Guides
Practical guides on image formats, compression, and design-file workflows.
Why Korean text vanishes when you convert an .ai file to PNG
CJK text can disappear silently when an .ai or PDF is rendered to an image. Here's the CMap data that causes it, how to tell it apart from a font substitution, and how we fixed it in our own converter.
Why AVIF encoding is so slow: what we measured at 12 megapixels
AVIF makes small files and takes a long time to do it. Here's what the speed setting actually changes, the two timings we measured on a 12MP photo in the browser, and how to keep exports from crawling.
How to make an Instagram grid (3×3, 1×3 and carousel)
The three grid layouts people actually mean by 'Instagram grid', the pixel size to start from for each one, and how to split a photo into tiles in your browser without uploading it anywhere.
Grainy gradients and noise texture: how to actually build them
What baseFrequency and numOctaves really change in an SVG noise overlay, how CSS grain hides gradient banding, why a noise PNG is so large, and where grain breaks on high-DPI screens and in dark mode.
The halftone effect explained: dots, cell size and screen angles
A halftone turns continuous tone into solid dots of varying size. What screen angles are for, how cell size relates to resolution, and when to export the dots as vector rather than pixels.
How to change DPI to 300 (and when it actually changes anything)
A print shop asked for 300 DPI. Here's what that number really means, why changing it never adds detail, and the one calculation that tells you whether your file is already print-ready.
How to check if a pattern is seamless before you hand it off
A pattern tile only shows its seams once it repeats. What causes them, why half-drop and half-brick need checking separately, and how to inspect the junctions in a browser.
How to compress an image to 100 KB
Getting a photo under a 100 KB upload limit comes down to three levers, pulled in the right order: pixel size, format, then quality. Here's the order that works.
How to extract a color palette from an image
Picking one pixel and extracting an image's dominant colors are different jobs. When to use each, what HEX, RGB, HSL, HSB and CMYK are for, and why browser CMYK is only a starting point.
How to turn a video into a GIF without a watermark
Watermarks on converted GIFs are a business model, not a technical necessity. Here's why browser-based conversion has no reason to add one, and how to keep the file small.
Why compressing images without uploading them matters
Browser-based image compression keeps files off the network entirely. Here's why that matters for privacy and speed, and how WebAssembly makes it possible.
How to open an .ai file without Illustrator
Adobe Illustrator .ai files can be opened and viewed without installing Illustrator. Here's what's inside the file, and how to view it in a browser.
WebP vs AVIF vs JPEG: which image format should you use in 2026
WebP, AVIF, JPEG, and PNG each make different trade-offs. Here's a practical guide to picking the right image format and quality setting in 2026.