OpenCV  4.0.0
Open Source Computer Vision
Modules | Enumerations | Functions
Image file reading and writing

Modules

 C API
 
 iOS glue
 

Enumerations

enum  cv::ImreadModes {
  cv::IMREAD_UNCHANGED = -1,
  cv::IMREAD_GRAYSCALE = 0,
  cv::IMREAD_COLOR = 1,
  cv::IMREAD_ANYDEPTH = 2,
  cv::IMREAD_ANYCOLOR = 4,
  cv::IMREAD_LOAD_GDAL = 8,
  cv::IMREAD_REDUCED_GRAYSCALE_2 = 16,
  cv::IMREAD_REDUCED_COLOR_2 = 17,
  cv::IMREAD_REDUCED_GRAYSCALE_4 = 32,
  cv::IMREAD_REDUCED_COLOR_4 = 33,
  cv::IMREAD_REDUCED_GRAYSCALE_8 = 64,
  cv::IMREAD_REDUCED_COLOR_8 = 65,
  cv::IMREAD_IGNORE_ORIENTATION = 128
}
 Imread flags. More...
 
enum  cv::ImwriteEXRTypeFlags {
  cv::IMWRITE_EXR_TYPE_HALF = 1,
  cv::IMWRITE_EXR_TYPE_FLOAT = 2
}
 
enum  cv::ImwriteFlags {
  cv::IMWRITE_JPEG_QUALITY = 1,
  cv::IMWRITE_JPEG_PROGRESSIVE = 2,
  cv::IMWRITE_JPEG_OPTIMIZE = 3,
  cv::IMWRITE_JPEG_RST_INTERVAL = 4,
  cv::IMWRITE_JPEG_LUMA_QUALITY = 5,
  cv::IMWRITE_JPEG_CHROMA_QUALITY = 6,
  cv::IMWRITE_PNG_COMPRESSION = 16,
  cv::IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY = 17,
  cv::IMWRITE_PNG_BILEVEL = 18,
  cv::IMWRITE_PXM_BINARY = 32,
  cv::IMWRITE_EXR_TYPE = (3 << 4) + 0,
  cv::IMWRITE_WEBP_QUALITY = 64,
  cv::IMWRITE_PAM_TUPLETYPE = 128,
  cv::IMWRITE_TIFF_RESUNIT = 256,
  cv::IMWRITE_TIFF_XDPI = 257,
  cv::IMWRITE_TIFF_YDPI = 258
}
 Imwrite flags. More...
 
enum  cv::ImwritePAMFlags {
  cv::IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_NULL = 0,
  cv::IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_BLACKANDWHITE = 1,
  cv::IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_GRAYSCALE = 2,
  cv::IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_GRAYSCALE_ALPHA = 3,
  cv::IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_RGB = 4,
  cv::IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_RGB_ALPHA = 5
}
 Imwrite PAM specific tupletype flags used to define the 'TUPETYPE' field of a PAM file. More...
 
enum  cv::ImwritePNGFlags {
  cv::IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_DEFAULT = 0,
  cv::IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_FILTERED = 1,
  cv::IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_HUFFMAN_ONLY = 2,
  cv::IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_RLE = 3,
  cv::IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_FIXED = 4
}
 Imwrite PNG specific flags used to tune the compression algorithm. More...
 

Functions

bool cv::haveImageReader (const String &filename)
 Returns true if the specified image can be decoded by OpenCV. More...
 
bool cv::haveImageWriter (const String &filename)
 Returns true if an image with the specified filename can be encoded by OpenCV. More...
 
Mat cv::imdecode (InputArray buf, int flags)
 Reads an image from a buffer in memory. More...
 
Mat cv::imdecode (InputArray buf, int flags, Mat *dst)
 
bool cv::imencode (const String &ext, InputArray img, std::vector< uchar > &buf, const std::vector< int > &params=std::vector< int >())
 Encodes an image into a memory buffer. More...
 
Mat cv::imread (const String &filename, int flags=IMREAD_COLOR)
 Loads an image from a file. More...
 
bool cv::imreadmulti (const String &filename, std::vector< Mat > &mats, int flags=IMREAD_ANYCOLOR)
 Loads a multi-page image from a file. More...
 
bool cv::imwrite (const String &filename, InputArray img, const std::vector< int > &params=std::vector< int >())
 Saves an image to a specified file. More...
 

Detailed Description

Enumeration Type Documentation

§ ImreadModes

Imread flags.

