Cutpicture

Cutpicture is a term used in digital image processing to describe the operation of extracting a rectangular region from a source image to create a new image, either saved as a separate file or copied to the clipboard. The term is informal and not a standardized feature name across all software; it overlaps with cropping and subimage extraction, but it is often used to emphasize turning a portion of an image into its own independent image.

Implementation and usage: In graphical editors, cutpicture is performed by selecting a region and executing an extraction or cut-and-save action. In programming, it corresponds to taking a bounding box coordinates and copying that region to a new image. Common methods include:

- Python with PIL: image.crop((left, top, right, bottom)) returns the selected region, which can then be saved.

- ImageMagick: a command such as convert input.jpg -crop 200x100+30+40 cut.jpg extracts a 200 by 100 pixel region starting at (30,40).

- JavaScript on the web: drawImage with source coordinates onto a canvas and export the canvas as an image.

Applications and considerations: Cutpicture is widely used to create thumbnails, isolate subjects, or prepare assets for composites. The result is typically rectangular; non-rectangular shapes require masking or further processing. Quality depends on the original resolution and any subsequent scaling, and saving as a new file may affect metadata and color profiles.

See also: cropping, clipping, subimage, image editing.