Extract text from Blackmagic RAW videos (BRAW)
To convert BRAW videos to another format, you need DaVinci Resolve or other Video software.
To convert other file formats to the "Camera Raw Video Format" file type, you need software like DaVinci Resolve or a similar tool.
The .BRAW file extension represents a Blackmagic RAW Video file, a proprietary high-fidelity video format developed by Blackmagic Design. It is primarily generated by Blackmagic cinema cameras. Unlike traditional RAW formats like CinemaDNG, .BRAW performs partial demosaicing (debayering) within the camera hardware. This results in smaller file sizes and significantly faster playback performance on desktop editing workstations while retaining extensive color grading flexibility. You can natively open and edit .BRAW files using DaVinci Resolve, or via specialized plugins in Adobe Premiere Pro and Avid Media Composer.
Despite its efficiency for professional workflows, the .BRAW format presents several distinct disadvantages. It is a strictly proprietary format, meaning it is entirely unsupported by standard web browsers, mobile devices, and consumer media players. Files are exceptionally large, easily exceeding 100GB for a short 4K or 6K shoot, making them difficult to share, upload, or archive cost-effectively. Furthermore, playing these files requires substantial GPU processing power and specialized decoding software.
To share or review footage, users must convert .BRAW to more accessible formats like MP4 (H.264/HEVC) for web delivery or MOV (Apple ProRes / DNxHR) for collaborative proxy editing. Note that converting a raw format bakes in the color space (typically Rec.709) and discards the non-destructive sensor metadata, meaning you lose the ability to tweak ISO and white balance retroactively.
Standard online converters frequently fail to process .BRAW files because they lack the necessary debayering algorithms, proprietary color science (like Blackmagic Gen 5 Color Science), and the sheer server compute power required to decode raw sensor data. Because .BRAW is a closed, proprietary format, it is difficult to open or convert without native software. convert.guru provides a pragmatic solution: just drag and drop your file to see what it is, inspect the internal metadata, and convert it if a supported underlying proxy stream is detected.
Convert.Guru analyzes your BRAW file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted 3006, MOV, ZIP, MP4, JPG, PDF, KMZ, EXE, TRC, BRD, FLP, UNKNOWN and CSV files.
If you want to convert BRAW file to MOV, MP4, DNG, AVI, WMV, FLV, WEBM, MKV, M4V, 3GP, OGV or ASF, you can use DaVinci Resolve or similar software from the "High-Fidelity Raw Video Recording" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert MTS, MOV, RMVB, DIVX, RM, H264, TS, WMV, VOB, MP4, XVID or AVI files to BRAW, try DaVinci Resolve or another comparable tool in the "High-Fidelity Raw Video Recording" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our BRAW converter.