What is an NEF (camera RAW) file?
NEF is the camera RAW format of Nikon - Nikon DSLRs and Z-series mirrorless cameras. Instead of a finished photo, a RAW file stores the unprocessed data straight from the camera's sensor.
That gives photographers maximum room to adjust exposure, white balance and color afterwards, but RAW files are large (often 20-60 MB) and need special software to view. Converting to JPG produces a normal photo you can share right away.
How to open an NEF (camera RAW) file
Nikon NX Studio opens NEF files, and Adobe Lightroom, Photoshop (Camera Raw), Capture One, darktable and RawTherapee support them too. Mac Photos and Preview open most RAW formats; on Windows, the free Raw Image Extension adds support to the Photos app. Without any of these, convert NEF to JPG online.
- Extension
- .nef
- Made by
- Nikon cameras
- Contains
- Unprocessed sensor data
- Best for
- Editing straight-from-camera photos