Camera RAW Formats, Explained

Every maker wraps its sensor data differently. These guides cover the nine RAW formats imagic opens natively — what each one actually is, how to open it free, and how to cull and batch-edit thousands of frames locally.

.CR3 · Canon
CR3 — Canon RAW 3

Canon's current RAW format, used by every EOS R mirrorless body and recent PowerShots.

.CR2 · Canon
CR2 — Canon RAW 2

The TIFF-based RAW format of Canon's DSLR era — 5D, 6D, 7D, Rebel and PowerShot lines.

.NEF · Nikon
NEF — Nikon Electronic Format

Nikon's RAW format across every D-series DSLR and Z-series mirrorless body.

.ARW · Sony
ARW — Sony Alpha RAW

Sony's RAW format for the Alpha and ZV lines, from the A100 to the A1.

.RAF · Fujifilm
RAF — Fujifilm RAW

Fujifilm's RAW format — including X-Trans files that demand a capable demosaicer.

.ORF · Olympus / OM System
ORF — Olympus RAW Format

The RAW format of Olympus and OM System Micro Four Thirds bodies.

.RW2 · Panasonic
RW2 — Panasonic RAW 2

Panasonic's RAW format across Lumix Micro Four Thirds and full-frame S-series bodies.

.DNG · Adobe (open specification)
DNG — Digital Negative

The open, documented RAW format — native to Leica, Ricoh and many drones and phones, and the standard archival conversion target.

.PEF · Pentax (Ricoh Imaging)
PEF — Pentax Electronic Format

Pentax's native RAW format — with the unusual in-camera choice of PEF or DNG.

Why RAW format knowledge matters

RAW files are not images — they are sensor readouts wrapped in maker-specific containers. That is why an older editor can open a decade of Canon CR2 but choke on a current CR3, and why Fujifilm X-Trans RAF files look smeared in software with a weak demosaicer. Knowing what your camera writes tells you what your software must be able to read, and how much storage and culling time a shoot will really cost.

imagic opens all nine formats above on Windows and macOS, scores every frame for sharpness, closed eyes, and composition, groups duplicate bursts, and batch-processes keepers through its bundled RawTherapee engine — locally, with nothing uploaded. Explore the camera-by-camera guides for your body, or see how imagic compares to other RAW software.

One workflow for every RAW format

Cull, pick, batch-edit, export — free for 7 days, no card required. One-time licenses from €19.