Enumerator
IMREAD_UNCHANGED 
Python: cv.IMREAD_UNCHANGED

If set, return the loaded image as is (with alpha channel, otherwise it gets cropped).

IMREAD_GRAYSCALE 
Python: cv.IMREAD_GRAYSCALE

If set, always convert image to the single channel grayscale image (codec internal conversion).

IMREAD_COLOR 
Python: cv.IMREAD_COLOR

If set, always convert image to the 3 channel BGR color image.

IMREAD_ANYDEPTH 
Python: cv.IMREAD_ANYDEPTH

If set, return 16-bit/32-bit image when the input has the corresponding depth, otherwise convert it to 8-bit.

IMREAD_ANYCOLOR 
Python: cv.IMREAD_ANYCOLOR

If set, the image is read in any possible color format.

IMREAD_LOAD_GDAL 
Python: cv.IMREAD_LOAD_GDAL

If set, use the gdal driver for loading the image.

IMREAD_REDUCED_GRAYSCALE_2 
Python: cv.IMREAD_REDUCED_GRAYSCALE_2

If set, always convert image to the single channel grayscale image and the image size reduced 1/2.

IMREAD_REDUCED_COLOR_2 
Python: cv.IMREAD_REDUCED_COLOR_2

If set, always convert image to the 3 channel BGR color image and the image size reduced 1/2.

IMREAD_REDUCED_GRAYSCALE_4 
Python: cv.IMREAD_REDUCED_GRAYSCALE_4

If set, always convert image to the single channel grayscale image and the image size reduced 1/4.

IMREAD_REDUCED_COLOR_4 
Python: cv.IMREAD_REDUCED_COLOR_4

If set, always convert image to the 3 channel BGR color image and the image size reduced 1/4.

IMREAD_REDUCED_GRAYSCALE_8 
Python: cv.IMREAD_REDUCED_GRAYSCALE_8

If set, always convert image to the single channel grayscale image and the image size reduced 1/8.

IMREAD_REDUCED_COLOR_8 
Python: cv.IMREAD_REDUCED_COLOR_8

If set, always convert image to the 3 channel BGR color image and the image size reduced 1/8.

IMREAD_IGNORE_ORIENTATION 
Python: cv.IMREAD_IGNORE_ORIENTATION

If set, do not rotate the image according to EXIF's orientation flag.

§ ImwriteEXRTypeFlags

Enumerator
IMWRITE_EXR_TYPE_HALF 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_EXR_TYPE_HALF

store as HALF (FP16)

IMWRITE_EXR_TYPE_FLOAT 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_EXR_TYPE_FLOAT

store as FP32 (default)

§ ImwriteFlags

Imwrite flags.

Enumerator
IMWRITE_JPEG_QUALITY 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_JPEG_QUALITY

For JPEG, it can be a quality from 0 to 100 (the higher is the better). Default value is 95.

IMWRITE_JPEG_PROGRESSIVE 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_JPEG_PROGRESSIVE

Enable JPEG features, 0 or 1, default is False.

IMWRITE_JPEG_OPTIMIZE 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_JPEG_OPTIMIZE

Enable JPEG features, 0 or 1, default is False.

IMWRITE_JPEG_RST_INTERVAL 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_JPEG_RST_INTERVAL

JPEG restart interval, 0 - 65535, default is 0 - no restart.

IMWRITE_JPEG_LUMA_QUALITY 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_JPEG_LUMA_QUALITY

Separate luma quality level, 0 - 100, default is 0 - don't use.

IMWRITE_JPEG_CHROMA_QUALITY 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_JPEG_CHROMA_QUALITY

Separate chroma quality level, 0 - 100, default is 0 - don't use.

IMWRITE_PNG_COMPRESSION 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PNG_COMPRESSION

For PNG, it can be the compression level from 0 to 9. A higher value means a smaller size and longer compression time. If specified, strategy is changed to IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_DEFAULT (Z_DEFAULT_STRATEGY). Default value is 1 (best speed setting).

IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY

One of cv::ImwritePNGFlags, default is IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_RLE.

IMWRITE_PNG_BILEVEL 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PNG_BILEVEL

Binary level PNG, 0 or 1, default is 0.

IMWRITE_PXM_BINARY 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PXM_BINARY

For PPM, PGM, or PBM, it can be a binary format flag, 0 or 1. Default value is 1.

