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Image MIME Reference
ACES

ACES Image Container File

image/aces
VS

AutoCAD Drawing

image/vnd.dwg
DWG

A complete technical comparison of ACES Image Container File and AutoCAD Drawing — covering compression, feature support, browser compatibility, magic bytes, and when to choose each format.

Equal browser support

Feature Support

Feature ACES DWG
Transparency (Alpha) Yes Yes
Animation Support ✕ No ✕ No
Progressive Loading ✕ No ✕ No
HDR Support Yes ✕ No
EXIF Metadata ✕ No ✕ No
ICC Color Profile ✕ No ✕ No
ACES Image Container File
image/aces
Extension
.exr
Container OpenEXR (SMPTE ST 2065-4)
Compression Lossless / Uncompressed
Algorithm
PIZZIPRLEB44Uncompressed
Color Depth 16-bit (Half-float), 32-bit (Float)
Developed by Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) / SMPTE
Released 2013
Magic Bytes
76 2F 31 01
Full ACES reference →
AutoCAD Drawing
image/vnd.dwg
Extension
.dwg
Container DWG Binary Container
Compression Proprietary Binary Compression (LZ77 based in newer versions)
Algorithm
Proprietary (Autodesk ObjectDBX)
Color Depth Vector (True Color / Indexed AutoCAD Color Index)
Developed by Autodesk
Released 1982
Magic Bytes
41 43 31 30 (AC10)
Full DWG reference →

Browser Support Comparison

Browser ACES DWG
Chrome Chrome
✕ ✕
Firefox Firefox
✕ ✕
Safari Safari
✕ ✕
Edge Edge
✕ ✕
IE IE (Legacy)
✕ ✕
ACES

ACES Strengths

  • Industry standard for high-end visual effects, compositing, and color grading
  • Supports 16-bit half-float data, accurately capturing immense dynamic range without clipping
  • Standardized by SMPTE (ST 2065-4) to guarantee universal color interoperability across different post-production facilities
Limitations
  • Considerably larger file sizes than conventional consumer image formats
  • Completely unsupported in web browsers and most standard desktop viewers
  • Requires specialized compositing or color grading software to interpret and view the scene-linear data correctly
DWG

DWG Strengths

  • The undisputed industry standard for 2D drafting and basic 3D CAD modeling
  • Highly optimized binary structure keeps file sizes relatively small compared to text-based CAD formats like DXF
  • Supports incredibly complex datasets including external references (XREFs), dynamic blocks, and extensive custom metadata
Limitations
  • It is a closed, proprietary format, making it difficult for third-party developers to support fully without licensing the Open Design Alliance (ODA) SDK
  • Lacks native web or standard operating system previewer support
  • Format versions change frequently (roughly every 3 years), breaking backward compatibility for older CAD software

When to choose which format

ACES
Use ACES when…
  • Visual Effects (VFX)
  • Digital Intermediate (DI)
  • Color Grading
  • Archival
DWG
Use DWG when…
  • Architectural Floor Plans
  • Mechanical Engineering Models
  • Civil Engineering Drafts
  • 3D Product Designs

More comparisons

ACES vs APNG → DWG vs APNG → ACES vs AVCI → DWG vs AVCI → ACES vs AVCS → DWG vs AVCS → ACES vs AVIF → DWG vs AVIF → All comparisons →
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