The following options are supported. Dimensions (arguments of type dim) can have optional units, e.g.
6.5in, 15cm, 100pt. The default unit is inches (or centimeters, if this was configured at compile time,
see COMPILE TIME CONFIGURATION below). For pixel-based output formats such as PGM, DXF, GeoJSON, and
Gimppath, the default unit is pixels.
Generaloptions:-h,--help print help message and exit.
-v,--version print version info and exit. This also shows the defaults that were compiled into this
version of potrace.
-l,--license print license info and exit.
Input/outputoptions:filename Each file can hold an input image, or multiple concatenated input images. If filename
arguments are given, then potrace will by default create one output file for each input
filename given. The name of the output file is obtained from the input filename by
changing its suffix according to the chosen backend. If changing the suffix is impossible
because the names of the input and output files would be identical, then the output
filename is created by adding the "-out" suffix to the name of the input file. If no
filename arguments are given, then potrace acts as a filter, reading from standard input
and writing to standard output. A filename of "-" may be given to specify reading from
standard input.
-ofilename,--outputfilename
write output to this file. All output is directed to the specified file. If this option is
used, then multiple input filenames are only allowed for multi-page backends (see BACKEND
TYPES below). In this case, each input file may contain one or more bitmaps, and all the
bitmaps from all the input files are processed and the output concatenated into a single
file. A filename of "-" may be given to specify writing to standard output.
-- End of options. Any remaining arguments are interpreted as filenames. This also disables
filter mode, even if no filenames are given. This is useful for shell scripts, because
potrace--$FILENAMES will behave correctly even for an empty list of filenames. However,
-- with an empty list of filenames is not permitted in conjunction with the -o option,
because this would generate a document of zero pages, which none of the backends permit.
Backendselection:
For general information, see also BACKEND TYPES below.
-bname,--backendname
Select backend by name, where name is one of eps, postscript, ps, pdf, pdfpage, svg, dxf,
geojson, pgm, gimppath, xfig. Backend names can be abbreviated by a prefix as long as it
is unambiguous. Backend names are case insensitive.
-s,--svg,-bsvg,--backendsvg
SVG backend. The output is a Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) file. This is a single-page,
variable-sized, dimension-based backend. Note that unless the -r option is given, the
resolution of the input bitmap is assumed to be 72dpi.
-bpdf,--backendpdf
PDF backend. The output is a file in the Portable Document Format. If the input consists
of multiple bitmaps, they are each rendered on a separate page. This is a multi-page,
variable-sized, dimension-based backend.
-bpdfpage,--backendpdfpage
The PDFPage backend is like the PDF backend, except that it is fixed-size like the
PostScript backend.
-e,--eps,-beps,--backendeps
EPS backend (default). The output is an encapsulated PostScript file. This is a single-
page, variable-sized, dimension-based backend.
-p,--postscript,-bps,--backendps
PostScript backend. The output is a PostScript file. This is a multi-page, fixed-size,
dimension-based backend. If the input consists of multiple bitmaps, they are each rendered
on a separate page.
-bdxf,--backenddxf
DXF backend. The output is a file in the Drawing Interchange Format (DXF). In this
backend, all Bezier curves are approximated by piecewise circular arcs; this is suitable
for processing in CAD software or for machining applications using CNC tools. This is a
single-page, variable-sized, pixel-based backend. The -u option has no effect for this
backend.
-bgeojson,--backendgeojson
GeoJSON backend. The output is a file in the format used by some applications processing
geographical data. In this backend, all Bezier curves are approximated by 8 straight line
segments. This is a single-page, variable-sized, pixel-based backend. The -u option has no
effect for this backend.
-g,--pgm,-bpgm,--backendpgm
PGM backend. The output is a portable greymap (PGM) file. It is a convenient backend for
antialiasing a bitmap image. This is a multi-page, variable-sized, pixel-based backend. If
the input consists of more than one image, the images are concatenated in the output.
-bgimppath,--backendgimppath
Gimppath backend. This backend produces output suitable to be imported as a path by the
GNU Image Manipulation Program (Gimp) (in the Layers, Channels & Paths dialog, select
Paths, then right-click and select Import Path). The output is actually an SVG file. The
differences to the SVG backend are: the --opaque option has no effect, the --flat option
is always on, and the dimensions are pixel-based. This is a single-page, variable-sized,
pixel-based backend.
