What is IIQ?

Phase One IIQ is a professional medium-format raw format used by Phase One digital backs, delivering exceptional image quality for commercial photography.

What is CUR?

Windows Cursor (CUR) is the mouse cursor format for Windows, supporting static and animated pointers with hotspot definitions.

When Should You Use IIQ vs CUR?

IIQ vs CUR: Key Differences

• •IIQ and CUR diverge on compression: lossless compression for the source, lossless compression for the target.
• •Both formats share lossless compression, so quality behavior is similar across the two — file size differences come from algorithm efficiency rather than compression philosophy.
• •How transparency is handled: CUR supports transparency, so alpha information is preserved during conversion.
• •IIQ files are typically 50-150MB per image from medium-format backs while CUR files range Very small, typically under 50KB
• •Primary audience: IIQ is built for professional studio photography, digital back capture scenarios, while CUR focuses on windows ui cursors, mouse pointer graphics — pick the format that matches your output requirement.

Advantages of IIQ

• ✓IIQ applies lossless compression specifically calibrated for Professional studio photography, digital back capture.
• ✓IIQ enjoys broad native support across operating systems, browsers, and creative tools alike.
• ✓IIQ guarantees every bit of the original data survives — no approximations, no shortcuts.
• ✓You will find IIQ support built into virtually every tool that handles Professional studio photography, digital back capture — no plugins or converters needed.

Advantages of CUR

• ✓CUR applies lossless compression specifically calibrated for Windows UI cursors, mouse pointer graphics.
• ✓CUR enjoys broad native support across operating systems, browsers, and creative tools alike.
• ✓CUR guarantees every bit of the original data survives — no approximations, no shortcuts.
• ✓You will find CUR support built into virtually every tool that handles Windows UI cursors, mouse pointer graphics — no plugins or converters needed.

Common Use Cases for IIQ to CUR Conversion

• Brochure and flyer design
• Newsletter graphics
• Video thumbnail creation
• Certificate and badge design
• Websites and online content
• Print materials and publications

Industry Applications

Best Practices for IIQ to CUR Conversion

• →Before converting IIQ to CUR, decide whether you need maximum quality or smallest file size — this determines which format truly fits
• →Save a master copy in a lossless format before converting to CUR — you cannot recover detail lost during lossy compression
• →Check the color profile: IIQ images may use a wider gamut than CUR supports, causing a visible shift after conversion
• →Resize images to the final display dimensions before converting — this avoids unnecessary processing of oversized files
• →Run a single test conversion first to verify quality meets your standards
• →Strip unnecessary metadata to reduce file size after conversion

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Troubleshooting IIQ to CUR Conversion

• !Converting IIQ to CUR gives blurry output → increase the quality setting before conversion
• !Colors look different in CUR than IIQ → check color profile mismatch (sRGB vs Adobe RGB)
• !File size changed more than expected → CUR uses different compression, file size differences of 2-5x are normal
• !Transparent areas in IIQ turned white in CUR → CUR may not support transparency

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