IMWRITE_EXR_TYPE 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_EXR_TYPE
IMWRITE_WEBP_QUALITY 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_WEBP_QUALITY

override EXR storage type (FLOAT (FP32) is default)

For WEBP, it can be a quality from 1 to 100 (the higher is the better). By default (without any parameter) and for quality above 100 the lossless compression is used.

IMWRITE_PAM_TUPLETYPE 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PAM_TUPLETYPE

For PAM, sets the TUPLETYPE field to the corresponding string value that is defined for the format.

IMWRITE_TIFF_RESUNIT 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_TIFF_RESUNIT

For TIFF, use to specify which DPI resolution unit to set; see libtiff documentation for valid values.

IMWRITE_TIFF_XDPI 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_TIFF_XDPI

For TIFF, use to specify the X direction DPI.

IMWRITE_TIFF_YDPI 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_TIFF_YDPI

For TIFF, use to specify the Y direction DPI.

§ ImwritePAMFlags

Imwrite PAM specific tupletype flags used to define the 'TUPETYPE' field of a PAM file.

Enumerator
IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_NULL 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_NULL
IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_BLACKANDWHITE 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_BLACKANDWHITE
IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_GRAYSCALE 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_GRAYSCALE
IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_GRAYSCALE_ALPHA 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_GRAYSCALE_ALPHA
IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_RGB 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_RGB
IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_RGB_ALPHA 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PAM_FORMAT_RGB_ALPHA

§ ImwritePNGFlags

Imwrite PNG specific flags used to tune the compression algorithm.

These flags will be modify the way of PNG image compression and will be passed to the underlying zlib processing stage.

  • The effect of IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_FILTERED is to force more Huffman coding and less string matching; it is somewhat intermediate between IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_DEFAULT and IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_HUFFMAN_ONLY.
  • IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_RLE is designed to be almost as fast as IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_HUFFMAN_ONLY, but give better compression for PNG image data.
  • The strategy parameter only affects the compression ratio but not the correctness of the compressed output even if it is not set appropriately.
  • IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_FIXED prevents the use of dynamic Huffman codes, allowing for a simpler decoder for special applications.
Enumerator
IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_DEFAULT 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_DEFAULT

Use this value for normal data.

IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_FILTERED 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_FILTERED

Use this value for data produced by a filter (or predictor).Filtered data consists mostly of small values with a somewhat random distribution. In this case, the compression algorithm is tuned to compress them better.

IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_HUFFMAN_ONLY 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_HUFFMAN_ONLY

Use this value to force Huffman encoding only (no string match).

IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_RLE 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_RLE

Use this value to limit match distances to one (run-length encoding).

IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_FIXED 
Python: cv.IMWRITE_PNG_STRATEGY_FIXED

Using this value prevents the use of dynamic Huffman codes, allowing for a simpler decoder for special applications.

Function Documentation

§ haveImageReader()

bool cv::haveImageReader ( const String filename)
Python:
retval=cv.haveImageReader(filename)

Returns true if the specified image can be decoded by OpenCV.

Parameters
filenameFile name of the image

§ haveImageWriter()

bool cv::haveImageWriter ( const String filename)
Python:
retval=cv.haveImageWriter(filename)

Returns true if an image with the specified filename can be encoded by OpenCV.

Parameters
filenameFile name of the image

§ imdecode() [1/2]

Mat cv::imdecode ( InputArray  buf,
int  flags 
)
Python:
retval=cv.imdecode(buf, flags)

Reads an image from a buffer in memory.

The function imdecode reads an image from the specified buffer in the memory. If the buffer is too short or contains invalid data, the function returns an empty matrix ( Mat::data==NULL ).

See cv::imread for the list of supported formats and flags description.

Note
In the case of color images, the decoded images will have the channels stored in B G R order.
Parameters
bufInput array or vector of bytes.
flagsThe same flags as in cv::imread, see cv::ImreadModes.

§ imdecode() [2/2]

Mat cv::imdecode ( InputArray  buf,
int  flags,
Mat dst 
)
Python:
retval=cv.imdecode(buf, flags)

This is an overloaded member function, provided for convenience. It differs from the above function only in what argument(s) it accepts.

Parameters
buf
flags
dstThe optional output placeholder for the decoded matrix. It can save the image reallocations when the function is called repeatedly for images of the same size.

