Camera manufacturers each have their own proprietary RAW format — Nikon uses NEF, Sony uses ARW, Canon uses CR2 and CR3, Olympus uses ORF, and Adobe created DNG as an open standard. When your editing software does not support your camera's specific format, or when you want to standardise your archive, you need to convert between them. This guide explains how to convert NEF, DNG, ARW, CR2, ORF, and other formats — what the conversion actually does, what it preserves, and the best free tools for each format.
Understanding RAW image formats
A RAW file is not a standard image format like JPEG or PNG. It is a minimally processed data dump from your camera's sensor — uncompressed or losslessly compressed sensor readings stored alongside the camera settings at the time of capture. The key word is "proprietary": every major camera manufacturer invented their own RAW container with their own metadata structure, compression scheme, and color science tags.
The major proprietary RAW formats
- NEF (Nikon Electronic Format) — Nikon's RAW format, used across all Nikon DSLR and mirrorless cameras
- ARW (Alpha Raw Wordmark) — Sony's RAW format, used in Sony Alpha cameras and full-frame mirrorless
- CR2 / CR3 — Canon's RAW formats; CR2 is the older standard, CR3 the newer lossless compressed format
- ORF — Olympus/OM System's RAW format, used in Micro Four Thirds cameras
- RAF — Fujifilm's RAW format, associated with the X-Trans sensor's unique pixel pattern
- RW2 — Panasonic's RAW format for Lumix cameras
- DNG (Digital Negative) — Adobe's open RAW container standard, adopted by many phone cameras and some DSCs
Note
What makes these formats incompatible
Each proprietary format has a different internal structure, different metadata tags for lens corrections and white balance, and different compression algorithms. Software vendors must obtain the camera manufacturer's codec, reverse-engineer the format, or use a library like LibRaw to decode proprietary RAW files. Newer camera models often outpace software support — a camera released in late 2024 may not be readable in Lightroom until Adobe pushes a Camera Raw update months later. Converting to DNG solves that gap.
Why convert between RAW formats?
The main reasons photographers convert between RAW formats fall into three categories: compatibility, archival standardisation, and workflow optimisation. Understanding which problem you are solving points you to the right conversion approach.
Software compatibility
Legacy RAW editors sometimes do not support newer proprietary formats. If you own Capture One 12 and buy a new Sony camera, the new ARW variant may not be recognised. Converting to DNG resolves this immediately — DNG support is universal across all major RAW editors including Lightroom, Capture One, RawTherapee, darktable, and Affinity Photo. The same applies if your camera produces CR3 files but your older Photoshop version only supports CR2.
Long-term archival
Proprietary formats are only guaranteed readable while the manufacturer provides codec updates and while software vendors maintain support. Adobe's DNG is an open ISO standard (ISO 12234-4), which means its specification is public and any developer can implement a DNG reader without a licence. Many photographers archive everything as DNG specifically because they are not dependent on a camera manufacturer's continued software support decades from now.
DNG is designed to be a long-term archival format for digital camera raw data, with a public specification that ensures files remain accessible regardless of the originating hardware or software ecosystem.
Reducing storage and simplifying workflows
Lossy DNG compression (introduced in Camera Raw 15) can reduce RAW file sizes by 20–40% with visually lossless results. For photographers shooting thousands of frames, converting to lossy DNG during ingestion meaningfully reduces storage costs while retaining full editing headroom. For batch processing or stock photography workflows, a single standardised format also simplifies cataloguing, search, and delivery pipelines.
How to convert NEF to RAW
NEF (Nikon Electronic Format) files are read natively by Lightroom, Capture One, and most modern RAW editors. The most common reasons to convert NEF files are compatibility with older software or archival standardisation into DNG. Here are the fastest methods for each scenario.
Open the NEF to RAW converter
Navigate to the NEF to RAW Converter. No account or installation is required. The tool processes your .nef file entirely in your browser — the image data never leaves your device. This is the fastest option for converting a single file without installing software.
Upload your NEF file
Click the upload zone or drag your .nef file directly onto it. The converter reads the file from your local storage using the browser's File API. For a batch conversion of hundreds of files, Adobe DNG Converter (free desktop app) is more efficient — it processes entire folders and maintains the original folder structure in the output.
Download and verify the output
Download the converted file and open it in your RAW editing software to confirm the image data is intact. The original pixel data is preserved; what may differ is how automatically-applied Nikon in-camera corrections (lens distortion, chromatic aberration) appear — some proprietary metadata may not carry across depending on the target format.
Tip
NEF to RAW Converter
Convert Nikon NEF files to standard RAW format in your browser — no upload, no signup, preserves original pixel data.
How to convert DNG to RAW
DNG is already a type of RAW — it is Adobe's open RAW container standard. "Converting DNG to RAW" most commonly means one of two things: extracting the embedded original camera RAW file from a DNG that was created with the "embed original" option, or converting a DNG for use with software that accepts a different specific format.
When DNG to RAW conversion makes sense
The most practical use case is when a DNG file was created from a camera-native format and you want to recover the original proprietary file. If a DNG was created with Adobe DNG Converter using the "Embed Original Raw File" option, you can extract the embedded NEF, ARW, or CR2 from inside the DNG. The DNG to RAW Converter handles this extraction directly in your browser.
DNG from mobile cameras
Smartphones using DNG output (Google Pixel, some Samsung models, all phones using the Camera2 API with DNG enabled) produce DNG files that do not contain an embedded native format — the DNG is the original. There is no "original RAW" to extract. Converting these to another format re-wraps the pixel data but does not recover any additional quality, since the DNG already contains all available sensor data from the mobile capture.
