Screenshotting a PDF to get a photo loses quality: you capture it at screen resolution, surrounded by page content. The images inside a PDF are usually stored as separate objects, often at a higher resolution than they're displayed. Extract Images pulls those embedded images out at full resolution without lossy recompression, so you get the actual photo or graphic that was placed in the document.
By VelloDoc · Editorial policy
Original images, not page renders
- No lossy recompression: VelloDoc reads the image objects stored in the PDF and saves each one without lossy recompression: JPG photos keep their original data, and most other images are saved as lossless PNG files.
- Reused images saved once: An image reused on several pages, like a logo in every header, is saved once.
- Stored resolution is kept: Each image keeps its stored resolution, which may be larger than it looked on the page, because PDFs often scale images down for display.
What is and isn't extracted
- Vector artwork isn't an image: Only raster images stored as separate objects are extracted. Charts, logos and illustrations drawn as vector shapes aren't images, so they won't appear; PDF to PNG captures them as part of a page render instead.
- Inline images: Small images stored directly inside the page content are extracted too.
- Transparency: PDFs store transparency as a separate mask. Extract Images combines each image with its mask and saves it as a PNG with a transparent background.
- If nothing is found: If no images are found, the tool says so.
Scans and privacy
- Scanned pages: In a scanned document each page is usually one full-page image, so extraction returns the scans themselves at their original resolution.
- Images can carry more than you expect: Images can also carry more than you expect: a photo that appears cropped on the page is often stored uncropped, and some images keep their own camera metadata.
- Check before sharing, and see the PDF privacy guide for what else documents can reveal.
- To clear properties: To clear document properties, use Remove Metadata.
When people use Extract Images
Recovering photos from a brochure
Get the original product or event photos back out of a finished brochure when the source files are lost.
Getting the original scans
Retrieve untouched scan images from a scanned PDF for editing or re-processing.
Reusing report graphics
Pull embedded photos and screenshots from a report to reuse in a presentation, with permission.
Limitations to know
Extract Images saves raster images only, so vector graphics aren't included. An image used on many pages is saved once, and file names follow the order images were found instead of any caption.
Extract Images: common questions
Why are some graphics missing?
They're probably drawn as vector shapes instead of stored as images. Render the page with PDF to PNG to capture them.
Is the image quality the same as in the PDF?
It's the same or better than it appears on the page. Images keep their stored resolution and are saved without lossy recompression; JPG photos keep their original data.
Do transparent logos keep their transparency?
Yes, in most PDFs. Transparency is usually stored as a separate mask, and Extract Images combines the image with that mask, so a transparent logo comes out as a PNG with a transparent background.
Why did the tool say no images were found?
The PDF has no embedded raster images, for example because it's a text document that uses only vector graphics.