Image Transformations

PichaFlow provides a powerful URL-based transformation engine that allows you to resize, optimize, and reformat images in real-time at the edge.

Query Parameters

You can apply transformations by appending query parameters to your asset URLs.

Width (w)

Sets the target width of the image in pixels.

• Range: 1 to 5000
• Example: ?w=800

Height (h)

Sets the target height of the image in pixels.

• Range: 1 to 5000
• Example: ?h=600

Quality (q)

Controls the compression quality of the output image. Lower values result in smaller file sizes but lower visual quality.

• Range: 1 to 100
• Default: 80
• Example: ?q=75

Format (f)

Specifies the output format of the image.

• Options: webp, avif, png, jpg
• Default: webp
• Example: ?f=avif

Preset (preset)

Applies a named transformation pipeline defined in your PichaFlow Dashboard. Presets are useful for standardizing image sizes across your site (e.g., hero, thumbnail, avatar).

• Example: ?preset=thumbnail

!NOTE If you provide both a preset and individual parameters (like w or h), the individual parameters will override the values defined in the preset.

Pricing & Limits

Transformation quotas and feature availability depend on your subscription tier.

Exceeding Quotas

If you exceed your monthly transformation quota, PichaFlow will continue to serve your images from cache, but new transformations may be throttled or temporarily disabled until the next billing cycle or an upgrade is performed.

Custom WASM Filters

Enterprise customers can deploy custom Rust-based WASM filters directly into their transformation pipeline. These filters run at the edge with near-zero latency.

Supported Enterprise Features:

• Smart Focal Cropping: Uses AI-driven subject detection to ensure the most important part of the image remains centered when resizing.
• Dynamic Watermarking: Inject brand logos or user-specific metadata (e.g., "Preview for User") into the image at the edge.
• Advanced Color Grading: Apply complex color corrections or brand-specific LUTs (Look-Up Tables) to maintain visual consistency across all assets.
• Image Compositing: Layer multiple assets (like "Sale" badges or promotional overlays) onto your base images dynamically.

Usage:

Custom filters are typically invoked via the filter parameter:

• Example: ?filter=smart-crop&w=800&h=800
• Example: ?filter=brand-watermark&preset=hero

!IMPORTANT Custom WASM filters are only available on the Enterprise tier. Contact enterprise@pichaflow.com to start building your custom pipeline.

Best Practices

Use AVIF for maximum savings

AVIF generally provides better compression than WebP. If your users are on modern browsers, consider using ?f=avif.

Combine width and quality

For high-density displays, you might want to serve a larger image but with slightly lower quality to keep the file size balanced.

• Example: ?w=1600&q=70

Automatic Optimization

By default, PichaFlow serves images in WebP format with 80% quality if no parameters are specified. This ensures a great balance between performance and quality out of the box.