How to shoot RAW (DNG) photos on Android
RAW keeps what your phone's sensor actually recorded, before any processing, so you can fix white balance, highlights and shadows later. Here's how to check that your phone supports it, turn it on, and get a good file out of it.
What RAW gives you, and what it costs
A normal phone photo is a JPEG. The camera has already chosen the white balance, brightened the shadows, pulled back the highlights, removed noise, sharpened the edges and thrown away most of the data. A RAW file keeps what the sensor recorded before those decisions. On Android it is saved as a DNG (Digital Negative), a RAW format that nearly every photo editor can open.
That matters when you edit. With a DNG you can:
- change the white balance afterwards, as if you had set it in the camera;
- recover more detail from bright skies and dark shadows than a JPEG allows;
- decide how much noise reduction and sharpening you want, instead of living with the phone's choice.
It isn't free. A DNG is several times larger than a JPEG, it looks flat until you edit it, and a single RAW frame usually skips the multi-frame merging your phone does for its JPEGs. In dim light a RAW file can be noisier than the phone's own JPEG. Shoot RAW when you plan to edit, and when the scene has light worth recovering.
Check that your phone can shoot RAW
RAW capture depends on the camera hardware, and on what the manufacturer exposes to apps through Android's Camera2 interface. Most recent mid-range and flagship phones allow it on the main camera. Support on the ultra-wide and telephoto lenses varies more, even on the same phone.
The simplest check is to try it. Camera apps that read your phone's capabilities, One Camera included, only show a RAW option when the camera actually offers it.
Option 1: your phone's own camera app
Some manufacturers put RAW in their own camera app. Menu names change between software versions, so treat these as directions rather than exact paths:
- Google Pixel: open the camera settings and look under Advanced for a RAW + JPEG option.
- Samsung Galaxy: RAW is tied to Pro mode. Look in the camera settings for picture format options such as RAW copies.
- Other brands: look for a Pro or Manual mode, then a RAW or DNG switch in its settings.
If your camera app has no RAW option, a third-party camera app can often still get one, because it talks to the camera directly.
Option 2: One Camera
One Camera saves a DNG alongside the JPEG, so you keep a ready-to-share photo and a file to edit later. RAW is part of One Camera Pro, which you can try free for seven days.
- Install One Camera and open it.
- Tap the settings gear in the viewfinder.
- Under Photo, turn on RAW (DNG + JPEG). If the switch isn't there, your phone's camera doesn't offer RAW to apps.
- Optional: also turn on Neutral, so the JPEG next to your DNG skips the phone's sharpening and noise reduction too.
- Shoot. Both files are saved to
DCIM/Camera, with names startingOC_, so they appear in your gallery and back up as usual.
Some gallery apps show only the JPEG, or show a DNG as a small preview. The full RAW data is still there. Open the DNG in an editor to see it.
Opening and editing DNG files
On the phone, Adobe Lightroom Mobile and Snapseed both open DNG files. On a computer, Lightroom Classic and Capture One handle them, and so do the free darktable and RawTherapee. An order that works for most shots:
- Set white balance first.
- Set exposure, then bring the highlights down and the shadows up.
- Add contrast and colour to taste.
- Finish with noise reduction and a little sharpening, judged at 100% zoom.
Getting a good RAW file
- Protect the highlights. Once a bright area clips to white, RAW can't bring it back. If the sky is blown out, lower the exposure a little. Shadows recover more easily than highlights.
- Keep ISO low. A small phone sensor gets noisy quickly. In manual mode, use the lowest ISO the shutter speed allows.
- Steady the phone in low light. Lean on something, or use a small tripod with the self-timer, so you can use a slower shutter instead of a high ISO.
- Watch your storage. RAW fills a phone fast. Turn it on for the shots that need it, not for every snapshot.
Questions
Is DNG the same as RAW?
DNG is a RAW file format. Android saves RAW photos as DNG, which most photo editors can open, so on Android the two words mean the same thing in practice.
Why does my RAW photo look worse than the JPEG?
A RAW file hasn't been processed yet. It skips the phone's brightening, colour, sharpening and usually its multi-frame merging, so it looks flat, and can look noisier, until you edit it.
Can every Android phone shoot RAW?
No. It depends on the camera hardware and on whether the manufacturer exposes RAW to apps. Most recent mid-range and flagship phones do on their main camera. Other lenses vary.
Where are RAW photos saved on Android?
Usually next to your other photos in DCIM/Camera. One Camera saves the DNG there alongside the JPEG, with filenames starting OC_.