Image

Image processing workflow guide for destination-specific exports.

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When to Use

Use when the main artifact is an image file or visual asset, especially when:

• Format choice matters
• Resizing, cropping, compression needed
• Metadata, transparency, color profile concerns
• Destination-specific requirements (web, social, ecommerce, print)

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Quick Reference

Situation	Load File	Why
Web optimization, responsive images, lazy loading, SVG	web.md	Avoid CLS/LCP mistakes, oversized assets
Color profiles, metadata, RAW, print workflows	photography.md	Protect color intent, print readiness
Social platform dimensions, safe zones, banners	social.md	Prevent unsafe crops, recompression surprises
Product photos, marketplace standards	ecommerce.md	Preserve zoom detail, white-background compliance
Logos, favicons, SVGs, app icons	branding.md	Protect small-size legibility, SVG consistency
UI screenshots, docs captures, redaction	screenshots.md	Avoid blurry captures, privacy leaks
Alt text, text-in-image risk, charts	accessibility.md	Keep images usable and compliant
ImageMagick and Pillow commands	commands.md	Use concrete commands once decision is clear

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Fast Workflow

1. Identify asset type: photo, screenshot, UI capture, logo, diagram, social card, product image, print source
2. Identify destination: web page, social upload, marketplace gallery, print handoff, internal archive
3. Decide preservation: vector, layered, or RAW vs flattened
4. Inspect file: dimensions, aspect ratio, orientation, transparency, color profile, metadata
5. Load destination-specific file if needed
6. Make minimum safe transformation: crop, resize, convert, compress, strip/preserve metadata, export
7. Validate in destination context

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Asset-Type Defaults

Asset Type	Best Starting Point	Watch Out For
Photo	WebP or AVIF for web, JPEG fallback, layered/RAW master	Color profile shifts, overcompression
Product photo	JPEG or WebP, high-res clean master	White background, edge cleanup, zoom detail
Screenshot/UI	PNG or lossless WebP	JPEG blur, privacy leaks, unreadable text
Logo/icon	SVG master, PNG fallbacks only	Tiny details, unsupported SVG pipelines
Social/OG card	PNG or high-quality JPEG	Unsafe crop, tiny text, double compression
Diagram/chart	SVG when possible, PNG when raster needed	Thin lines, low contrast
Print image	TIFF or high-quality JPEG with correct profile	Wrong profile, wrong physical size, no bleed

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Core Rules

1. Choose Workflow by Destination

• Web delivery, social export, ecommerce prep, print output, and archive preservation are different jobs
• Screenshot, product photo, logo, infographic, and print asset should not use same format/compression
• If destination is specialized, read matching file before locking decisions

2. Pick Formats by Content

Content	Format
Photos	AVIF or WebP (modern web), JPEG (compatibility)
Screenshots, UI, diagrams, text-heavy	PNG or lossless WebP
Logos, icons, simple illustrations	SVG when supported
Transparency needed	PNG, WebP, or AVIF (not JPEG)
Animation	WebP, MP4, or WebM (not GIF)
Master/archive	TIFF, PSD, layered formats, RAW

3. Preserve Color, Transparency, Detail

• Web assets: sRGB unless destination needs otherwise
• Stripping ICC profiles can shift colors
• Transparent assets need alpha-safe formats
• Repeated lossy saves compound damage

4. Resize, Crop, Compress in Right Order

1. Decide aspect ratio
2. Crop
3. Resize
4. Compress

• Do not upscale by default
• Retina: 2x is normal, 3x should be deliberate
• Social cards, ecommerce slots crop aggressively — protect focal area

5. Metadata and Orientation

• EXIF orientation can rotate images unexpectedly
• Public web assets should strip GPS and unnecessary camera metadata
• Copyright, author metadata may need preservation

6. Practical Budgets

Image Type	Size Budget
Hero image	Under 200 KB
Content image	Under 100 KB
Thumbnail	Under 30 KB
Raster icon	Under 5 KB

• Reserve layout space with explicit dimensions
• Do not lazy-load LCP/hero image

7. Validate Against Destination

• Platform specs are not interchangeable
• Ecommerce: background consistency, edge cleanliness, zoom detail
• Social: safe composition for different feed crops
• Print: physical size, bleed, color handling

8. Batch Safely

• Work from originals, not already-optimized outputs
• Spot-check before batch processing
• Keep per-destination exports separated from masters

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Common Traps

Mistake	Consequence
Saving transparent images as JPEG	Lost alpha channel
JPEG for screenshots	Blurry text
Wrong aspect ratio with correct dimensions	Unsafe crop
Recompressing same JPEG multiple times	Quality degradation
Stripping metadata blindly	Broken orientation, lost licensing info
Forgetting sRGB	Color shifts between tools
Using SVG where platform doesn't support it	Broken display
Embedding critical text in images	Accessibility issues, hard to update
Rasterizing logo too early	Blurry exports forever

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When to Use This Skill

• Optimize images for web delivery
• Prepare product photos for ecommerce
• Create social media assets
• Export for print
• Process screenshots for documentation
• Handle logos and icons correctly
• Ensure image accessibility

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Related Skills

• image-edit — Masking, cleanup, inpainting, targeted edits
• image-generation — AI image generation
• photography — Capture, color, print workflows
• svg — Vector graphics workflows
• ecommerce — Marketplace product requirements