rawtherapee-cli
Batch process RAW photos from the command line
TLDR
Convert RAW to JPEG
$ rawtherapee-cli -o [output.jpg] -c [input.raw]
Apply processing profile$ rawtherapee-cli -p [profile.pp3] -o [output.jpg] -c [input.raw]
Batch convert directory$ rawtherapee-cli -o [output_dir/] -c [input_dir/]
Output as TIFF$ rawtherapee-cli -t -o [output.tif] -c [input.raw]
SYNOPSIS
rawtherapee-cli [options] -c inputfiles_
DESCRIPTION
rawtherapee-cli is the command-line interface for RawTherapee, processing RAW image files. It applies the same powerful processing as the GUI version in batch mode.
PARAMETERS
-c FILES
Specify input files/directories to convert. Must be the last argument.-o PATH
Output file or directory.-O PATH
Like -o but also copies the applied .pp3 profile as a sidecar file next to the output.-p FILE.pp3
Apply the given processing profile.-d
Use the built-in default processing profile.-s, -S
Use an existing sidecar .pp3 next to the input. -S skips images with no sidecar; -s silently falls back to the default profile.-q FILE
Use an alternative sidecar file for every processed image.-a
Process all supported files, including hidden ones.-j[1-100]
Output JPEG; quality is attached with no space (e.g. `-j95`). Forces 8-bit output.-js1|2|3
JPEG chroma subsampling: 1 = 4:2:0, 2 = 4:2:2, 3 = 4:4:4.-t[z]
Output TIFF; append z (`-tz`) for ZIP compression.-n
Output PNG (uncompressed).-b8|16|16f|32
Output bit depth for TIFF/PNG (JPEG is always 8-bit).-f
Fast-export mode (reduced quality, faster processing).-Y
Overwrite existing output files.-h, -?
Display help.
EXAMPLES
$ # Basic conversion
rawtherapee-cli -o output.jpg -c photo.CR2
# With profile
rawtherapee-cli -p default.pp3 -o output.jpg -c input.NEF
# Batch convert folder
rawtherapee-cli -o processed/ -c raw_photos/
# High quality JPEG
rawtherapee-cli -j95 -o high_quality.jpg -c input.raw
# 16-bit TIFF
rawtherapee-cli -t -b16 -o output.tif -c input.raw
rawtherapee-cli -o output.jpg -c photo.CR2
# With profile
rawtherapee-cli -p default.pp3 -o output.jpg -c input.NEF
# Batch convert folder
rawtherapee-cli -o processed/ -c raw_photos/
# High quality JPEG
rawtherapee-cli -j95 -o high_quality.jpg -c input.raw
# 16-bit TIFF
rawtherapee-cli -t -b16 -o output.tif -c input.raw
CONFIGURATION
/usr/share/rawtherapee/profiles/
System-wide processing profiles (.pp3) providing preset development settings for different styles and corrections.~/.config/RawTherapee/profiles/
User-created processing profiles saved from the RawTherapee GUI.Sidecar .pp3 files
Per-image processing profiles stored alongside the RAW file (e.g., photo.CR2.pp3), automatically applied when no explicit profile is specified.
PROFILES
Processing profiles (.pp3) can be:- Created in RawTherapee GUI- Found in /usr/share/rawtherapee/profiles/- Sidecar files (filename.pp3)
INSTALL
sudo apt install rawtherapee
sudo dnf install rawtherapee
sudo pacman -S rawtherapee
sudo apk add rawtherapee
sudo zypper install rawtherapee
nix profile install nixpkgs#rawtherapee
CAVEATS
Requires RawTherapee installation. Processing is CPU-intensive. Supports most RAW formats.
HISTORY
RawTherapee was created by Gábor Horváth in 2004, with CLI added for batch processing workflows.
SEE ALSO
darktable-cli(1), dcraw(1), convert(1)
