Can't access RAW files in Photos.app

Solution 1:

Ok, the problem is one of:

  1. The Photos UI is very poorly designed.
  2. I am a dummy

Or a combination of the above 😃

The Use RAW as Original option is only available when you are in Edit mode and only affects one photo at a time 🤦‍♂️

Related:

If I create a Smart Album with Photo is RAW as the only criterion, it only shows me a fraction of all my RAW files (170 images).

This is because the is RAW criterion isn't if a RAW file is available, rather, if a photo has previously been switched to Use RAW as Original