Default import mode
In Settings → Journal → Final Artwork, select whether the next final-artwork image initially uses Copy or Link. The choice can still be changed for an individual import, and it never retroactively changes the storage of an existing image. See Settings.
Why the final image is separate
The Final artwork area, below the materials and WIP gallery blocks, holds one photograph of the finished artwork. Next to it is the Artwork description text area. Together, they document the artwork itself rather than an individual working session.
This is intentionally different from WIP media:
| Final artwork | WIP gallery |
|---|---|
| One optional image for the whole Journal document. | Any number of images and video clips, each assigned to a session. |
| Appears regardless of which session is selected. | Session / All controls which items are visible. |
| Independent Artwork description, retained even if the photograph changes. | Each WIP item has its own name and Media notes. |
| Used as the main artwork photograph in the PDF report. | WIP photos can be included in a Process Report. |
The final image is not automatically taken from the last session, added to Session / All, or counted among WIP gallery items.
Add the final image
- Open or create a Journal and, if useful, enter the artwork title, technique and dimensions.
- In the Final artwork header, select Copy or Link. This selector is separate from the WIP gallery’s import mode.
- Click + (Add or replace final artwork).
- Select one image in the file picker. Accepted extensions are `.jpg`, `.jpeg`, `.png`, `.tif`, `.tiff` and `.bmp`.
- Allow import and thumbnail preparation to finish. The photograph appears in the Final artwork pane.
- Enter or edit Artwork description in the text area to the right and use Save Project.
The final image must be an image file; videos are not accepted here. It is optional – a Journal can have sessions, notes and materials before any final photograph exists.
Copy stores a project-owned copy under `<Project>_Assets/JournalMedia/Originals`; Link retains the external absolute file path. Both use the existing Journal media storage machinery and keep a project thumbnail. For the consequences of moving or archiving a project, see Copy versus Link.
Replace or remove the photograph
Click the same + button while a final image is already present to replace it. After a successful import, the new image takes the place of the previous one. The artwork’s description is preserved. If you cancel the picker or the import fails, the previous image is not intentionally replaced.
Use − (Remove final artwork image) to detach the current final image. This removes the image entry from the Journal but does not erase Artwork description. It also does not delete the external original of a linked file.
When saved project-owned image assets are no longer referenced, the normal Journal save process can clean them up from the project. Unsaved staged files are removed from temporary storage. Save Project to persist the image replacement or removal.
The Copy / Link dropdown determines the storage mode of the next image you add, not the storage mode of an existing image.
Artwork description / notes
The description belongs to the artwork, independently of its photograph. You might record the subject, compositional idea, technique, materials, or a statement intended for a collector or exhibition catalog.
It is different from:
- Session notes – what happened during one working session.
- Media notes – what is shown in a particular WIP photograph or clip.
- Material notes – properties of a catalog item or how it was used in a session.
Changing, replacing or removing the final image does not erase the artwork-level description. The description is saved in the `.arsjournal` data and can appear in Artwork Summary and Process Report PDFs.
Opening a larger preview
Double-click the Final artwork photograph to open the same image preview window used for WIP photographs. It supports Fit, 1:1, zooming with buttons or the mouse wheel, dragging to pan, and Esc to close.
Unlike the WIP viewer, this preview contains only the one final photograph; Previous/Next navigation does not cycle through the WIP gallery.
The image shown in the Journal panel is a higher-quality preview prepared from the original (up to approximately 1024 pixels on its longest edge), rather than the tiny WIP gallery thumbnail. The enlarged preview can decode more detail, with a limit of 8192 pixels on its longest edge for exceptionally large images. Neither preview modifies the original file.
Missing or relocated final images
The final image depends on its original file in the same way as other Journal media:
- For Copy, keep the complete ARS project folder, including its `_Assets` directory.
- For Link, keep the external original at its saved absolute path.
- A surviving thumbnail can still be shown even when the original is missing, but cannot reproduce full image detail.
The final image does not currently have the WIP gallery’s dedicated Relink / Restore context menu. If its source is no longer available, first check the file location and project backup. You can also select the correct image again using the + (replace) operation; this creates/replaces a final-image entry rather than repairing the original media path in place. The artwork description remains independent.
PDF reports
Both PDF export formats can use the final image and artwork description, if present. Exported image data is prepared for the document at a reduced size; the Journal original is not modified. See PDF Export.