-bxfig,--backendxfig
XFig backend. This is a single-page, fixed-size, dimension-based backend. The output is a
file in the XFig format. Note that XFig uses X-splines instead of Bezier curves, thus it
is not possible to translate the output of potrace into the XFig format with absolute
accuracy. This backend does a reasonable approximation using two control points for each
Bezier curve segment. The -u option has no effect for this backend, because control points
are always rounded to the nearest 1/1200 of an inch in XFig. Curve optimization is
disabled. Implies --opaque.
Algorithmoptions:
For more detailed information on these options, see TECHNICAL DOCUMENTATION below.
-zpolicy,--turnpolicypolicy
specify how to resolve ambiguities in path decomposition. Must be one of black, white,
right, left, minority, majority, or random. Default is minority. Turn policies can be
abbreviated by an unambiguous prefix, e.g., one can specify min instead of minority.
-tn,--turdsizen
suppress speckles of up to this many pixels.
-an,--alphamaxn
set the corner threshold parameter. The default value is 1. The smaller this value, the
more sharp corners will be produced. If this parameter is 0, then no smoothing will be
performed and the output is a polygon. If this parameter is greater than 4/3, then all
corners are suppressed and the output is completely smooth.
-n,--longcurve
turn off curve optimization. Normally potrace tries to join adjacent Bezier curve segments
when this is possible. This option disables this behavior, resulting in a larger file
size.
-On,--opttolerancen
set the curve optimization tolerance. The default value is 0.2. Larger values allow more
consecutive Bezier curve segments to be joined together in a single segment, at the
expense of accuracy.
-un,--unitn set output quantization. Coordinates in the output are rounded to 1/unit pixels. The
default of 10 usually gives good results. For some of the debug modes, a value of 100
gives more accurate output. This option has no effect for the XFig backend, which always
rasterizes to 1/1200 inch, or for the DXF backend. For the GeoJSON backend, this option is
only a hint; the actual rounding may be more, but not less, accurate than specified.
-dn,--debugn
produce debugging output of type n. This has different effects for different backends. For
the PostScript/EPS backends, the values n=1,2,3 illustrate the intermediate stages of the
potrace algorithm.
Scalingandplacementoptions:-Pformat,--pagesizeformat
for fixed-size backends, set page size. The following formats can be specified: A4, A3,
A5, B5, Letter, Legal, Tabloid, Statement, Executive, Folio, Quarto, 10x14. Format names
are case insensitive. Also, an argument of the form dimxdim is accepted to specify
arbitrary dimensions. The default page size is Letter (or A4, if this was configured at
compile time, see COMPILE TIME CONFIGURATION below). Page format names can be abbreviated
by a prefix as long as it is unambiguous. This option has no effect for variable-sized
backends.
-Wdim,--widthdim
set the width of output image (before any rotation and margins). If only one of width and
height is specified, the other is adjusted accordingly so that the aspect ratio is
preserved.
-Hdim,--heightdim
set the height of output image. See -W for details.
-rn[xn],--resolutionn[xn]
for dimension-based backends, set the resolution (in dpi). One inch in the output image
corresponds to this many pixels in the input. Note that a larger value results in a
smaller output image. It is possible to specify separate resolutions in the x and y
directions by giving an argument of the form nxn. For variable-sized backends, the default
resolution is 72dpi. For fixed-size backends, there is no default resolution; the image is
by default scaled to fit on the page. This option has no effect for pixel-based backends.
If -W or -H are specified, they take precedence.
-xn[xn],--scalen[xn]
for pixel-based backends, set the scaling factor. A value greater than 1 enlarges the
output, a value between 0 and 1 makes the output smaller. The default is 1. It is possible
to specify separate scaling factors for the x and y directions by giving an argument of
the form nxn. This option has no effect for dimension-based backends. If -W or -H are
specified, they take precedence.
-Sn,--stretchn
set the aspect ratio. A value greater than 1 means the image will be stretched in the y
direction. A value between 0 and 1 means the image will be compressed in the y direction.
-Aangle,--rotateangle
set the rotation angle (in degrees). The output will be rotated counterclockwise by this
angle. This is useful for compensating for images that were scanned not quite upright.
-Mdim,--margindim
set all four margins. The effect and default value of this option depend on the backend.
For variable-sized backends, the margins will simply be added around the output image (or
subtracted, in case of negative margins). The default margin for these backends is 0. For
fixed-size backends, the margin settings can be used to control the placement of the image
on the page. If only one of the left and right margin is given, the image will be placed
this distance from the respective edge of the page, and similarly for top and bottom. If
margins are given on opposite sides, the image is scaled to fit between these margins,
unless the scaling is already determined explicitly by one or more of the -W, -H, -r, or
-x options. By default, fixed-size backends use a non-zero margin whose width depends on
the page size.
