What is it that RAW Developer gives you that makes it worthwhile to use yet another tool? Some folk swear by Silkypix. I wonder to what extent differences people report are real! It does seem likely that some programs might be better for certain subjects and not others or dealing with one facet exceptionally well. Then there's the simple fact that the tool one knows the best often is the one one can use best! Asher
Exactly, that's why I use RD and C1. I had LR as well when it came out, but haven't used it since ages, I dislike its smeary rendering of shadows and its monster-beeing with 250 buttons, sliders and pulldownboxes. When working for hours in front of the screen, you start liking a smooth converter with few controls - the image has my concentration - and not the editing with slider-here and button-there...
Still today it happens that I try in both converters - RD and C1 - prior to develop. You will see differences all the time, just because they' re different, they have different render engines. Basically working with 2 converters helps getting the images correct - straight out of the converter and reduce destructive postwork in PS.
As Nicolas pointed out, you can work with RD pretty precisley, and it produces lots of details - a filmlike look - with even a bit of "grain". I don't understand Nicola's a
large serie of file-problem, but I usually don't have very big series.
I use RD less outside but more in the studio, (using the linear toncurve adapted from Nicola's linear workflow in C1..) meanwhile C1 renders very smooth the tones of natural light.