Question 1

What is image-r?

Accepted Answer

image-r turns a photo into a laser-ready PNG. You pick a material, and the studio sets contrast, gamma, sharpness, and a dither pattern that a diode, CO2, or fiber laser can engrave.

Question 2

Which files can I prepare?

Accepted Answer

PNG, JPG, WEBP, BMP, and GIF. Very large photos are scaled so the long edge stays within the size you choose, which keeps the preview responsive.

Question 3

Will this work with my laser software?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Download a PNG and import it into LightBurn, LaserGRBL, xTool Creative Space, Glowforge, or any program that engraves images. image-r prepares the picture. Your machine settings — speed, power, and DPI — still belong to the laser.

Question 4

What is dithering?

Accepted Answer

A laser mostly burns or does not burn. Dithering turns gray shades into a pattern of black and white dots so the photo still looks continuous. Floyd–Steinberg, Atkinson, and Jarvis scatter error into neighboring pixels. Bayer uses a fixed dot screen, which suits anodized metal.

Question 5

Why are some materials inverted?

Accepted Answer

On black slate, black acrylic, and some coated tile, the laser removes a dark surface and reveals a lighter mark. Those profiles invert the photo so the bright parts of the picture are the parts that get engraved.

Question 6

Does image-r use AI?

Accepted Answer

Three optional tools do. Background removal uses MODNet, 2× upscaling uses Swin2SR, and material suggestions use CLIP. All three are Apache-2.0 models and run in the browser through Transformers.js. The first use of each tool downloads that model, then the browser keeps it. Contrast, gamma, and dithering stay ordinary image math. Photos are not sent to an AI service.

Question 7

Where are my photos stored?

Accepted Answer

They are not stored. Preparation runs in your browser. The server only keeps your account, the plan a super admin assigned, and a count of downloads. The image itself never leaves the computer you are using.

Question 8

How do plan limits work?

Accepted Answer

Guests can preview every tool, including materials, dithering, and the on-device AI. Downloading the PNG requires a subscription, and plans start at $5 a month. Starter includes 10 downloads per UTC day. Plans with a blank daily limit are unlimited.

Question 9

Can a shop prepare a lot of images?

Accepted Answer

Put the shop on a plan with no daily limit. Each download is still one image at a time in the studio. The account page shows how many files were prepared today.

Question 10

Do I need to install anything?

Accepted Answer

No. image-r runs in the browser on Windows, Mac, Linux, and Chromebooks. You only need an account when you want the prepare count tied to a subscription. The first time you use an AI tool, that model downloads into the browser and stays cached.

DPI explained