Shooting RAW plus JPEG stores every photo twice. When that is worth it and when it is not
RAW plus JPEG saves two files per shot, and Photos keeps both. How much it costs, what Photos does with the pair, and how to keep just one.
Many cameras offer RAW + JPEG: every press of the shutter saves a large RAW file and a ready-to-share JPEG. It is convenient, and it roughly adds a JPEG's size to every RAW.
| File | Typical size, 24 MP camera |
|---|---|
| RAW | 25 to 35 MB |
| JPEG, fine | 8 to 15 MB |
| Both | 35 to 50 MB per photo |
Over 10,000 photos, the JPEGs alone can be 100 GB.
What Photos does with them
When you import a RAW and JPEG pair, Photos keeps both as one photo and shows the JPEG, with the RAW available when editing. Both files are stored in the library.
Keep one or the other
| You | Keep |
|---|---|
| Edit most shots | RAW only. Export JPEGs when you need them |
| Rarely edit | JPEG only. Turn off RAW in the camera |
| Want both for a trip | Both, then remove JPEGs of keepers after editing |
Find the pairs in a folder
# How much space the JPEGs of RAW pairs take in a folder
cd ~/Pictures/Imports
for r in *.{CR3,CR2,NEF,ARW,RAF,DNG}; do
[ -e "$r" ] || continue
j="${r%.*}.JPG"; [ -e "$j" ] && du -k "$j"
done | awk '{s+=$1} END {print s/1024 " MB"}'Change the folder and file extensions to match your camera.
More for camera users: Mac storage for photographers, SD card full and Lightroom previews.
Related: darktable cache taking up space on Mac.
Common questions
Does shooting RAW plus JPEG use double the storage?
It adds the JPEG's size to every RAW, roughly 30 to 50 percent more than RAW alone on a typical camera.
Does Photos keep both RAW and JPEG?
Yes. It treats the pair as one photo, shows the JPEG, and stores both files in the library.
Should I shoot RAW or RAW plus JPEG?
If you edit most photos, RAW alone saves space and you can export JPEGs later. If you rarely edit, JPEG alone is simplest.