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Image MIME Reference
Sony-SRF

Sony SRF Raw Image

image/x-sony-srf
VS

Valve Texture Format

image/vnd.valve.source.texture
VTF

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

Equal browser support

Feature Support

Feature Sony-SRF VTF
Transparency (Alpha) ✕ No Yes
Animation Support ✕ No Yes
Progressive Loading ✕ No ✕ No
HDR Support Yes Yes
EXIF Metadata Yes ✕ No
ICC Color Profile Yes ✕ No
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 →
Valve Texture Format
image/vnd.valve.source.texture
Extension
.vtf
Container Valve Texture Format Header
Compression DXTC (DXT1, DXT3, DXT5) / Uncompressed (BGRA8888, RGB888, etc.)
Algorithm
DXT1-DXT5None
Color Depth 8-bit, 24-bit (RGB), 32-bit (RGBA), 16-bit Floating Point (HDR)
Developed by Valve Corporation
Released 2004
Magic Bytes
56 54 46 00
Full VTF reference →

Browser Support Comparison

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

VTF Strengths

  • Extremely fast loading within the Source Engine because the block-compressed data goes directly into the GPU's VRAM without CPU decompression overhead
  • Bundles mipmaps, volumetric slices, cubemap faces, and animation frames entirely within a single file
  • Openly documented by the Valve Developer Community, leading to a massive ecosystem of third-party modding tools
Limitations
  • Strictly tied to the Source Engine ecosystem; entirely useless in standard web or print contexts
  • No native support in standard image editors without hunting down and installing specialized plugins
  • Block compression algorithms (DXT) are lossy and can cause visible artifacting, especially on normal maps or smooth gradients

When to choose which format

Sony-SRF
Use Sony-SRF when…
  • Legacy Sony Cyber-shot Photography
  • Non-destructive Image Post-Processing
  • Early 2000s Raw Imaging Archival
VTF
Use VTF when…
  • Source Engine Game Textures
  • Custom Maps and Modding (Garry's Mod, CS:GO)
  • Animated In-Game Decals and Sprays
  • Environment Cubemaps (Skyboxes)

More comparisons

Sony-SRF vs ACES → VTF vs ACES → Sony-SRF vs APNG → VTF vs APNG → Sony-SRF vs AVCI → VTF vs AVCI → Sony-SRF vs AVCS → VTF vs AVCS → Sony-SRF vs AVIF → VTF vs AVIF → All comparisons →
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