Warning
Converting ARW, CR2, ORF and other formats
The same conversion principles apply to every camera-native RAW format. The Quasar Tools suite provides dedicated converters for all major formats, each operating entirely in the browser without uploading your files to any server.
Sony ARW to RAW
Sony's ARW format is used across the Alpha lineup, including the A7 full-frame series and the APS-C ZV-E and A6000 series. The ARW to RAW Converter handles ARW files from any Sony camera generation. ARW is one of the better-supported proprietary formats in third-party software, but older ARW variants from pre-2018 Sony bodies occasionally have codec issues in specific software versions.
Canon CR2 to RAW
Canon's CR2 format was the standard for Canon DSLRs from 2004 to 2018, when Canon introduced CR3 for the mirrorless EOS R system. The CR2 to RAW Converter converts CR2 files for use with software that prefers a different format. CR3 (the newer Canon format) uses an ISO Base Media File Format container that is structurally different from CR2 — confirm your software supports CR3 before assuming conversion is needed.
Olympus ORF to RAW
Olympus (now OM System) ORF files from the OM-D and PEN series are handled by the ORF to RAW Converter. ORF is less widely supported in niche or older software than NEF or ARW — converting to DNG is the most reliable path for broad compatibility. Fujifilm's RAF and Panasonic's RW2 follow the same pattern: native formats with excellent support in mainstream software but occasional gaps in specialised tools.
HEIC to RAW
Apple's HEIC format is not a RAW file — it is a compressed image format used by iPhones for standard photos. However, iPhone ProRAW and iPhone 12 Pro+ cameras can capture DNG-based RAW files when ProRAW is enabled. The HEIC to RAW Converter handles HEIC inputs for compatibility purposes, but HEIC to RAW conversion produces output with the pixel quality of the HEIC source, not sensor-level data.
RAW conversion tools compared
Several tools handle RAW format conversion, ranging from browser-based converters to desktop applications. The right choice depends on file volume, privacy requirements, and whether you need batch processing.
| Tool | Browser-based | Batch support | Formats in | Free |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quasar Tools NEF/DNG/ARW converters | ✓ Yes | ✗ Single file | NEF, DNG, ARW, CR2, ORF, RAF, HEIC, more | ✓ Yes |
| Adobe DNG Converter | ✗ Desktop | ✓ Full batch | All major RAW formats | ✓ Yes |
| RawTherapee (export) | ✗ Desktop | ✓ Full batch | All major RAW formats | ✓ Yes (open source) |
| darktable (export) | ✗ Desktop | ✓ Full batch | All major RAW formats | ✓ Yes (open source) |
| Lightroom Classic (export) | ✗ Desktop | ✓ Full batch | All major RAW formats | ✗ Subscription |
| Capture One (export) | ✗ Desktop | ✓ Full batch | All major RAW formats | ✗ Subscription |
Tip
What to expect from RAW conversion
Understanding what changes and what stays the same during RAW format conversion prevents surprises when you open the converted file in your editing software.
What is preserved
The original pixel data — the actual sensor readings — is preserved exactly during container-to-container RAW conversion. Exposure, white balance, ISO, shutter speed, and aperture values in the EXIF metadata are also preserved. The visual quality of the image in a neutral RAW editor will be identical to the original file. The file is not re-processed, re-compressed, or degraded in any way that affects the pixel data itself.
What may differ
- Proprietary lens correction metadata — Nikon, Canon, and Sony each store lens profiles in manufacturer-specific tags that may not translate to the target format
- In-camera creative styles — Picture Control (Nikon), Picture Style (Canon), Creative Style (Sony) are preview-only hints stored in metadata, not baked into RAW data; they may not appear in some editors after conversion
- Focus point data — some software uses proprietary focus point metadata to highlight the active AF point; this tag is often format-specific and lost on conversion
- Thumbnail previews — the embedded JPEG preview inside the RAW container is regenerated or dropped depending on the conversion tool
When quality loss can occur
Converting RAW to JPEG or TIFF involves rendering the RAW data — applying demosaicing, white balance, and tone curve — which is a destructive process. But converting between RAW container formats (NEF to DNG, ARW to DNG, CR2 to DNG) does not render the image. The sensor data moves from one container to another. Quality loss only occurs if you specifically choose lossy DNG compression, which applies only to the pixel data and is configurable.
Warning
DNG to RAW Converter
Convert Adobe DNG files to RAW format or extract embedded native RAW data — browser-local, no server upload, free with no signup.
Key takeaways
- NEF (Nikon), ARW (Sony), CR2 (Canon), ORF (Olympus), and DNG (Adobe) are all RAW formats — proprietary containers for minimally processed sensor data from different manufacturers.
- The main reasons to convert between RAW formats are software compatibility with older editors, long-term archival in an open standard (DNG), and batch workflow standardisation.
- The NEF to RAW Converter, DNG to RAW Converter, and ARW to RAW Converter process files in your browser with no upload or signup.
- Converting between RAW containers preserves pixel data exactly — quality loss only occurs if you render to JPEG/TIFF or choose lossy DNG compression deliberately.
- DNG created from a JPEG source contains only JPEG-quality data — converting it will not recover any sensor-level information that was never captured.
- For batch conversion of hundreds of files, Adobe DNG Converter (free desktop app) or RawTherapee are more practical than browser-based single-file tools.
- Always verify converted files in your RAW editor before deleting the originals — keep original files backed up for at least several weeks after conversion.