.CR3 File Extension

Canon introduced the Canon Raw Image 3 (CR3) format in 2018 when it released EOS M50, replacing the Canon Raw Image 2 (CR2) format ( .CR2 files). The CR3 format is based on the ISO Base Media File Format and includes custom tags and the crx codec , which supports lossless RAW and lossy C-RAW compressions. If saved with lossy C-RAW compression, the image is roughly 40% smaller with minimal difference in image quality.

The Canon EOS M50 comes with the Digic 8 processor, which allows it to capture images in the CR3 format. Earlier versions of Canon digital cameras used the .CRW and CR2 format. The CRW format is based on the Camera Image File Format (CIFF), and the CR2 format is based on the TIFF specification.

To open a .cr3 file, you need compatible software that supports this file format.