.ARW · 2013 · 24 MP full-frame

Sony A7 RAW Files: Open, Cull & Edit .ARW Free

The camera that launched Sony's full-frame mirrorless system and drew early adopters away from DSLRs for travel and portrait work. Autofocus and buffer depth were modest by later standards, so many owners bracketed shots to compensate. That habit left a lot of near-duplicate frames in early A7 archives worth thinning.

Sony A7 RAW at a glance

RAW formatARW — Sony Alpha RAW (.ARW)
Sensor24 MP full-frame
Resolution24 megapixels
Typical RAW sizeabout 20-24 MB
Released2013
RAW options14-bit ARW RAW, compressed by default on this early generation; no lossless-compressed option was offered.

Editing A7 files with imagic

imagic opens .ARW files from the Sony A7 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 20-24 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 Sony A7 use?

The Sony A7 writes ARW files with the .ARW extension. 14-bit ARW RAW, compressed by default on this early generation; no lossless-compressed option was offered.

How big are Sony A7 RAW files?

Expect about 20-24 MB per frame from the 24 MP full-frame 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 Sony A7 .ARW files for free?

imagic opens ARW files from the Sony A7 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 ARW

The A7's .ARW files share their structure with every Sony body using ARW — the full ARW guide covers compression variants, free openers, and conversion options in depth.

Other Sony bodies

Sony A7R IV Sony A9 II Sony A7S III Sony A7C Sony A1 Sony A7 IV Sony A7R V Sony A7C II

Cull a A7 shoot before your coffee cools

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

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