NEF files not showing in file explorer

Software RawTherapee
1

Hi, new here. I just installed rawtherapee and none of my NEF files are showing up in the file explorer. If I go to a folder with jpg files, they all show up fine. I am using Windows 7 64 bit, photos taken with a Nikon D7100 as 14 bit. The files will open in Nikon’s ViewNX 2. I also tried right clicking individual files and opening them with rawtherapee, but it only opens the program and displays no photo at all.

I installed rawtherapee 4.2.1148, it didn’t work so I uninstalled it and tried the debug version to no avail. Tried once more with 4.2.1, still nothing. Am I overlooking something simple? Any help is appreciated!

2

Open Preferences, select the File Browser tab and check the setting of Parsed Extensions whether NEF is checked.

3

Checked in the Parsed Extentions tab, the only thing NOT selected is png. In windows explorer, the files have the rawtherapee logo as the file icon, but double clicking still brings up the program with no photo. Any other ideas?

4

I’m a little bit confused, Are you talking abput the file browser in RT or Windows Explorer.

Wenn you open a NEF file from Windows Explorer with RT, which version no. is shown in the title bar?

5

Sorry for the confusion, I checked the parsed extensions in the file browser in RT. That’s where NEF was checked. I was just pointing out that when I look for the files in Windows Explorer, they are indeed associated with RT since the program’s logo is the file icon. When I double click an NEF file in windows explorer, the RT window that opens says 4.2.1148

6

Does the RT file browser shows the thumbnails of your NEF files?
What happens, when you open an image within RT?

7

No, NEF files do not display even as thumbnails in RT. I’m not sure what happens when I open an NEF image with RT since I can’t have it find any to open. It displays and opens JPG files, though. Double clicking on a JPG takes me to the editor tab.

8

Can you please upload one NEF to filebin.net and post the link here?

9

Let me know if this works.

10

I tried using RT 4.2.1008 (gtk2) on Windows 7.

Edit: I confirm that RT does not show the NEF. DT shows a thumb but I when I try to open the file it fails too and shows a skull. IrfanView reports: Decoding error. Not a valid Raw file.

I opened the NEF in a HEX-Editor and see things like <MicrosoftPhoto:Rating> at the beginning of the NEF. I bet it’s not an original NEF from your camera but somehow modified by another software.

1 Like
11

I tried to open this NEF with AfterShot, LightRoom and UFRaw and none of them was able to load it.

The only chance you probably have is to get Nikon NX-D to develop it, as this loads something and gives the chance to convert it into 16bit tiff - but also NX-D only gives you a slightly small image of 1620x1080 pix

I think those

aren’t the real problem, but it looks like the header of the file is somehow broken. Cause if I open this NEF in Nikon NX-D it only offers me a dimension of 1620x1080 but reports a file size of 25.9MB. So if I compare this with one of my old D7100 images 27.8MB would represent 6000x4000. So that’s why I assume the header is broken. The image data is most probbaly still there but the “pointer” to where it beginns is missing … or something like this.

12

My point was that the NEF most likely is modified. Which modification broke it I don’t know.

13

sure, you are right

14

Nikon Transfer is known for corrupting raw files, and I see in the metadata that you used it @sotherbee. Avoid it like fire.
To repair these raw files, http://owl.phy.queensu.ca/~phil/exiftool/fix_corrupted_nef.html

If you’re looking for a libre program for uploading raw files from camera to PC and managing them and metadata, try digiKam:
https://www.digikam.org/
http://download.kde.org/stable/digikam/digiKam-5.1.0-02-Win64.exe

2 Likes
15

Thanks for all the help, everybody. What a huge oversight that the official Nikon software ruins photos, wish I knew that earlier.

Morgan, do you know how reliable that program is that repairs the files? I won’t be able to try it for probably a few days. I just used the Nikon software to upload the files to PC and change the name of them.

16

Very. This tool has been around for a long time and many of us use it. :slight_smile:

17

Which tool?

Edit: I think you mean exiftool

1 Like
18

No, but I’m counting on you letting us know in a couple of days ;]
And, as @patdavid said.

19

Wow, I had no idea of this! I haven’t knowingly been impacted, but if I was I doubt my first instinct would be to look into Nikon Transfer as a cause. Changing my habits immediately!

1 Like
20

Same thing happening to me with any raw file; at first I was thinking that only CR2 (Canon) files don’t show, but I also have a mirrorless Panasonic and I owned previously various other camera brands; no RAW showing up in RT file explorer.
List of cameras: Canon 350D, 30D, 5D (classic), 40D; Nikon D50, D700; Sigma SD14; Pentax K-x; Panasonic G5, Panasonic FZ1000.
No CR2, PEF, CR2, RW2 or X3F file is showing in the integrated RawTherapee file browser.
If there is something that „corrupts” the files, I’d like to know (but they are still usable by any other program: LR, Picasa or the Photos app integrated in Win10).
Using RawTherapee 4.2.1148/64bits on Windows10/64. I already checked RT settings, and all the extensions (minus PNG) were already selected to show.
P.S.: I just checked, if I right-click an image in Windows File Explorer and then select RT as the program to open it with, the image shows up and I can work on it. But if I go back to the integrated RT file browser, there is again no image showing up; just JPEGs, no RAWs.