.PEF · 2017 · 24 MP APS-C

Pentax KP RAW Files: Open, Cull & Edit .PEF Free

A compact, weather-sealed enthusiast body with unusually high ISO range for a Pentax DSLR, popular for low-light and travel work. Handheld low-light shooting encourages extra frames per scene as a hedge against motion blur. Sorting those safety frames down to the sharpest is a routine step in editing this camera's output.

Pentax KP RAW at a glance

RAW formatPEF — Pentax Electronic Format (.PEF)
Sensor24 MP APS-C
Resolution24 megapixels
Typical RAW sizeabout 24-30 MB
Released2017
RAW options14-bit PEF RAW with lossless compression; DNG is also available in-camera.

Editing KP files with imagic

imagic opens .PEF files from the Pentax KP natively on Windows and macOS. Point it at a card or shoot folder and it builds previews, scores every frame for sharpness, closed eyes, and composition, and groups near-duplicate bursts — so a full shoot collapses to its keepers before you edit anything.

Processing runs through the bundled RawTherapee engine, entirely on your machine: batch-apply one look across the keepers and export JPEGs in a single pass. Nothing uploads, which matters at about 24-30 MB per frame. The 7-day trial is full-featured and needs no card; licenses are one-time, from €19.

Frequently asked questions

What RAW format does the Pentax KP use?

The Pentax KP writes PEF files with the .PEF extension. 14-bit PEF RAW with lossless compression; DNG is also available in-camera.

How big are Pentax KP RAW files?

Expect about 24-30 MB per frame from the 24 MP APS-C sensor, depending on compression settings and scene detail. A full shoot adds up quickly, which is why culling before editing matters on this body.

How can I open Pentax KP .PEF files for free?

imagic opens PEF files from the Pentax KP natively on Windows and macOS — the 7-day trial needs no card. It culls the shoot with AI quality scoring, groups duplicates, and batch-processes keepers locally through its RawTherapee engine.

More about PEF

The KP's .PEF files share their structure with every Pentax (Ricoh Imaging) body using PEF — the full PEF guide covers compression variants, free openers, and conversion options in depth.

Other Pentax bodies

Pentax K-1 Pentax K-1 Mark II Pentax K-3 Mark III Pentax K-3 Pentax K-S2 Pentax K-3 II Pentax K-70

Cull a KP shoot before your coffee cools

AI quality scoring, duplicate grouping, and local batch processing for .PEF — free for 7 days, no card required.