Can anyone explain to me why my picture looks like this?

Question

Okay, I'm new to this forum so I hope I'm not breaking any rules by posting a link to another forum. The reason I'm doing this is so that I don't have to keep covering the same questions over and over again. In this previous forum I have already answered probably most of the questions you  might ask, plus I have posted a picture of what my computer is doing to some of my pictures and I've posted a link to a RAW file where so far no one else has been able to duplicate the problem. Last week I downloaded the latest update to CS6 and since then I'm having this problem which is why I don't believe this is an issue with my CF card, camera, cable, or card reader. Again, if I'm violating proper forum etiquette I'm sorry, I just didn't want to have to keep repeating myself. Thanks for any help and advice you guys can give me. http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=1276253

Answer 1

Hi folks - I am a member of the Canon "Photography On The Net" (POTN) forum where the OP has asked the same question and to which she attempted to link in this forum.  The problem she appears to be having is that when she opens and edits 5DII raw files and saves them in PSCS6 as JPEGs the JPEGs end up with the appearance typically seen with a corrupt raw file (like one in which a read or write problem has occurred with a card reader).  The strange thing is, the raw file itself can be opened within ACR and brouhgt into PSCS6.  There appears to be some issue, according to the OP, with a particular threshold of JPEG compression that may be resulting in the bad JPEG file's appearance.  She is trying to find out if anyone is having similar issues with their most recent update to PSCS6 possibly causing similar problems.
The workflow, as much as I have been able to gather, is that the OP does not have a CF card reader, so she downloads the raw files via USB.  Although she has not stated explcitly how she does it, she then converts the raw files to DNG.  Each DNG is opened in ACR via mini-bridge and then brought into PS for editing.  Once the edits are performed, the file is saved as a JPEG.  For purposes of her print work, she decided that saving at max JPEG quality 12 was imperative. 
Initially, turning down the quality to <10 cleared up the issue, but then some images that were converted to black and white (although I do not know if the files themselves were still RGB or grayscale) and saved at quality level 8-9 caused the same saved JPEG appearance, as one would tpyically see in a corrupt raw file.  Although the black and white versus color thing may be a red herrring, the sporadic issue apparently persists under certain circumstances that may or may not be niformly reprodicible.
So, the bottom line is that the OP is trying to find out where in the workflow chain this error might be occurring and how to fix it.  I also tried breaking the raw file linked above via yousendit and had no problems saving it to sRGB, aRGB, grayscale, using both Save As... and Save for Web in CS6 with no problems.  I tried all of these variations at both JPEG 12 and JPEG 8-9.
Apparently the computer and install of CS6 is new as of late last year.  I do not know the OS, but it is a Windows machine.  All of the "testing" I did was on a Mac.
My guess is that the OP is trying to find out if anyone in the Adboe forum community has heard of similar issues, especially after the latest update to PSCS6, as this problem has just started to occur and the recent upate is the most obvious thing, timing wise, that would coincide with the issue's appearance.  It could also be a corrupt hard disk, or computer-related issue, but I am not a Windows user so I will defer in that regard.
I'll also take this opportunity to introduce myself to the Adobe forum - hello everyone!  Post number one complete.
Hope this helps.
kirk
Here is an example of one of the saved-from-within-PSCS6 JPEG files with the issue, posted by the OP in the thread on the other forum - I ahve reposted it here with assumed permission from the OP - if this presents a problem (forum rules, etc.) please notify me and I will remove it.  Frankly, I don't think it would be objectionable to the OP and will hopefully serve to clarify the issue furhter.