LR 5.7 and Nikon D7200. unable to import NEF files.

[WimlexNL]

I have LR 5.7 and a brand new Nikon D7200. I upgrades LR3.x to 5.7 and now i am unable to import NEF files. Is there a solution? did i do something wrong?

[ssprengel]

When someone says they want camera manufacturers to use DNG they are really saying they want camera manufacturers to supply Adobe-compatible DNG Profiles so Adobe doesn’t have to wait and make their own so the camera is supported from day 1.

[Jao vdL]

True enough indeed. Hell would freeze over before Nikon or Canon would provide DNG profiles that mimic their rendering in third-party software. Other camera makers have done this though but the big ones will never do this.

[v. thomasw8779686]

I don't have the answer, but just wanted to say, I have the same problem.  I hope there is a fix for this.

[JP Hess]

There is a fix for this, but you won't like it. Simply wait until there is an update or upgrade that supports the camera. A few months ago Canon released a new model and purchasers were screaming here on the forum for several weeks, blaming Adobe for not caring about their customers or being up to date. There were pointing fingers and blaming everyone for something that just happens sometimes. The D7200 was released at a point in time where it is necessary to wait for Adobe to catch up. Believe me, within a few weeks (?) Support will be added, and this whole issue will be in the past. If the D7200 is never supported by Adobe software, I believe it will be the first Nikon camera that Adobe has decided to not include. It just takes time. In the meantime, it really won't break the camera or do any damage that I'm aware of to shoot JPEG images and familiarize yourself with what the camera can do.

[v. thomasw8779686]

Thanks, guess I have to wait, but is the NEF format new to Nikon?  I had a Nikon D5300 and didn't have problems with importing into Lightroom.  Perhaps I didn't have any raw files.

[JP Hess]

The problem is that Lightroom and Camera Raw recognize the camera by the model number, not just the file type. There is a way with a program called Exiftool for you to change the header of the file to make Lightroom think that the files came from a D7100, and you can open the images in Lightroom 5.7.1. But the colors are going to be off because Nikon made some adjustments in the capture process. And you just need to wait until Adobe is able to generate the profiles and get an update or upgrade released that supports the camera. The file structure is actually no different than with the D7100. But it's a new model, and it needs its own profiles.

[Joshua Cohen]

A file extension does not make a file format. A file format is a standard that defines the structure of data within the file. When a file format is proprietary (as every raw format is except DNG) then the company is free to change the format without changing the extension. This is fundamentally different from a public format like JPEG which is defined by a standards organization. It just so happens that part of that standard is the use the .jpg file extension. There's nothing to stop someone from making a file that does not comply with the standard and put a .jpg extension on it. That wouldn't make it a JPEG file.

[v. thomasw8779686]

Thanks for the info. Appreciate it.

Tom W.

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On Sat, Mar 28, 2015 at 5:23 PM, Joshua Cohen <forums_noreply@adobe.com>

[jsyt]

The solution maintaining RAW files in the workflow is explained here : Nikon D7200 RAW NEF Hack for Adobe Lightroom & Photoshop - YouTube

In summary (for Windows):

Install the exiftool by Phil Harvery : ExifTool by Phil Harvey

From a command line, run in your directory with D7200 files the command  "exiftool -P -MODEL="Nikon D5500" *.nef"

     (This changes the camera model in the NEF file into D5500 while maintaining the creation time of the files; exiftool has to be in your PATH or in the  same directory as your NEF files.)

Use Adobe DNG Converter to convert the resulting NEF files into DNG.

Import the DNG files into Lightroom the usual way.

It worked for me.

[Todd Shaner]

jsyt wrote:

The solution maintaining RAW files in the workflow is explained here : Nikon D7200 RAW NEF Hack for Adobe Lightroom & Photoshop - YouTube

There are bound to be differences between the D5500 and the D7200 camera profiles. When it becomes available you'll need to "undo" the changes made with EXIF tool for ALL of the NEFs changed to D5500 model. Some people have also reported that the images don't look right when using the D5500 profile.