§ imencode()

bool cv::imencode ( const String ext,
InputArray  img,
std::vector< uchar > &  buf,
const std::vector< int > &  params = std::vector< int >() 
)
Python:
retval, buf=cv.imencode(ext, img[, params])

Encodes an image into a memory buffer.

The function imencode compresses the image and stores it in the memory buffer that is resized to fit the result. See cv::imwrite for the list of supported formats and flags description.

Parameters
extFile extension that defines the output format.
imgImage to be written.
bufOutput buffer resized to fit the compressed image.
paramsFormat-specific parameters. See cv::imwrite and cv::ImwriteFlags.

§ imread()

Mat cv::imread ( const String filename,
int  flags = IMREAD_COLOR 
)
Python:
retval=cv.imread(filename[, flags])

Loads an image from a file.

The function imread loads an image from the specified file and returns it. If the image cannot be read (because of missing file, improper permissions, unsupported or invalid format), the function returns an empty matrix ( Mat::data==NULL ).

Currently, the following file formats are supported:

  • Windows bitmaps - *.bmp, *.dib (always supported)
  • JPEG files - *.jpeg, *.jpg, *.jpe (see the Note section)
  • JPEG 2000 files - *.jp2 (see the Note section)
  • Portable Network Graphics - *.png (see the Note section)
  • WebP - *.webp (see the Note section)
  • Portable image format - *.pbm, *.pgm, *.ppm *.pxm, *.pnm (always supported)
  • Sun rasters - *.sr, *.ras (always supported)
  • TIFF files - *.tiff, *.tif (see the Note section)
  • OpenEXR Image files - *.exr (see the Note section)
  • Radiance HDR - *.hdr, *.pic (always supported)
  • Raster and Vector geospatial data supported by GDAL (see the Note section)
Note
  • The function determines the type of an image by the content, not by the file extension.
  • In the case of color images, the decoded images will have the channels stored in B G R order.
  • When using IMREAD_GRAYSCALE, the codec's internal grayscale conversion will be used, if available. Results may differ to the output of cvtColor()
  • On Microsoft Windows* OS and MacOSX*, the codecs shipped with an OpenCV image (libjpeg, libpng, libtiff, and libjasper) are used by default. So, OpenCV can always read JPEGs, PNGs, and TIFFs. On MacOSX, there is also an option to use native MacOSX image readers. But beware that currently these native image loaders give images with different pixel values because of the color management embedded into MacOSX.
  • On Linux*, BSD flavors and other Unix-like open-source operating systems, OpenCV looks for codecs supplied with an OS image. Install the relevant packages (do not forget the development files, for example, "libjpeg-dev", in Debian* and Ubuntu*) to get the codec support or turn on the OPENCV_BUILD_3RDPARTY_LIBS flag in CMake.
  • In the case you set WITH_GDAL flag to true in CMake and IMREAD_LOAD_GDAL to load the image, then the GDAL driver will be used in order to decode the image, supporting the following formats: Raster, Vector.
  • If EXIF information are embedded in the image file, the EXIF orientation will be taken into account and thus the image will be rotated accordingly except if the flag IMREAD_IGNORE_ORIENTATION is passed.
Parameters
filenameName of file to be loaded.
flagsFlag that can take values of cv::ImreadModes
Examples:
fld_lines.cpp, modules/shape/samples/shape_example.cpp, samples/cpp/connected_components.cpp, samples/cpp/create_mask.cpp, samples/cpp/demhist.cpp, samples/cpp/distrans.cpp, samples/cpp/edge.cpp, samples/cpp/facedetect.cpp, samples/cpp/falsecolor.cpp, samples/cpp/ffilldemo.cpp, samples/cpp/fitellipse.cpp, samples/cpp/grabcut.cpp, samples/cpp/image_alignment.cpp, samples/cpp/lsd_lines.cpp, samples/cpp/pca.cpp, samples/cpp/squares.cpp, samples/cpp/stitching.cpp, samples/cpp/stitching_detailed.cpp, samples/cpp/train_HOG.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/features2D/Homography/decompose_homography.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/features2D/Homography/homography_from_camera_displacement.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/features2D/Homography/pose_from_homography.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/HighGUI/AddingImagesTrackbar.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/Histograms_Matching/MatchTemplate_Demo.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/ImgProc/Morphology_1.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/ImgProc/Morphology_2.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/ImgProc/Pyramids/Pyramids.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/ImgProc/Smoothing/Smoothing.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/ImgTrans/copyMakeBorder_demo.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/ImgTrans/houghcircles.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/ImgTrans/houghlines.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/ImgTrans/Sobel_Demo.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/ml/introduction_to_pca/introduction_to_pca.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/photo/non_photorealistic_rendering/npr_demo.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/photo/seamless_cloning/cloning_demo.cpp, samples/cpp/warpPerspective_demo.cpp, samples/cpp/watershed.cpp, samples/dnn/colorization.cpp, samples/dnn/openpose.cpp, samples/tapi/hog.cpp, and samples/tapi/squares.cpp.

