About RAW Files
A RAW file is like a negative. RAW files contain all of the data that was collected by your digital camera’s sensor when you took a photo. If you tried to view a RAW file without processing, it would appear almost completely black. It is therefore necessary to process your RAW files to produce a photo.
In ACDSee 12, you can view RAW files using the embedded thumbnail image created by your camera. If you want to process RAW images, you must use a photo editing program such as ACDSee Photo Manager Pro 3, which includes tools for developing RAW images.