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What Is RAW?
Janine van der Kooij - Vink
What is a RAW photo?
RAW. You’ve probably come across those three letters before—online or somewhere in your camera settings. But what exactly is it, and what can you do with it? We explain everything in this article.
RAW vs. JPG
Most cameras offer the option to shoot in RAW or JPG (or JPEG), and sometimes even both at the same time. By default, your camera will be set to JPG (Joint Photographic Experts Group). This is the most common file type and is used for many digital purposes—whether you’re sending a photo or uploading one to the internet.
RAW, on the other hand, is not suitable for sharing. You could compare it to an old-fashioned negative that had to be developed first. You wouldn’t show that to your friends either. A RAW file must first be converted to JPG. This conversion process is where RAW really shows its advantages.
The advantages of RAW
RAW contains a lot of unprocessed data—hence the name, which is not actually an acronym. The image data hasn’t been cast into a fixed mold yet and can therefore still be adjusted. For example, it’s easy to correct the white balance or save a photo that ended up accidentally over- or underexposed. With a JPG photo, these options are limited.
The sample photo is clearly overexposed. The clouds and the snow on the peaks have turned completely white, showing no detail at all. If we try to correct this photo as a JPG, you’ll notice the overexposed parts can’t be recovered. Simply put, there is no data there. The photo contains only white pixels where the clouds and snow should be—so texture and detail can’t be brought back. The RAW photo, however, does contain this data. That’s why we were able to restore the overexposed image beautifully during RAW editing. The subtle nuances in the clouds and snow are now clearly visible and easy to distinguish.
The disadvantages of RAW
Now that we’ve demonstrated the benefits, you may wonder why you wouldn’t always shoot in RAW. Still, there are two good reasons to sometimes stick with JPG.
RAW takes more time. As mentioned, a RAW file contains a lot of unprocessed data, which naturally takes up space. RAW files can easily be five times larger than the same photo in JPG. This means your memory card fills up much faster.
JPG files are smaller. Because a RAW photo still needs to be “developed”, the overall process of shooting in RAW takes more time than shooting in JPG. Before you have a file you can share with friends on social media, the RAW file must first be converted to JPG. Clearly, this step isn’t necessary when shooting directly in JPG.
How do I convert RAW to JPG?
To get the most out of your RAW photos, you’ll need to take some time to learn how to edit them. You can do this in Adobe Lightroom or Photoshop, but often also in your camera’s own software. If you’re not yet sure whether RAW is for you, you can shoot in both RAW and JPG—provided your camera supports it. That way, you’ll always have a ready-to-use JPG file. The downside is that this takes up even more space on your memory card.
Still, there’s no reason to be intimidated by the conversion process. It doesn’t have to take long at all. If you already have experience editing JPG photos, you’ll find that the process isn’t all that different. The only difference is that the result is better because you have more data to work with! Often, a little tweaking of the exposure, contrast and white balance is all you need.
One last tip: don’t delete the RAW file after converting it unless you’re sure you’re happy with the JPG result and won’t create any other versions. Converting JPG back to RAW is impossible—the unprocessed data is permanently lost. A RAW photo, however, can be converted to JPG as many times as you like.
Good to know
RAW is a collective term for many different file extensions. Each camera brand uses its own extension.
Here’s an overview:
- Canon: .CR2, .CR3
- Nikon: .NEF, .NRW
- Sony: .ARW, .SRF, .SR2
- Pentax: .PEF, .DNG
- Olympus: .ORF
- Panasonic: .RW2
- Fujifilm: .RAF
- Samsung: .SRW
- Adobe: .DNG
Brands also introduce new extensions from time to time. To keep opening them without issues, make sure your editing software is up to date.
Why choose RAW—or not?
By using a RAW codec, you give yourself room to correct exposure and colour errors. That opens up possibilities in post-processing. Still, not every photographer or videographer wants this. Recording RAW video requires time investment—it’s not a ready-made codec. Another potential drawback is data rate: RAW uses a lot of storage space on your hard drive.
Advantages of RAW
- Superb image quality
- No compression artefacts
- White balance in post-production
- Highlight retention
Disadvantages of RAW
- Large file sizes
- Not suitable for delivery
- High CPU usage
- Challenging workflow
The different types of RAW
To get a better idea of what’s happening under the hood of the various RAW codecs, let’s take a closer look at several of them.
cDNG
Let’s start by noting that cDNG is quite old (it has been around for about 13 years). It’s not used very often anymore. Still, cDNG can be considered the “original” RAW for video. It gives users (cinematographers and colourists) tremendous flexibility to craft their ideal image. cDNG was developed by Adobe with the intention of becoming the standard for RAW video recording and post-production.
REDCODE RAW
RED entered the market in 2007 with the RED ONE, a camera that offered unprecedented possibilities for digital video recording at a much more affordable price than its main competitors (Arri with the Arriflex D-20, Panavision with the Genesis and Sony with the CineAlta cameras). One of the unique selling points of the RED ONE was RED’s own RAW codec: REDCODE RAW.
BRAW
Blackmagic RAW stands out thanks to its “partial debayering”, where part of the image processing is handled in the camera itself. Remember those eggs we mentioned earlier? You could say BRAW is a kind of soft-boiled egg. It’s an acquired taste. BRAW does the heavy lifting in-camera and leaves the finer adjustments up to you—such as choosing white balance and ISO during post-production.
ProRes RAW
Although ProRes RAW was released by Apple in 2018, its integration into the workflows of filmmakers and content creators has been a slow process. ProRes RAW shows a lot of promise. There are two main reasons for its slow adoption. First, RED holds a patent for video recording with a compressed RAW codec, which means that for camera manufacturers it’s either impossible—or likely very expensive—to implement ProRes RAW directly into their cameras.
In terms of data rates, ProRes RAW comes in two formats: ProRes RAW and ProRes RAW HQ. These record between 320–800 Mb/s and 640–1120 Mb/s respectively for 4K files at 24 fps.
ARRIRAW
ARRIRAW is Arri’s proprietary RAW codec. It records individual frames, which are saved in the .ari format. It’s also possible to record ARRIRAW in an .mxf container, where the frames are combined into a single file. Unlike REDCODE RAW, ARRIRAW does not offer a range of compression ratios, which is likely why it’s not as popular. Many Arri users prefer to shoot their projects in the ProRes codecs for efficiency. ARRIRAW can be edited directly in Adobe Premiere, Blackmagic Resolve or Autodesk Smoke.
Canon Cinema RAW Light
Cinema RAW Light isn’t the only RAW codec Canon has implemented in its cameras, but as far as cine cameras go (C200, C300 III, C500 II), this seems to be the direction they’re heading. Even though they call it RAW “light”, compared to other compressed codecs such as BRAW or REDCODE RAW, the data rate of roughly 1 Gb/s is still quite substantial. Canon Cinema RAW Light can be used directly in common NLE (non-linear editing) systems, but depending on your NLE and hardware, playback may not always be perfectly smooth.
The Cinema EOS cameras that record Cinema RAW Light offer simultaneous proxy recording, which can help mitigate this issue.
