Opening a Mamiya MEF file without a full raw editor
An MEF file is the raw image written by Mamiya's digital medium format cameras and backs, such as the ZD. The files are large, the format is niche, and most image viewers on Windows either refuse it or show nothing but a generic icon.
MEF Viewer opens Mamiya raws directly. Set it as the default for .mef and they open on a double-click, or drop one on the window, or use Ctrl+O. There is no import or catalog; the frame you clicked is the frame you see.
Where the MEF includes a near-full-size JPEG, that appears straight away. Where it does not, the raw data is developed with LibRaw. On a medium format sensor that can take a few seconds, and the result is the real image at its native resolution rather than a small preview.
Export MEF to TIFF for printing and retouching
Medium format work usually ends at a print or a retoucher, and both want TIFF. Open a frame, pick Convert image from the More menu, and choose This image for one file or Whole folder for a session.
Set Format to TIFF and choose a destination folder. Existing files lets you Skip, Keep both or Replace matching names, and subfolders are left out of the run, which ends with a count of what was converted, skipped or failed. The same dialog writes JPG for client previews, with Quality from 50 to 100.
Checking detail on large medium format frames
Under Settings, Open photos at can be set to Actual size, so every file opens at one screen pixel per image pixel and focus can be judged at a glance. Leave it on Fit to window if you prefer to see the whole composition first and zoom in with the plus key.
Behind the photo offers near black, mid gray or white, which matters when you are judging tones in a studio frame. Press I for the info panel with lens, shutter speed, aperture and ISO, or T for a thumbnail ribbon of the session.
Culling a studio session
The optional Professional Pack adds Compare, which lines up to four frames next to each other and zooms them in step, and Focus & Keep for scoring bursts by sharpness. Ratings, color labels and edited details such as caption and copyright are saved to a .xmp file with the same name, so the MEF stays as it came from the back.
