In the examples given, there is an existing pipeline from the “raw” input (CCD or unfused sensor data) to a simpler or less idiosyncratic thing (RGB pixel grid,

In the examples given, there is an existing pipeline from the “raw” input (CCD or unfused sensor data) to a simpler or less idiosyncratic thing (RGB pixel grid, position in space). The point seems to be, you still have a design choice to make about whether to use the raw or processed data. The processed data is conceptually cleaner to work with, but the raw data may be cleaner in the sense of more accurate. The processed data doesn’t depend so much on the details of the sensor (such as the layout of the pixels on the CCD), but it does depend on the details of the processing (in the sense that it relies on them). That’s not the same as having to choose or design a set of features, though, I don’t think.