-Ldim,--leftmargindim
set the left margin. See -M for details.
-Rdim,--rightmargindim
set the right margin. See -M for details.
-Tdim,--topmargindim
set the top margin. See -M for details.
-Bdim,--bottommargindim
set the bottom margin. See -M for details.
--tight remove whitespace around the image before scaling and margins are applied. If this option
is given, calculations of the width, height, and margins are based on the actual vector
outline, rather than on the outer dimensions of the input pixmap, which is the default. In
particular, the --tight option can be used to remove any existing margins from the input
image. See the file placement.pdf for a more detailed illustration.
Coloroptions:
These options are only supported by certain backends. The DXF and GeoJSON backends do not support color.
-C#rrggbb,--color#rrggbb
set the foreground color of the output image. The default is black.
--fillcolor#rrggbb
set the fill color of the output image, i.e., the color of the "white" parts that are
enclosed by "black" parts. The default is to leave these parts transparent. Implies
--opaque. Please note that this option sets the background color; to set the foreground
color, use --color instead.
--opaque fill in the white parts of the image opaquely, instead of leaving them transparent. This
only applies to interior white parts, i.e., those that are enclosed inside a black
outline. Opaqueness is always in effect for the XFig backend.
SVGoptions:--group for SVG output, try to group related paths together. Each path is grouped together with
all paths that are contained inside it, so that they can be moved around as a unit with an
SVG editor. This makes coloring individual components slightly more cumbersome, and thus
it is not the default.
--flat for SVG output, put the entire image into a single path. This makes it impossible to color
the components individually, and thus it is not the default. But the resulting SVG file
can be more easily imported by some applications such as Gimp. In fact, the Gimppath
backend is a variation of the SVG backend with the --flat option and pixel-based scaling.
The --flat option has no effect if --opaque has been selected.
PostScript/EPS/PDFoptions:-c,--cleartext
do not compress the output. This option disables the use of compression filters in the
PostScript and PDF output. In the PostScript backend, if -c and -q are used together, the
resulting output can be easily read by other programs or even by humans.
-2,--level2 use PostScript level 2 compression (default). The resulting file size is ca. 40% smaller
than if the -c option is used.
-3,--level3 use PostScript level 3 compression, if available. This gives slightly smaller files than
using -2, but the resulting files may not print on older PostScript level 2 printers. If
support for PostScript level 3 compression has been disabled at compile time, a warning
message is printed and level 2 compression is used instead.
-q,--longcoding
turn off optimized numerical coding in PostScript output. Normally, potrace uses a very
compact numerical format to represent Bezier curves in PostScript, taking advantage of
existing redundancy in the curve parameters. This option disables this behavior, resulting
in longer, but more readable output (particularly if the -c option is also used).
PGMoptions:-Gn,--gamman
set the gamma value for anti-aliasing (default is 2.2). Most computer displays do not
render shades of grey linearly, i.e., a grey value of 0.5 is not displayed as being
exactly half-way between black and white. The gamma parameter corrects for this, and
therefore leads to nicer looking output. The default value of 2.2 is appropriate for most
normal CRT displays.
Frontendoptions:-kn,--blackleveln
set the threshold level for converting input images to bitmaps. The potrace algorithm
expects a bitmap, thus all pixels of the input images are converted to black or white
before processing begins. Pixels whose brightness is less than n are converted to black,
all other pixels to white. Here n is a number between 0 and 1. One case is treated
specially: if the input is in an indexed color format with exactly 2 colors, then the
blacklevel is ignored and the darker of the two colors is mapped to black.
Note: the method used by potrace for converting greymaps to bitmaps is very crude; much
better results can be obtained if a separate program, such as mkbitmap(1), is used for
this purpose. In particular, mkbitmap(1), which is distributed with potrace, has the
ability to scale and interpolate the image before thresholding, which results in much
better preservation of detail.
-i,--invert invert the input bitmap before processing.
Progressbaroptions:--progress display a progress bar for each bitmap that is processed. This is useful for interactive
use. The default behavior is not to show any progress information.
--ttymode set the terminal mode for progress bar rendering. Possible values are "vt100", which
requires a vt100-compatible terminal, and "dumb", which uses only ASCII characters. The
default is system dependent.
Install Now
PNG Icons
