NRW is Nikon's in-camera RAW
NRW is the raw sensor data a Nikon 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 NRW from a finished JPG.
Looking to turn a JPG into a NRW file? Here's the honest answer — and what actually works instead.
You can't convert JPG to NRW. NRW is a camera's own RAW format — it only ever comes out of the camera.
NRW is the raw sensor data a Nikon 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 NRW from a finished JPG.
Your JPG is a developed, final image. The extra sensor information a NRW carries — wider dynamic range, full color depth, untouched highlights — was discarded when the photo was first saved, and can't be put back.
NRW is proprietary to Nikon. Even other RAW formats (NEF, ARW, RAF…) aren't interchangeable with it — there is no universal "save as RAW" that produces a real NRW.
Every real RAW file is one of these camera-maker-specific formats, written by the camera itself:
JPG (JPEG) is a lossy raster format that compresses photographs into small files by discarding detail the eye barely notices — the most widely used photo format on the web and in cameras.
How to open JPG opens in every browser, image viewer and editor with no special software.
Full JPG format guideNRW is the raw format from Nikon's Coolpix compact cameras — like NEF but produced by smaller-sensor models, holding unprocessed data for editing latitude.
How to open NRW opens in Nikon NX Studio, Lightroom and Camera Raw; convert to JPG/DNG for wider use.
Full NRW format guideLossless and uncompressed — ideal for editing, archiving and print.
JPG → TIFFLossless with transparency — perfect for graphics, logos and screenshots.
JPG → PNGA modern format with small files at high quality for the web.
JPG → WEBPConvert your NRW and other camera RAW files to JPG, PNG or TIFF.
Open the converter