Export defaults versus a single export

Settings → Studio → Export Defaults supplies the initial output Format (PNG, TIFF or JPEG), Resolution (72–600 DPI), and JPEG Quality (1–100%, only for JPEG). You may override them in the export dialog for one file; this does not rewrite Settings. Monitor display calibration does not change export DPI, pixel dimensions, or physical print dimensions.

Purpose

Canvas Export** saves the composition prepared on the Studio canvas as a separate image file. ARS exports the entire document canvas, including visible reference images, applicable visual guides, and Sample Strips – not merely the portion currently displayed in the viewport.

The exported image can serve as a color and composition reference for painting, be opened in an image editor, or be shared with someone else. Exporting does not replace saving the ARS project (.arsproj): saving editable project data and exporting a flattened image are separate operations.

The current version of ARS supports PNG, TIFF, and JPEG exports. All three formats use the same canvas dimensions and resolution settings.

Exporting the Canvas

1. Open an ARS project or prepare a new document in the Studio workspace.
2. Arrange your reference images, Sample Strips, and other visible elements. Hide any guides or sample-location markers you do not want in the exported image.
3. From the main menu, choose Output → Export Canvas…
4. In the Canvas Export dialog, choose a format and set the resolution. If you choose JPEG, you can also adjust JPEG Quality.
5. Check the Physical Size and Pixel Dimensions fields.
6. Select Export. In the Save File dialog, choose a folder and file name, then confirm.
7. Wait for the export to finish. The image will be saved to the selected location.

If you close the settings dialog or cancel the Save File dialog, the export does not start.

Export Settings

Format

Format selects the output file type. The available options are PNG, TIFF, and JPEG.

JPEG compression may alter very fine lines, text, and the edges of flat color swatches. For precise color comparisons, choose PNG or TIFF.

Although the TIFF format can support different bit depths, the current ARS TIFF exporter produces 8 bits per RGB channel. Exporting a true 16-bit TIFF is not currently available. JPEG likewise uses 8-bit-per-channel RGB data.

Resolution

Resolution is specified in DPI (dots per inch). The default is 300 DPI; the available range is 72–600 DPI.

DPI determines how many output pixels represent one inch of the canvas’s physical dimensions. Increasing DPI produces more pixels, but does not change the canvas’s width and height in centimeters. Higher resolutions generally require more memory, processing time, and disk space.

Do not confuse export resolution with the Studio viewport’s Zoom setting. You may work at any zoom level: the exported result always uses the entire canvas and the selected DPI, not the number of pixels visible on screen.

Physical Size

Physical Size displays the document canvas’s width and height in centimeters. It is informational in the export dialog; to change these dimensions, return to the Canvas settings.

For example, if the canvas is 50 × 60 cm, those physical dimensions remain the basis of the export at both 150 and 300 DPI. Output pixel dimensions must be whole numbers, so ARS rounds them up to the nearest pixel; this can result in a very small physical-size discrepancy of up to one pixel in the resulting image metadata.

Pixel Dimensions

Pixel Dimensions shows the calculated output image width and height in pixels. It updates immediately when you change DPI.

For a 50 × 60 cm canvas, for example:

These are the output image dimensions, not the original pixel dimensions of any imported reference image. ARS composes the reference images and visible layers according to their sizes and positions on the document canvas.

JPEG Quality

JPEG Quality appears only when JPEG is selected. The allowed values are 1–100, with a default of 95.

Higher values generally preserve more fine detail but create larger files. Lower values compress the image more strongly and may introduce visible artifacts near numbers, thin grid lines, and sharply defined swatch boundaries.

A quality setting of 100 is not lossless. If preserving sampled colors without JPEG compression changes is important, choose PNG or TIFF instead.

What Is Included in an Export

An export is based on the entire document canvas. The saved image includes:

• the canvas background and its color;
• visible reference images, preserving their position, size, rotation, flipping, opacity, and crop;
• canvas grids, reference grids, and composition guides that are visible in the output scene;
• visible Sample Strips with their swatch colors, backgrounds, and sample numbers;
• sample-location markers and numbers when their display is enabled and the relevant strip and reference visibility conditions are met.

Editing controls are excluded: selection outlines, resizing and rotation handles, temporary color-sampling previews, mouse-interaction elements, and the application interface. Screen rulers and grid-coordinate labels outside the canvas are not part of the exported canvas image.

The exported image does not depend on the portion of the canvas currently visible, the application window size, or the Zoom setting. For a cleaner result, hide unwanted Sample Strips, sample-location markers, or grids before exporting.

Export Progress

ARS opens a separate progress dialog while exporting. The main ARS window cannot be used until the operation finishes.

• Preparing canvas… – the output scene is prepared.
• Rendering image… – the image is rendered in sections; the progress bar reflects the actual proportion of image rows processed.
• Encoding and saving image… – the selected image format is encoded and written to disk. The bar becomes indeterminate because a reliable encoding percentage is not available.

The progress dialog closes only when exporting is complete. There is currently no cancellation button in the progress dialog, so check your settings before starting a large export.

If an error occurs, ARS shows an error message. After a successful export, the image can be found in the folder you selected.

Size Limits

A single exported image is limited to:

• 60 million pixels in total;
• 16,384 pixels in either width or height;
• a selectable resolution of 72–600 DPI.

If the selected DPI exceeds any of these limits, the settings dialog displays a warning and disables the Export button. Reduce DPI or adjust the canvas’s physical dimensions.

The same limits apply to all three image formats. Increasing DPI cannot create new photographic detail beyond the source reference image; it only increases the pixel dimensions of the composed output.

Practical Example

Suppose you are preparing a 50 × 60 cm painting reference sheet. Place a photograph on the canvas, sample several light and dark areas, and create one horizontal and one vertical Sample Strip, each using white and 50% gray backgrounds. Enable sample-location markers so you can see where each color was taken from the reference.

Choose Output → Export Canvas…, select PNG, and set 300 DPI. The dialog shows 50 × 60 cm for Physical Size and 5906 × 7087 px for Pixel Dimensions. The exported file contains the canvas composition, visible strips, and markers without the ARS editing handles.

To share a smaller preview, export the same composition as JPEG. To retain swatch boundaries and fine lines without lossy compression, use PNG or TIFF.

Important Notes

• Exporting is not the same as saving a project. Editable reference images, the Sample Palette, and Sample Strips belong to the ARS project (.arsproj). PNG, TIFF, and JPEG files are flattened output images.
• The current exporter uses 8 bits per color channel. A 16-bit export option and separate ICC color-profile selection are not currently provided in the export dialog.
• Canvas Export does not divide a large canvas into printable pages. Paper sizes, margins, and physical 1:1 output are described in Print Setup and Preview and Printing Modes and Tiled Printing.