dcpTool is a command line utility for processing DNG Camera Profiles (.dcp files). DCP files are an open standard for defining the color rendition of digital cameras, and are used by various Adobe products including Lightroom and Photoshop/Camera Raw.
 
NEW: There's now a version of dcpTool for the Mac, with convenient batch mode operations: Download on the App Store.
 
For those coming to this site just for information on what these profiles actually are rather than dcpTool, that’s on this page.
 
dcpTool can do five things:
 
  1. 1.Decompile binary format DCP files into a text based XML format. This XML file can then be studied and/or edited with a text editor or specialized XML tool.
  2. 2.Compile XML format DCP files into binary files that can be used with any DCP aware software.
  3. 3.Extract DCP profiles that are embedded into DNG files into a separate DCP file.
  4. 4.Make a profile Invariate. An invariate profile won’t cause changes tint when you make adjustments to exposure settings. More on this  on the Hue Twists page.
  5. 5.Untwist a profile. An invariate profile won’t change color when you adjust exposure settings, but still has hue twists embedded within it. Untwisting a profile removes all hue twists completely. More on this on the Hue Twists page.
 
Health Warning
In order to be able to use dcpTool, you must be comfortable with using command line utilities on either the Mac or PC. In addition, if you want to make edits to a profile, you must be comfortable with XML, and understand version 1.2 of the Adobe DNG specification in detail.
 
dcpTool and Adobe’s DNG Profile Editor
Adobe provides the DNG Profile editor - this allows the creation of DCP profile in a user-friendly, visual “adjust the slider till you like what you see” fashion without requiring knowledge of the DNG specification. However, current versions do not allow the exact adjustment of individual DCP parameters, or allow you to effectively “adjust to the numbers”. dcpTool is complimentary to the Profile Editor, allowing advanced users to control individual parameters of a profile.
 
Acknowledgements
dcpTool uses Adobe’s DNG SDK version 1.2, written by Thomas Knoll and others.
 
System Requirements
  1. •Windows XP or Vista
  2. •Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) or later (either Intel or PowerPC)
 
License
dcpTool is free software, released under the GPL. However, if you use dcpTool for commercial purposes, you should donate to the project. You can donate by selecting the donate link on dcpTool’s project page at SourceForge.net
dcpTool and DNG Camera Profiles