§ imreadmulti()

bool cv::imreadmulti ( const String filename,
std::vector< Mat > &  mats,
int  flags = IMREAD_ANYCOLOR 
)
Python:
retval, mats=cv.imreadmulti(filename[, mats[, flags]])

Loads a multi-page image from a file.

The function imreadmulti loads a multi-page image from the specified file into a vector of Mat objects.

Parameters
filenameName of file to be loaded.
flagsFlag that can take values of cv::ImreadModes, default with cv::IMREAD_ANYCOLOR.
matsA vector of Mat objects holding each page, if more than one.
See also
cv::imread

§ imwrite()

bool cv::imwrite ( const String filename,
InputArray  img,
const std::vector< int > &  params = std::vector< int >() 
)
Python:
retval=cv.imwrite(filename, img[, params])

Saves an image to a specified file.

The function imwrite saves the image to the specified file. The image format is chosen based on the filename extension (see cv::imread for the list of extensions). In general, only 8-bit single-channel or 3-channel (with 'BGR' channel order) images can be saved using this function, with these exceptions:

  • 16-bit unsigned (CV_16U) images can be saved in the case of PNG, JPEG 2000, and TIFF formats
  • 32-bit float (CV_32F) images can be saved in TIFF, OpenEXR, and Radiance HDR formats; 3-channel (CV_32FC3) TIFF images will be saved using the LogLuv high dynamic range encoding (4 bytes per pixel)
  • PNG images with an alpha channel can be saved using this function. To do this, create 8-bit (or 16-bit) 4-channel image BGRA, where the alpha channel goes last. Fully transparent pixels should have alpha set to 0, fully opaque pixels should have alpha set to 255/65535 (see the code sample below).

If the format, depth or channel order is different, use Mat::convertTo and cv::cvtColor to convert it before saving. Or, use the universal FileStorage I/O functions to save the image to XML or YAML format.

The sample below shows how to create a BGRA image and save it to a PNG file. It also demonstrates how to set custom compression parameters:

using namespace cv;
using namespace std;
static void createAlphaMat(Mat &mat)
{
CV_Assert(mat.channels() == 4);
for (int i = 0; i < mat.rows; ++i)
{
for (int j = 0; j < mat.cols; ++j)
{
Vec4b& bgra = mat.at<Vec4b>(i, j);
bgra[0] = UCHAR_MAX; // Blue
bgra[1] = saturate_cast<uchar>((float (mat.cols - j)) / ((float)mat.cols) * UCHAR_MAX); // Green
bgra[2] = saturate_cast<uchar>((float (mat.rows - i)) / ((float)mat.rows) * UCHAR_MAX); // Red
bgra[3] = saturate_cast<uchar>(0.5 * (bgra[1] + bgra[2])); // Alpha
}
}
}
int main()
{
// Create mat with alpha channel
Mat mat(480, 640, CV_8UC4);
createAlphaMat(mat);
vector<int> compression_params;
compression_params.push_back(IMWRITE_PNG_COMPRESSION);
compression_params.push_back(9);
bool result = false;
try
{
result = imwrite("alpha.png", mat, compression_params);
}
catch (const cv::Exception& ex)
{
fprintf(stderr, "Exception converting image to PNG format: %s\n", ex.what());
}
if (result)
printf("Saved PNG file with alpha data.\n");
else
printf("ERROR: Can't save PNG file.\n");
return result ? 0 : 1;
}
Parameters
filenameName of the file.
imgImage to be saved.
paramsFormat-specific parameters encoded as pairs (paramId_1, paramValue_1, paramId_2, paramValue_2, ... .) see cv::ImwriteFlags
Examples:
samples/cpp/image_alignment.cpp, samples/cpp/stitching.cpp, samples/cpp/stitching_detailed.cpp, samples/cpp/tutorial_code/photo/seamless_cloning/cloning_demo.cpp, samples/tapi/hog.cpp, and samples/tapi/squares.cpp.