If you shoot RAW then most probably you need to have dedicated software for processing such files. I use darktable, however it is worth to mention that Windows Explorer and built-in image viewer can display RAW image. Just in case there is no other software available at the moment. Still if you need to edit RAW files and not only browse them then you should try darktable. It is open source, free of charge, available for Windows and Linux.

First of all it is great picture browser. You add or copy your files, both from local and remote drives. In case you have network folders, first you need to mount them in the operating system so darktable could see them. You can tag and rate pictures. You can show or hide specific panes depending on your needs.

Secondly it has tons of image processing features. I use such tools as sharpen, local contrast, shadows and highlights, exposure, crop and rotate. These are basics. If you put your stuff to commercial stocks, then RAW denoise and profiled denoise are your friends. You can try to minimize chromatic, lens or perspective imperfections with dedicated tools. If you have some dead pixels then you can try tool called hot pixels.

In case you would like to experiment a little bit then there is whole section of effects like colorize, grain or split-toning. You can have fun. I really like darktable because of its completeness and nice shortcuts like Alt+1, 2 or 3 for zooms and “w” for full screen preview. Going between light and dark modes is as easy as double clicking on the image itself. Last thing is “tab” which hides all panes except pictures grid or picture itself if in darkroom mode.