Filter between 2 dates

I need to retrieve all records that occur between 2 dates.

my date field is field 425

2 questions

1. do i query field_425 OR field_425_raw

2. is this the proper syntax for passing a "start" date

array (
'field' => 'field_425',
'operator' => 'is after 10/21/2019'
),

thank you

hope this helps someone. should be

array ( // DATES
'field' => 'field_425',
'operator' => 'is after',
'value' => '10/21/2019'
),
array ( // DATES
'field' => 'field_425',
'operator' => 'is before',
'value' => '10/25/2019'
),