New Tool: Laser Image Prep — Material Presets, 8 Dither Modes, Halftone, Live Preview
Laser Image Prep Tool — Now Live
The new Laser Image Prep tool converts any photo or image into a laser-ready file directly in your browser. No uploads to any server, no account required, no software to install.
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What It Does
Upload a photo, dial in settings, download a processed PNG ready to drop straight into LightBurn, LaserGRBL, or xTool Creative Space.
Processing is done entirely in your browser using the Canvas API — your images never leave your device.
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Material Presets
Six one-click presets tune all settings automatically for common materials:
- Wood — boosted contrast, gamma lift, Floyd-Steinberg dither. Compensates for grain and variable burn response.
- Slate — high contrast, Jarvis dithering. Maximizes the bright white marks slate produces.
- Anodized Aluminum — threshold mode. Anodized surfaces respond cleanly to hard edges; dithering often isn't needed.
- Leather — grayscale (variable power), soft gamma. Leather handles tonal gradients well; preserve them.
- Acrylic — aggressive contrast, dark gamma. Helps legibility on transparent and translucent sheets.
- Photo (detail) — Stucki dithering, light settings. Best for portraits and detailed photos where tonal range matters.
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Processing Modes
Eight modes cover everything from bold graphics to photorealistic portraits:
| Mode | Best for |
|---|---|
| Floyd-Steinberg | General purpose, good all-around dither |
| Jarvis | Photos, smooth gradients |
| Stucki | Fine detail, slightly sharper than Jarvis |
| Bayer 4x4 | Fast preview, patterned texture look |
| Halftone | Dot-pattern engraving, newspaper aesthetic |
| Threshold | Bold logos, text, high-contrast graphics |
| Grayscale | Variable-power engraving on leather, glass |
| Invert + Threshold | Dark background, white subject |
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Adjustments
Every control updates the preview live:
- Brightness and Contrast — the most impactful adjustments for laser prep. Most photos need a contrast boost before engraving.
- Gamma — adjusts midtone response. Lower gamma darkens midtones (good for acrylic), higher lifts them (good for wood).
- Sharpen — unsharp mask from 0–5. Pulls out edge detail before dithering; helps portraits.
- Noise Reduction (blur) — remove JPEG noise and grain before processing. Essential for compressed phone photos.
- Threshold — sets the black/white cutoff for dither and threshold modes.
- Halftone Cell Size — controls dot size in halftone mode. Larger = coarser but more visible at low DPI.
- Output Width — set to match your actual engraving size at target DPI.
- Target DPI — enter your machine's line interval. The tool shows the physical output size in millimeters.
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Output Info
After processing, the tool shows:
- Pixel dimensions and physical size at your target DPI
- Percentage of the image area that will be burned (burned area %)
- Mode and threshold used
Download as PNG and import directly into your laser software. LightBurn: File → Import. LaserGRBL: drag and drop. xTool Creative Space: Insert Image.
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