AVIF to NEF Converter

Encoding: the AVIF uses lossy or lossless AV1 intra-frame coding; NEF uses uncompressed, lossless compressed, lossy compressed, or High Efficiency on recent Z bodies, and the download is a Linear DNG: demosaiced 8-bit RGB with the colour matrices raw editors need.

Bit depth: 8, 10 or 12 bits per channel in the AVIF; NEF allows 12 or 14 bits per channel, and the DNG written here has 8 bits per channel, linearised. 10 and 12-bit AVIFs, including HDR ones, are decoded to 8 bits per channel.

Colour: YUV 4:4:4 or 4:2:0 with BT.709, Display P3 or BT.2020 primaries, HDR curves possible in the AVIF; NEF supports camera RGB from a Bayer mosaic, written here as 8-bit sRGB.

Transparency: the AVIF stores it as an auxiliary AV1 image stored beside the colour image; the DNG has none, so transparent areas are filled with the colour you choose.

Animation: an AV1 image sequence under the 'avis' brand; the DNG holds one image, so only the first frame is converted.

Metadata: the AVIF can carry EXIF, XMP and ICC stored as HEIF items; NEF can carry EXIF and Nikon maker notes, partly encrypted, plus a thumbnail and a larger preview, but nothing is copied across.

AVIF uses the AV1 video codec for still images. It is the most efficient widely supported format, often half the size of JPEG, with HDR, wide colour and transparency, but encoding is slow.

An AVIF is a HEIF file, the same ISO base media boxes as MP4, with the brand 'avif'. The picture is an AV1 key frame stored as an image item, and its size, colour and pixel layout are item properties.

AVIF files usually come from image CDNs, modern web build pipelines and some recent phones.

NEF is the raw format of Nikon cameras, from the D1 to the current Z series. It stores 12 or 14-bit sensor data, uncompressed or compressed, with a JPEG preview the camera renders using its Picture Control.

NEF is TIFF-based: the first directory usually holds a small thumbnail, and sub-directories hold the sensor data and, on current bodies, a full-size JPEG preview. Nikon's maker notes are a TIFF structure of their own, and since the D2X their white-balance block is encrypted with a key derived from the camera's serial number and shutter count.

NEF files come from Nikon DSLRs (D-series) and Z-series mirrorless cameras.

Forms and workflows that ask for NEF usually feed a raw editor, and each of those opens DNG as well, so the DNG can take the NEF's place. Keep the AVIF if you only need to view or share the picture.

What NEF offers when it comes straight from the camera: Lossless compressed mode with no data loss; Picture Control recorded so Nikon NX Studio can reapply it; 12 or 14-bit sensor data. Its drawbacks: Partly encrypted maker notes; The lossy compressed mode discards some sensor data; Large files on high-resolution Z bodies.