Free webp to jpg
EN
Image MIME Reference
Compressed-XCF

Compressed GIMP XCF Image

image/x-compressed-xcf
VS

Sony SRF Raw Image

image/x-sony-srf
Sony-SRF

A complete technical comparison of Compressed GIMP XCF Image and Sony SRF Raw Image — covering compression, feature support, browser compatibility, magic bytes, and when to choose each format.

Equal browser support

Feature Support

Feature Compressed-XCF Sony-SRF
Transparency (Alpha) Yes ✕ No
Animation Support Yes ✕ No
Progressive Loading ✕ No ✕ No
HDR Support Yes Yes
EXIF Metadata Yes Yes
ICC Color Profile Yes Yes
Compressed GIMP XCF Image
image/x-compressed-xcf
Extension
.xcf.gz.xcf.bz2.xcfgz.xcfbz2
Container Gzip or Bzip2 Archive
Compression Gzip (Deflate) / Bzip2
Algorithm
DeflateBWT (Burrows-Wheeler)
Color Depth 8-bit (Per Channel), 16-bit (Integer/Floating Point), 32-bit (Integer/Floating Point)
Developed by The GIMP Team
Released 1995
Magic Bytes
1F 8B 08 (gzip) or 42 5A 68 (bzip2)
Full Compressed-XCF reference →
Sony SRF Raw Image
image/x-sony-srf
Extension
.srf
Container TIFF-based (Proprietary)
Compression Uncompressed
Algorithm
None
Color Depth 12-bit (Per Channel)
Developed by Sony Corporation
Released 2003
Magic Bytes
49 49 2A 00
Full Sony-SRF reference →

Browser Support Comparison

Browser Compressed-XCF Sony-SRF
Chrome Chrome
✕ ✕
Firefox Firefox
✕ ✕
Safari Safari
✕ ✕
Edge Edge
✕ ✕
IE IE (Legacy)
✕ ✕
Compressed-XCF

Compressed-XCF Strengths

  • Drastically reduces the massive file sizes of standard XCF project files, saving significant disk space
  • Preserves 100% of the non-destructive editing data (layers, masks, paths, guides) from the GIMP workspace
  • Uses standard, universally supported compression algorithms (gzip/bzip2) meaning the archive can be rescued or extracted by standard OS tools if GIMP is unavailable
Limitations
  • Increases file load and save times due to the CPU overhead required to compress and decompress the massive pixel arrays
  • Impossible for automated tools to parse metadata or dimensions without first unarchiving the payload into memory
  • File extension combinations (.xcf.gz) can confuse basic MIME sniffers which stop reading at the .gz extension
Sony-SRF

Sony-SRF Strengths

  • Retains perfectly raw, unprocessed sensor data from legacy early-2000s cameras, allowing modern raw processors to extract much better dynamic range and color than the camera's original internal JPEG engine could
  • Utilizes a standard TIFF container structure, ensuring broad compatibility with community-maintained open-source decoding libraries like LibRaw
Limitations
  • Completely obsolete format that has long been abandoned in favor of ARW
  • MIME detection via magic bytes is unreliable due to TIFF header spoofing, requiring deeper EXIF inspection for accurate routing
  • Cannot be natively viewed in web browsers or standard operating system image viewers without specialized decoders

When to choose which format

Compressed-XCF
Use Compressed-XCF when…
  • GIMP Multi-layer Project Archival
  • Saving disk space for complex raster edits
  • Open-source graphic design workflows
Sony-SRF
Use Sony-SRF when…
  • Legacy Sony Cyber-shot Photography
  • Non-destructive Image Post-Processing
  • Early 2000s Raw Imaging Archival

More comparisons

Compressed-XCF vs ACES → Sony-SRF vs ACES → Compressed-XCF vs APNG → Sony-SRF vs APNG → Compressed-XCF vs AVCI → Sony-SRF vs AVCI → Compressed-XCF vs AVCS → Sony-SRF vs AVCS → Compressed-XCF vs AVIF → Sony-SRF vs AVIF → All comparisons →
Share this comparison