RAW formats
Data formats to save the image data without any mathematical post-processing. The format includes image information, consumer cameras also include info on how the image should be processed.
FITS format - Flexible Image Transport System format
Used by most cheaper laboratory cameras. Defined by NASA (initial release in 1981).
Header in ASCII. Big endian format. Can be 16, 32 or 64-bit image. BSCALE and BZERO parameters should be present. Stored from down up.
It’s a minefield. If you need to work with it, write your own software to handle it.
PGM format
Really simple format. Minimal header.
Commercial formats
- CR2, CR3 - Canon
- NEF - Nikon
- ARW - Sony
- RAF - Olympus
These formats contain:
- EXIF - data part containing image information
- Useful software - EXIFTools, Irfanview
- JPG - image (for preview)
- raw image data
Raw Image Decoder - LibRaw
Formats for final images
Lossy formats
Aims for minimal quality loss while decreasing image size.
Well known format is JPG (use only for viewing purposes). Better quality variant JPG2000.
Lossless formats
Use to save images without loss of quality.
PNG
Always lossless.
Compression parameter doesn’t affect quality. It only tells the software how much to try and find the best compression algorithm. It affects just the compression time, not the decompression.
Can be 16-bit. Every web browser can open any PNG (even at 16-bit). Most compatible image format there is.
TIFF
Quite general format. Preferably use PNG.