SRF File Format (.srf)

An SRF file stores raw sensor data from an early Sony Cyber-shot camera such as the DSC-F828, with parts of the file encrypted so that, originally, only Sony's own software could fully decode the white balance and color data.

.srfImage Files

SRF at a glance#

Full name	Sony Raw Format
File extension	.srf
Category	Image Files
Developer	Sony Corporation
First released	2003
MIME types	image/x-sony-srf
Compression	Uncompressed
FileFlip support	FileFlip reads this format but does not write it

What a .srf file can hold#

These are the things a SRF file either supports or does not, and they are what decides whether a conversion keeps everything or quietly drops something.

Lossless compression	Yes
Embedded metadata	Yes
Colour profiles	Yes

Strengths and limitations of SRF#

What SRF does well

Stores uncompressed sensor data straight from the camera, with nothing discarded before processing

Where SRF falls short

Sony encrypted portions of the file, so early third-party raw software could open the image but not read the correct color data until the encryption was worked around
Only appeared on a handful of prosumer Cyber-shot models before Sony moved on to SR2 and then ARW
Sony's current Imaging Edge software no longer supports it

SRF only exists as the format an old Cyber-shot camera such as the DSC-F828 already wrote; there's no reason to choose it today.

Convert SRF files to DNG or JPEG, since current raw processors have far better support for those than for Sony's original encrypted raw format.

How to open a .srf file#

A .srf file opens in the programs below, grouped by the platform you are on. If you would rather not install anything, FileFlip converts SRF into a format your machine already opens, and it does it in the browser tab rather than on a server.

Platform	Programs that open it
Windows	Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Lightroom Classic
macOS	Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Lightroom Classic
Linux	darktable, RawTherapee
Web	FileFlip

SRF questions people ask#

What Sony camera creates SRF files?

SRF files come from early Sony Cyber-shot cameras, most notably the DSC-F828, which was among the first Sony cameras to offer raw capture. Sony moved on to the SR2 and later ARW formats within a few years.

Why do colors look wrong when I open an SRF file?

SRF files from Sony's early Cyber-shot cameras have parts of the file encrypted, including white balance and color data, so software that hasn't worked around that encryption can decode the image but not its correct color rendering.

Can current raw software open SRF files?

Some can. Adobe Camera Raw and Lightroom Classic retain legacy support for SRF, and open-source tools like darktable and RawTherapee decode it through libraries that reverse-engineered Sony's encryption, but support is far thinner than for Sony's current ARW format.

Converting SRF files#

FileFlip does not write .srf files, so nothing on the site converts into this format. It works as a source only.

Every conversion runs inside your browser. The file is read from your disk, the work happens on your own machine, and nothing is uploaded. How FileFlip works names the engine behind each family and how to verify that for yourself.