Ravo is a free and open-source RAW photo editor, digital-asset / photo library manager, and non-destructive color grading application for Windows, macOS, and Linux.
Ravo is a complete redesign, not a fork: a from-scratch C++20 and Qt 6
implementation that takes the photo-workflow and image-processing behavior of
darktable 0.9 as its reference. Frozen static fixtures live in Ravo/tests/fixtures/frozen.
Ravo ships its own service layer, catalog, CPU image engine, command-line
client, and Qt Quick desktop application, and it never links, loads, or launches
the old GTK program at runtime.
Ravo Studio is the desktop application: photo library, browsing, filtering,
rating and review, non-destructive develop, and export in one local workspace.
The ravo CLI exposes the same catalog, recipe, render, and export services
for scripting, batch processing, CI, and headless servers.
If you are looking for an open-source Lightroom or darktable alternative, a RAW converter, or a local photo cataloging and color grading tool that never touches your originals, Ravo is being built for exactly that workflow.
Ravo is under continuous development and has not reached 1.0. The core loop already works end to end — create or open a local library, reference-only import, browse and review, non-destructive develop, and local export — and dozens of image operations are implemented against the frozen darktable reference. Expect gaps, evolving schemas, and platform-specific validation status. There is no binary release channel yet; build from source.
Ravo is an independent C++20 catalog and Develop product, not a darktable compatibility project. Remaining photographer-useful work is private-corpus and three-platform evidence, then the ranked DAM/delivery gaps. Unaccepted leftover algorithms are leftovers, not ports (ADR-0106). GPU remains behind CPU goldens. Historic leftover XMP that names an unaccepted leftover IOP fails closed.
The Ravo product document, the product execution queue, and packaging define the supported scope, validation status, and next work item.
Gallery: browse JPEG and RAW photos, then inspect metadata, ratings, tags, and histograms.
Edit: inspect a photo and adjust Develop parameters without changing the original.
- Original-safe by default: reference-only import never copies, moves, renames, or rewrites source files during import or editing.
- A local photo library: a portable SQLite catalog stores photos, ratings, color labels, rejection state, tags, metadata, and editing history. No cloud account, no subscription, no telemetry. Catalog-owned recovery mirrors and a verifiable CLI backup keep durable edit state separate from rebuildable previews and user-owned originals.
- Focused browsing and culling: gallery grid and loupe views, filmstrip, folder tree, Fit / Fill / 100% zoom, magnifier, filtering and sorting, plus histogram, waveform, RGB parade, vectorscope, and split scopes.
- Non-destructive develop: edits are versioned recipes with history, snapshots, undo/redo, single-image before/after, and a synchronized left/right comparison; previews, CLI commands, and exports all run through the same CPU image engine.
- Reusable presets and styles:
.rstyle.jsonschema v1 captures a complete recipe, while schema v2 applies an explicitly selected subset without resetting unrelated target edits. Lightroom Classic CRS XMP presets and strict darktable XMP history can be imported through explicit commands. - Predictable export: single or batch export to JPEG, PNG, TIFF, or an exact original copy, with typed format options, metadata privacy modes, and explicit output-conflict and cancellation results. Existing files are never silently overwritten.
- Scriptable: every catalog, recipe, render, and export capability is
reachable from the
ravoCLI with machine-readable JSON output. The same CLI can discover a running Studio session, read its revisioned selection and recipe, commit strict Develop fields, obtain the latest no-replace PNG, synchronize catalog recovery mirrors, and create or verify catalog backups. - Localized: Ravo Studio ships English, German, Spanish, French, Brazilian
Portuguese, Simplified and Traditional Chinese, Japanese, and Korean, driven
by one C++ command registry with menus, shortcuts, and a command palette
(
Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+P).
| Direction | Formats |
|---|---|
| Import | JPEG, PNG, TIFF, plus BMP / GIF / WebP through Qt image plugins |
| RAW import | LibRaw-decoded RAW such as .cr2, .cr3, .nef, .arw, .dng, .raf, .orf, .rw2 and other recognized suffixes |
| Export | JPEG, PNG (8/16-bit), TIFF (uint8/uint16/float16/float32), or an exact original copy |
Full RAW develop currently supports validated Bayer 2×2 files through RCD or PPG and standard Fujifilm X-Trans 6×6 files through Markesteijn 1/3-pass on the pinned LibRaw path. Other CFA families and sensor/mode mismatches fail structurally, though an embedded JPEG may still provide a Gallery thumbnail. See the format coverage matrix for the exact boundaries.
