Is .NEF Raw?

Messages
174
Name
Andrew
Edit My Images
Yes
What does .NEF stand for? It's RAW isn't it?
 
Yes it is Nikon equivalent of RAW.
 
Not sure there is actually such thing as a .raw file. Each manufacturer has their own version.
Nikon .nef
Canon .cr2
Fuji .raf

That's the ones I'm familiar with anyway.
 
Not necessarily :)
I can load a jpeg into Nikon Capture NX2, do some processing and then save it as a .NEF.
That does not make it a raw file but it does save it non-destructively so that I can open it up again at any time and re-edit the edits.
Obviously if the .NEF is from a Nikon camera then it is a raw file.
 
Last edited:
Not sure there is actually such thing as a .raw file. Each manufacturer has their own version.
Nikon .nef
Canon .cr2
Fuji .raf

That's the ones I'm familiar with anyway.

Original Canon format was .RAW (EOS10D for example)
 
NEF nearly always means Nikon's version of the raw format (or formats, since files from their various cameras differ in detail and generally won't be compatible with software that pre-dates the camera). Technically, all these (and several other raw formats like CR2 and DNG) are based on TIFF standards, which allow extensions and specify files that can hold raw data, processed image data (e.g. jpeg thumbnails), EXIF data and proprietary metadata. But of course these aren't what we normally think of as tiff files. As Kev mentions, Nikon also allowed you to generate non-raw NEFs from tiffs or jpegs in earlier versions of Capture NX. Back then, non-destructive raw edits were also saved back to raw NEFs as metadata. But in the current NX-D package, all edits are saved to sidecar files and you can no longer create NEFs from processed images. Nikon also (optionally) used a NEF format for their film scanner output files. These don't contain raw data and are best converted to tiff for compatibility.
 
Not sure there is actually such thing as a .raw file. Each manufacturer has their own version.
Nikon .nef
Canon .cr2
Fuji .raf

That's the ones I'm familiar with anyway.
raw data is exactly that, the raw data from the sensor without any processing applied.
The .nef, .cr2, .raf (and .orf and .arw) file extension is just there to identify the type of processing that needs to be applied in order to form an image.
I have read that .cr2 files are a "modified" form of TIFF (whatever that means), but I'm not sure about other brands.
 
Last edited:
I am hoping I can get Nikon Capture NX2 back again for my new computer. If not, my old laptop will have to be used for processing and then copy the pictures over to a hub storage box (Seagate 6TB thing that plugs in the side) from where I will be able to access it on this confuser for dissemination to wherever. I really like using NX2, I find it more controllable than Lightroom6, but maybe that is simply because I am still learning Lightroom, whereas I have 15 years experience of using NX(2), ever since my first digital experience when I moved from film, with the DX2.

I don't have the multiple image merging on Lightroom 6 - or if I do I don't know where to find it! Any help with LR6 gratefully received.
 
I am hoping I can get Nikon Capture NX2 back again for my new computer. If not, my old laptop will have to be used for processing and then copy the pictures over to a hub storage box (Seagate 6TB thing that plugs in the side) from where I will be able to access it on this confuser for dissemination to wherever. I really like using NX2, I find it more controllable than Lightroom6, but maybe that is simply because I am still learning Lightroom, whereas I have 15 years experience of using NX(2), ever since my first digital experience when I moved from film, with the DX2.

I don't have the multiple image merging on Lightroom 6 - or if I do I don't know where to find it! Any help with LR6 gratefully received.

Hi Simon,

The current version of Nikon Capture is NX-D (v. 1.6.2 I think), which can be downloaded for free from Nikon's web site. It will happily work with images you have edited previously with NX2 and will be a better fit with your nice new computer :)
 
Thanks you Bristolian - is it as easy to use? Does it have the colour control points and everything too?
 
It's different to before (the whole thing has been re-written from scratch). I think it's an improvement on the Capture NX package I had with the D300, but I never upgraded to Capture NX2. The current version does have control points.
 
Capture NX2 is a lot better than Capture NX-D.
Capture NX-D is a replacement for View NX2. It does have colour control points but it does not have any other selection tools. It also has the LCH tool and Levels & Curves. It is useful for a quick edit of NEF files as it is quicker than Capture NX2 but as it saves edits in a sidecar file Capture NX2 will not recognise them.
I have it happily running on Windows 10.
 
Last edited:
The replacement for ViewNX 2 is ViewNX-i, though as Capture NX-D has a decent built-in browser, I don't generally bother with ViewNX-i. Nikon appears to have abandoned saving edits back to NEFs, which seems sensible to me - better to leave them untouched. The NX 2 generation of software is of course only good for older cameras - these packages haven't been updated in several years.
 
The replacement for ViewNX 2 is ViewNX-i, though as Capture NX-D has a decent built-in browser, I don't generally bother with ViewNX-i. Nikon appears to have abandoned saving edits back to NEFs, which seems sensible to me - better to leave them untouched. The NX 2 generation of software is of course only good for older cameras - these packages haven't been updated in several years.

I haven't been updated for decades! I will be sticking with the D4s for as long as I continue to take photographs, it is more than capable enough. I might upgrade my compact at some stage, if anyone actually makes a good one again. The Coolpix P7800 has worked hard, been seawater doused on many occassions and still keeps coming back for more. I see they are very sought after in other markets, especially Japan. Perhaps they have suddenly been recognised for the brilliant compact they were. If I could find a decent one used I would buy it tomorrow.
 
Back
Top