Raw image format
file format used in digital photography
A camera raw image file is a file that contains unprocessed data straight from a digital camera. Such data can later be changed into a photo, either within a digital camera itself or by usage of external tools. Raw files are so named because they are not yet processed, and contain large amounts of potentially redundant data. Normally, the image is processed by a raw converter, in a wide-gamut internal color space where precise adjustments can be made before conversion to a viewable photos for storage, printing, or further manipulation. There are dozens of raw formats in use by different manufacturers of digital image capture equipment.
Rationale
Raw image files are sometimes described as "digital negatives". Like transparency film and unlike negative film, raw image pixels contain positive exposure measurements. The raw datasets are more like undeveloped film: a raw image can be developed by software in a non-reversible manner to reach a complete image that resolves every pixel in an RGB or other viewable color space. Raw development adjustments include color, contrast, brightness and details recovery. A given raw dataset can be developed many times with different adjustments.
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This entry incorporates text from “Raw image format” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.