.

The interface in Aperture 2 has also been reworked and though this is a "pro app", it presents its tools very simply so that even the point-and-shoot photographer can work it. The Projects, Metadata and Adjustment panels - for filing, information and editing - have been consolidated into a single pane known as Inspector, which makes navigation easier and faster.

In full-screen mode, Inspector comes up as a Heads Up Display and there are many single-key shortcuts (like z for zoom).

Most importantly, Apple has opened Aperture 2 to third-party plug-ins a la Photoshop. So if you liked plug-ins like Dodge and Burn for adjusting the exposure in specific parts of the image, you will find these in Aperture 2.

To complete the suite, Aperture 2 also comes with image storage and tagging, so searching for images is via a quick keyword search. Aperture 2 is able to export the images as JPEG, send to print on attached colour printers, or via the Internet for bromide printing. It even has the photo-book capability - where photographs can be laid out album-style into a personal coffee-table book - found in iPhoto and that is becoming so popular.

In fact, Aperture 2 also integrates effectively with other applications, especially iPhoto. So, it's possible to load the RAW photos into Aperture, edit them and then export the JPEG version to iPhoto and vice versa.

Similarly, Mail, iMovie and Keynote provide a media browser that displays Aperture photos.

What does Aperture lack? Well, it is not the answer to all your photography issues. In its raw form, the software lacks all the filters of Photoshop, like turning a photograph into a watercolour painting, or solarising the shot for effect. These must be added by third-party plug-ins.

Aperture, though, is meant for photographers to clean up their shots to bring out the best in the photo. In this, Aperture 2 does such a good job it is a truly compelling tool for any photographer. At $328 ($158 for an upgrade), Aperture 2 is a must-have for non-professionals too.

By Jeffrey Tsang, a Mac user who runs his own public relations firm.

This story was first published in The Straits Times Digital Life on 20 August 2008.

For more stories, visit straitstimes.com