Jim's suggestion is a good idea! Just shoot raw + JPEG and process the JPEGs for now. You may find some of the new JPEG modes and settings in the D7200 are useful even if you primarily shoot raw images. That's one of the few things that sets the camera manufacturers apart–In-camera image processing. My prediction is they will get so good that it will be hard to beat using a single raw file. This includes applying lens corrections and extending dynamic range through real-time in-camera HDR processing. I believe the D7200 has this capability already. Give at a try!

[kenb71003878]

‌

Here's how I got it to work.

1. Install adobe 8.8 dng converter.  Make shortcut to desktop.

2. Install (30 day free trial) of UltraEdit.

3. Open NEF with ultra edit and change 7200 to 5500 and save.

4. Drop NEF file on converter and convert.

5. Import DNG in Lightroom

[teslacoil_atx]

It wasn't apparent from the "Release Notes" that comes up to tell you of the new version of Lightroom but it DOES support D7200 NEF.  After you elect to purchase, make sure you select from the Lightroom version dropdown your previous version of the software and you can get Lightroom 6 for $79 USD.  In addition to the D7200 NEF file support, they added panorama stitching, HDR processing within the software, and facial recognition.

I could not find a way to link to the section of Adobe's site so you may need to open your version of Lightroom and use the Help menu to Check for Updates and follow the links.  Ensure you change the version to an upgrade (assuming you have a previous version) to get the upgrade price.

[kcossabo]

I just updated via CC and the new version Lightroom CC,  ROCKS with the D7200 !!!!

And WHO Said it would take Adobe MONTHS to fix this.... weeks my friends, and the cloud delivered!!!!

[lordjohn48]

‌Unfortnately Adobe are playing silly buggers and are forcing users to go to Lightroom CC or LR 6 in order to get support for the Nikon D7200. I bought a D810 last year and within 4 weeks Adobe released an update for LR 5 for D810 support. The D7200 has been out more than 4 weeks and there is no update as yet for LR5.

As far as I am concerned LIghtroom CC / LR6 is virtually unusable on a MacBook Air that had no issues with LR5 added to which it has a host of bugs.  I would assume LR6 is better on a fast machine with a graphics processor and heaps of RAM.

As a secretary of a photographic club I am not recommending any members to upgrade to LR6 unless they have a specific need such as D7200 support.

I would like to think that Adobe will release an update for LR 5 for D7200 support in the very near future but I suspect they are playing the marketing game.

[Per Berntsen]

There won't be any more updates for LR5.

Use the free DNG converter, and import the DNGs in LR5.

Product updates

[lordjohn48]

‌The issue with the DNG converter is that you cannot change the profile in LR like you can if you import the RAW file.

[Jao vdL]

You can actually get all the profiles into Lr 5.7 if you manually install them. Dng converter puts them in a folder where Lightroom can't see them. If you put them in the correct folder in your home directory they will work.

[ssprengel]

More specifically, if you're on Windows:

1.  Install the DNG Converter 9.0

2..  Copy this folder (or at least it's contents):

      C:\ProgramData\Adobe\CameraRaw\CameraProfiles\Camera\Nikon D750

3.  To this folder (or a subfolder of):

      C:\Users\YourUserName\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\CameraRaw\CameraProfiles

ProgramData and AppData are hidden/system folders that'll need to be manually typed into the Explorer address bar, or you can turn on the option in Explorer to view hidden/system folders.

[Jao vdL]

Thanks ssprengel. That's exactly right. I was replying on my phone and didn't have these locations in front of me On a Mac the same folders are in /Library/Application\ Support/Adobe/CameraRaw/CameraProfiles/Camera (find the Nikon D7200 folder), and you copy this folder into ~/Library/Application\ Support/Adobe/CameraRaw/CameraProfiles (the tilde stands for your home directory. If you open a finder window you can hit command-shift-G and just copy and paste these folder names into it as the folders are hidden by default.