RAW photos are exactly what the name implies: uncooked—or unprocessed—images that are ready for prepping and serving. In their rawest form, photographs contain a large amount of information that provides more freedom and better results when editing and converting files.
Due to a lack of compression, RAW images can get quite large, taking up a lot of space on your device or SD card. Therefore, you should only consider using the format if you plan to do some serious editing.
When you save photos in other formats, you lose the ability to make meaningful adjustments to attributes such as color, exposure, and sharpness.
But because RAW files contain uncompressed information direct from your camera sensor, you have more freedom to manipulate the uncooked images and achieve the results you desire.
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Not all smartphones are capable of taking RAW photos. If the option is missing from your device and you want to go RAW, you may need to consider upgrading or purchasing a digital camera.
With that said, let’s discuss how to shoot RAW photos with a compatible Samsung, Google, and Apple phone.
How to shoot RAW photos on Samsung
Here’s how to shoot RAW photos on a Samsung phone:
Launch the Camera app and tap the Settings (gear) icon
Tap Save options/Picture formats under Pictures
Toggle on Save RAW copies
Go back to the camera viewer and tap More > Pro
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To take RAW photos, you must be in Pro mode. Also, saved images will appear in the usual location, which should be the Gallery app unless otherwise specified.
How to shoot RAW photos on Google Pixel
Here’s how to shoot RAW photos on a Google Pixel:
- Launch the Camera app and tap the Settings (gear) icon
- Select More settings
- Tap Advanced
- Toggle on Raw+JPEG control
As a note: Before taking a photo, you may need to tap the Settings (gear) icon and select RAW beside RAW+JPEG.
How to shoot RAW photos on iPhone
Here’s how to shoot RAW photos on an Apple iPhone:
- Go to Settings > Camera
- Then, tap Formats
- Toggle on Apple ProRAW under Photo Capture
- Launch the Camera app, tap the RAW button, and take a photo
And there you go. That’s how you take iPhone pictures in RAW format.
Should you take photos in RAW format?
If you’re a casual photographer and aren’t doing any serious editing, going RAW probably isn’t worth the storage space.
You can still edit images saved in other formats, and most people won’t notice or care that your social media post of a salad went direct to JPEG.
If, however, you’d prefer to work with photographs in a more natural state, going RAW may be worth the effort.
Have any thoughts on this? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.
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