# Lightroom RAW Conversion vs Nikon NX-D



## MikeQi (Mar 12, 2020)

I recently moved from a Nikon D810 to a Z7 Mirrorless, which is also higher resolution (45 MP). Disappointingly, I can see a subtle but noticeable difference between the raw conversion of Nikon's free NX-D software and Lightroom's, with the former being slightly sharper and with truer colors.  I am using the latest release (9.2) of Lightroom and have set the presets in  preferences to default to the camera settings. The difference is noticeable enough to push me to use the Nikon software for raw conversion of important photos, which would be a major hassle.

Does anyone have any idea why I am seeing these differences or what I might be able to do to fix this? Is it possible that Adobe hasn't fully refined it's profile for the Z7?

Many thanks!


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## Linwood Ferguson (Mar 12, 2020)

Be aware that the in-camera picture control settings are honored in Nikon software, but not in Lightroom.  Sharpening, noise reduction, contrast (shadow/black/white/highlight as well), and the profile used all have a big impact on the raw conversion, and the defaults in Lightroom may not be ideal.  Originally lightroom was very flat, but Adobe changed the defaults to be better (closer to camera's default), but what you are using will depend a lot on what you have done, how long you used it, etc.  

Generally speaking you should take a "typical" image of yours (I realize that is hard to define, but try) and then spend a lot of time working with the primary develop settings, especially the ones I mentioned above.  When you get them the way you like, just save as a preset (I would not include exposure and white balance in that preset, or anything else that is very shot-specific). 

What each of us see in lightroom for raw conversion may be quite different; there are a LOT of options.


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## clee01l (Mar 12, 2020)

My experience with the Z7 is that Lightroom processing is almost minimal. I’ve progressed through a lot of LR versions with a lot of Nikon cameras starting with the D800. From the D810, I moved to the Z7. I’ve alway shot raw and never processed with Nikon’s tools. RAW images always need processing in LR. At first all LR did was demosaic to RGB, add a little tone adjustment, white balance, sharpen and some noise removal. With each successive LR version, I found that I needed to do less LR processing. With v9.2 and the Z7, Lightroom does most of the work with the Conversion from Raw and I add very little processing of my own. 
I used to use develop presets, but I no longer feel that with the latest version of my camera and a Lightroom that I actually need them. Most of my Lightroom tweaking is a result Of the actual shooting conditions and my efforts to improve upon what nature gave me.


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