Free online SRW to PNG converter

A Samsung camera’s SRW files may be unusable in a web editor, document system, or application that accepts PNG but not camera RAW. Converting produces a broadly supported raster image for sharing or editing, but it no longer retains the editable sensor data.

What the SRW format is

SRW is Samsung’s RAW image format, used by Samsung digital cameras including many NX-series models. It stores minimally processed sensor data rather than a finished bitmap, together with exposure information, camera metadata, and sometimes an embedded preview.

Photographers create SRW files by selecting RAW or RAW+JPEG capture. Support depends on the camera model and decoder version; compatible applications include Adobe Lightroom, Adobe Camera Raw, darktable, and RawTherapee. A file may open in one application but not another if that application lacks the required camera profile or RAW decoder.

What the PNG format is

PNG is a losslessly compressed raster format supported by web browsers, operating systems, office software, graphics editors, and image viewers. It supports grayscale and RGB images, optional transparency, and commonly 8-bit or 16-bit channels.

PNG is suitable for screenshots, diagrams, text, and images that must avoid JPEG compression artifacts. It often produces much larger files than JPEG for photographs, and converting an SRW to PNG does not preserve the original RAW data; PNG losslessly preserves only the rendered pixels.

How to convert SRW to PNG

Using 101convert.com

1. Open the SRW-to-PNG converter on 101convert.com; no software installation is required.
2. Upload the SRW file, select PNG as the output format, and start the conversion.
3. Download the generated PNG and check its dimensions, orientation, colors, and metadata in an image viewer or editor.

Do not upload photographs containing private or sensitive information unless the service’s storage and retention terms are acceptable.

Using darktable

1. Install a current version of darktable and import the SRW through lighttable → import.
2. Open the photograph in darkroom and adjust exposure, white balance, highlights, noise reduction, sharpening, and color rendering as needed.
3. Return to lighttable, select the image, and open the export controls.
4. Choose PNG, set the output folder, and select 8-bit or 16-bit output. Use 16-bit when further tonal editing is planned and the receiving software supports it.
5. Click export and verify the resulting .png file.

Using RawTherapee

1. Open the SRW in RawTherapee’s file browser and confirm that the camera model is supported.
2. Set demosaicing, exposure, white balance, sharpening, noise reduction, and the output color profile.
3. Send the image to the processing queue.
4. Select PNG in the queue settings, choose 8-bit or 16-bit depth, and start processing.

Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop with Adobe Camera Raw can perform the same workflow: open the SRW, develop it, then use File → Export or File → Save As and select PNG. Menu names and RAW support vary by application version.

Quality and compatibility limitations

RAW conversion requires demosaicing and rendering decisions for white balance, exposure, color, sharpening, and noise reduction. Different decoders and settings can therefore produce visibly different PNG files from the same SRW.

PNG contains the rendered image, not the original sensor measurements, RAW adjustment instructions, or the full ability to recover clipped highlights and shadows. Keep the SRW, and preferably the associated RAW sidecar settings, if later exposure or white-balance changes may be needed.

For maximum editing latitude, export a 16-bit PNG with an embedded wide-gamut profile when the target application supports both. For ordinary web and application compatibility, an 8-bit sRGB PNG is usually the safer choice. Transparency is available in PNG, but a normal camera photograph is exported as an opaque image unless transparency is added separately.