Uncompressed raster format with alpha channel — legacy standard for VFX plates and compositing. Replaced by OpenEXR in modern workflows but still used in some pipelines.
Anyone working with visual effects in the 90s and early 2000s couldn't avoid TARGA. The format — developed by Truevision for graphical data processing — stores image information uncompressed while retaining a full alpha channel. This is its key feature: you can export a sequence as a TARGA stack and are guaranteed transparent areas without compression or quantization tearing your matte. This is invaluable in compositing.
On set and in the VFX pipeline, TARGA works simply: you render out your CGI elements — particle systems, lights, shadow passes — as a TGA sequence. Each frame is a single file, uncompressed, typically 24 or 32 bit (RGB or RGBA). The compositor takes these plates, stacks them in Nuke or After Effects, and composites them directly over the original camera footage. No generation loss from compression, no hidden artifacts in the alpha. It's reliable.
In practice, however, this also means huge amounts of data. A 2K sequence with 100 frames as 32-bit TARGA quickly consumes several gigabytes. Storage and throughput were precious in the 2000s — that was a real trade-off. That's why some shops worked with compressed intermediates (ProRes, DNxHD) and only saved the final render passes uncompressed as TARGA.
Today, the format has been largely superseded in modern VFX pipelines by OpenEXR. EXR offers better bit depth (16 and 32-bit float instead of integer), multiple channels in a single file (instead of separate passes), and lossless compression. But older systems, legacy projects, and some specialized tools still rely on TARGA — it's stable, documented, and universally supported. Anyone working with large archives or needing compatibility with older compositing stations will still encounter TARGA. The file extension .tga remains a relic of that era.