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Camera RAW files: what they are and how to open them

A camera RAW file keeps sensor data for developing a photograph later. Our Android and Windows apps usually show the JPEG saved inside it. Use a RAW editor such as Lightroom or darktable to develop the sensor data.

Check your camera RAW file here

Choose camera RAW files Choose a folder

Nothing is uploaded. This page names the type and shows its details; to view it, use an app below.

What is a camera RAW file?

RAW is a family of camera formats, not one extension. This page covers Adobe DNG, Canon CR2 and CR3, Nikon NEF, Sony ARW, Fujifilm RAF, Olympus ORF and Panasonic RW2. Support in a RAW editor depends on the camera model as well as the extension.

A RAW editor can interpret sensor data with different exposure, white balance and color settings. An embedded JPEG is already developed by the camera or software that saved the file. Viewing that JPEG does not develop the RAW data.

What is inside

Many RAW formats build on TIFF directories, with tags pointing to sensor data, camera metadata and preview images. CR3 uses a box container instead. The file can hold several JPEGs at different sizes; a preview may be much smaller than the sensor image.

Our apps extract a saved JPEG and use available orientation and camera metadata. If it is absent, Windows refuses the preview; Android first tries the phone’s decoder. Some phone DNGs have only a small preview or no JPEG at all.

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camera metadatamodel, exposure, lens and orientation when present

sensor datadeveloped by a RAW editor

embedded JPEGthe camera’s finished preview; shown by our apps

The preview and the sensor data are separate parts of the same photo.

How to open a camera RAW file

Windows

darktableFree. Develops supported RAW files. Check its camera support list; some compression modes and DNG variants are excluded.
Adobe LightroomDevelops supported camera RAW files; check Adobe’s camera list for your exact model.
Universal File Opener for WindowsOursShows the embedded JPEG and camera details offline; converts to JPG or PNG. No sensor development. Image files over 96 MB are refused.

Mac

darktableFree. Develops supported cameras’ RAW data; its camera list names the exceptions.
Adobe LightroomDevelops supported camera models’ RAW photos and exports finished pictures.

Android

Adobe LightroomDevelops supported RAW photos; available tools depend on the app’s plan and camera support.
Universal File OpenerOursPreviews the saved JPEG offline and converts to JPG or PNG. The camera’s white balance and exposure stay in that preview.

In a browser

Use an exported JPEGOur browser opener does not develop these RAW formats. Export a JPEG or PNG in a RAW editor to view the finished photograph here.

Won’t open?

The preview is small or soft

The file may contain only a small JPEG. Our apps show that preview at its saved size. Develop the sensor data in Lightroom or darktable for a larger finished image.

There is no camera JPEG inside

Some RAW files contain no usable embedded JPEG. Android also tries its device decoder. If that fails, use a RAW editor that supports the camera, rather than renaming the file.

The colors differ from my RAW editor

A RAW editor can use its own camera profile and development settings. Our preview follows the JPEG saved by the camera or author. It does not apply your editor’s later adjustments.

My RAW editor rejects the file

Check the camera model and compression mode against its support list. Having the right extension does not prove that a particular camera variant is supported.

Convert a camera RAW file

To JPG or PNG previewUse Convert in our apps. This makes a copy of the preview, not a newly developed sensor image.
To a developed photographOpen the original in Lightroom or darktable, adjust the development settings and export a JPEG, PNG or TIFF as the editor permits.

Camera RAW files in our apps

View the embedded camera JPEG offline on Android and Windows, with available camera details, and convert to JPG or PNG. The raw sensor data is not developed.

All Android tools and limits for camera RAW files

Previews the saved JPEG offline and converts to JPG or PNG. The camera’s white balance and exposure stay in that preview.

Limits

Preview size depends on the JPEG stored in the file. Some phone DNGs have only a small preview.
Android tries its device decoder if a JPEG is missing; Windows requires an embedded preview. Exposure and white balance adjustments need a RAW editor.
Windows refuses image files over 96 MB. Editing works on a PNG copy and leaves the RAW unchanged.