What File Formats Does AI Culling Support?

The full RAW format list

File format support determines whether a culling tool can even open your take, so it is worth confirming before anything else about a piece of software. Cull AI Studio reads RAW files directly from these camera systems:

• Nikon: .NEF and .NRW
• Canon: .CR2, .CR3, and .CRW
• Sony: .ARW and .SR2
• Fujifilm: .RAF
• Olympus / OM System: .ORF
• Panasonic: .RW2
• Pentax: .PEF
• Samsung: .SRW
• DNG, the Digital Negative format used by Adobe, Leica, and many phone cameras

Beyond RAW, the software also reads standard JPEG, TIFF, and PNG files, so a mixed take, or a fully JPEG-only workflow, is fully supported alongside RAW.

Why RAW+JPEG pairing matters

Many wedding photographers shoot RAW+JPEG simultaneously, RAW for editing latitude and a JPEG as a fast preview or backup format. Culling software that treats these as two unrelated files creates a real problem: a RAW file could be kept while its JPEG twin is rejected, or vice versa, breaking the pairing your camera created on purpose. Cull AI Studio detects RAW+JPEG pairs automatically and keeps them together through every stage of the sort, so whatever decision is made for one applies to both, and you never have to manually reunite split pairs afterward. The mechanics of this are covered in more depth in the RAW+JPEG culling workflow.

A concrete example

A photographer shoots a wedding on a Canon body set to RAW+JPEG, producing .CR3 and .JPG pairs for every frame, mixed with some frames from a second shooter's Sony body producing .ARW files. Importing the full take into Cull AI Studio, every format is recognized without configuration: the Canon RAW+JPEG pairs are detected and travel together through KEEP, REJECT, or REVIEW, and the Sony ARW files from the second camera are analyzed and sorted the same way, alongside the Canon files, in the same project.

Honest limitations

File format support is not the same as guaranteed compatibility with every camera body or firmware version ever released; very new camera models occasionally introduce RAW format variants before broad software support catches up, so if you are shooting on a brand-new body, it is worth confirming support directly before a real wedding rather than assuming. Format support also only covers reading and analyzing the files; it says nothing about whether the software's scoring will match your standards, which is a separate question worth testing on a real trial.

How Cull AI Studio handles this

All of the formats listed above are read and analyzed locally on your computer, with no conversion step required before culling begins. Because the RAW+JPEG pairing and every format above are handled the same way regardless of which camera body produced the file, mixed-camera weddings, covered further in does AI culling work with two different camera bodies, are supported without any extra setup. If you are choosing culling software and want to confirm your specific camera fits before committing, this list, plus a real trial import, is the fastest way to check.