The CPU engine currently implements Bayer and X-Trans demosaic/RAW denoise, DNG GainMap and geometric corrections, RAW highlight reconstruction, hot-pixel and chromatic-aberration correction, profile denoising, lens and perspective correction, white balance, input/output ICC color management with soft proof, camera color calibration, color checker fitting, post-demosaic color reconstruction, RGB primaries, Color Balance RGB, color equalizer and optional color zones, color harmonizer, color correction and contrast, Velvia, monochrome, split toning, profile-explicit 3D LUTs, graduated filter, RGB and tone curves, tone equalizer, guided Texture, D50 Lab sharpening, dark-channel dehazing, mask-based clone / heal / blur / fill retouch, canvas and output frame, dither and posterize, and a deterministic text watermark. RAW output uses the Sigmoid Standard SDR display transform. Masks form a typed graph — gradient, circle, ellipse, parametric, path, brush, and ordered groups — with a live Studio overlay.
The engine is CPU-only today. A future GPU path is an independent Engine
adapter only (DevDocs/MIGRATION.md); the old OpenCL path is not ported.
Read the Ravo User Handbook, or visit the online documentation.
- Ravo capabilities and CLI reference
- Architecture and data lifetimes
- Testing and validation strategy
- Migration policy and capability ledger
- Product execution queue
- Packaging
- Developer documentation index
There are no prebuilt downloads yet, so Ravo is built from source with CMake presets. Prepare a workspace for the first time:
git submodule update --init FreeCM
python3 configs/source_root_workflow.py --init
python3 configs/source_root_workflow.py --update
Build and launch the macOS Debug configuration:
cmake --preset mac_clang_debug -DBUILD_TESTING=ON
cmake --build --preset mac_clang_debug
./build/mac_clang_debug/Ravo/desktop/ravo_studio.app/Contents/MacOS/ravo_studio
Use win_msvc_debug / win_msvc_release on Windows and linux_clang_* on
Linux. The Ravo developer guide and
Packaging describe complete build, test, package, and
platform instructions.
Ravo keeps the photography behavior that darktable 0.9 proved, and drops the implementation that made it hard to evolve. Production code does not include old private headers, link old libraries, load old plugins, or configure, build, or run a leftover GTK application.
What changed: the GTK UI, the dynamic plugin ABI, global mutable state, and the OpenCL path are replaced by a Qt 6 Quick front end, built-in versioned operations, explicit ownership and cancellation, and a service layer shared by the CLI and the desktop app. Ravo does not open a darktable library in place; historical XMP history is converted through an explicit, strict CLI import that reports unsupported state instead of silently approximating it.
Issues and pull requests are welcome. Start with
AGENTS.md for repository-wide engineering constraints,
Ravo/AGENTS.md for the Ravo/ subtree, and
DevDocs/TODO.md for unfinished product execution.
Three-platform package evidence lives in
DevDocs/Packaging.md and does not
block other product work. Leftover algorithm ports are closed
(ADR-0106).
Behavior changes need matching Ravo unit or contract tests.
Ravo is distributed under the GNU General Public License, version 3. Third-party components are listed in DevDocs/THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.md.
Keywords: open source RAW photo editor, RAW converter, RAW developer, photo library manager, digital asset management, photo cataloging software, color grading software, non-destructive photo editing, darktable alternative, Lightroom alternative, cross-platform photo editor, Windows macOS Linux, C++20, Qt 6, QML, LibRaw, SQLite catalog, ICC color management, photo culling, batch export, command-line photo processing.