Rawtherapee: Exporting JPG That Looks Like the Raw File

Question

I'm trying to export a JPG that appears the same way the raw file does in the Rawtherapee GUI -- totally unmodified.

Do I need to create a profile, or modify a config, in order to create a JPG that looks like the raw file does?

If so, can anyone recommend?

Background

I ran a simple command (like below) to take a look at my raw files in small JPG format. After opening a raw in Rawtherapee and comparing it to the JPG, I discovered Rawtherappe is modifying (improving) the image significantly.

For example, a raw that appears very overexposed in Rawtherapee is output to a somewhat balanced looking JPG.

In the image below, the raw is on the left and the export is on the right. I would like the image on the right to look like the left -- unmodified.

Notes

I am using Linux command line to export.

I am not using a PP3 in conjunction with the export.

Commands I've Used So Far

rawtherapee-cli -f -Y -c <FILE>

-f: fast export

-Y: overwrite if there is already a file with the same name

-c: specify raw file

rawtherapee-cli -j50 -Y -c <FILE>

-j50: JPG at 50% compression

-Y: overwrite if there is already a file with the same name

-c: specify raw file

Answer 1

The solution is to use a "blank" PP3 file -- a PP3 that has no modifications to it -- when you export.

In the examples in the question above, either of the commands will generate a blank PP3 file if none exists. For example,

rawtherapee-cli -f -Y -c <FILE.EXT>

... will create a file like <FILE.EXT.pp3>.

BUT, this PP3 was not used when creating the initial output image file (a JPG, in this case).

After the PP3 is generated, you can run another export command using the PP3 that was created as a byproduct of running the command above, specifying -p option with the PP3 file and the format that you want to export to.

For example, this command will create a JPG at 50% compression:

rawtherapee-cli -p <FILE.EXT.pp3> -j50 -Y -c <FILE.EXT>

Because the PP3 is new and unmodified, the exported JPG will be displayed in the same way as the raw in Rawtherapee, when you first opened it.

You can make a copy of this file as a "blank template" to export all your raw files to a faithful copy of the raw, in case you want to look at smaller JPGs rather than open up all of your raws in Rawtherapee when deciding which to keep / process.

For example, let's say I rename <FILE.EXT.pp3> above as raw.EXT.pp3. I could use the PP3 to get a faithful copy of all of my raws, like:

rawtherapee-cli -p raw.EXT.pp3 -Y -c <FILE>

Note

EXT is a stand-in for whatever the raw file format extension is for your digital camera. For example, Canon's raw format is known as "CR3". So to give a real example, a command might look like this:

rawtherapee-cli -p raw.CR3.pp3 -Y -c IMG_0228.CR3

Warning

The -Y option above means "Overwrite if an export with the same name already exists in this folder." If you already have exports you want to keep in that directory, specify the -O option with a new file name or remove the -Y option. In whatever case, both the raw and the PP3 will remain unmodified. The worst that could happen is that you lose one of your exports.