ARW is Sony's in-camera RAW
ARW is the raw sensor data a Sony camera writes at the moment of capture. It's produced by the camera's own hardware and firmware — software can read it, but nothing can manufacture a genuine ARW from a finished CR2.
Looking to convert CR2 to ARW? Here's the honest answer — and what works instead.
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CR2 is Canon’s older raw photo format, holding unprocessed sensor data from EOS cameras for maximum editing flexibility.
CR2 opens in Canon DPP, Lightroom, Photoshop and most raw editors.
ARW is Sony’s raw photo format, storing unprocessed sensor data from Alpha cameras for full editing latitude.
ARW opens in Lightroom, Photoshop, Capture One and Sony Imaging Edge.
No. ARW stores the raw signal a Sony sensor recorded at capture. A CR2 is a finished image with that data already baked in and discarded — there's nothing for a converter to reconstruct.
RAW formats like ARW give maximum editing latitude — but only when they come straight from the camera. Converting a CR2 to ARW would just wrap a finished image in a RAW container, with none of the benefits.
DNG is an open RAW container. You can convert a camera's own RAW (including ARW) into DNG, but you still can't turn a regular CR2 into ARW or any real RAW.
CR2 converts cleanly to PNG, JPG, TIFF and WEBP — free, no sign-up, no watermark.