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Colorize images

For products with many color options, you would normally have to create a separate image for each color. The Colorize layer function makes it possible to colorize a single image with different colors and thus offer many color variants with minimal effort.

Prerequisites​

  • You have created a Bilderstapel-Konfigurator.
  • You have created views and layers.
  • You have prepared a suitable product image (see below).

How does coloring work?​

The selected color is mixed with the existing image color. This preserves shading, material textures and details while the base color changes.

The color mixing is multiplicative:

  • White areas (RGB: 255, 255, 255) take on the new color completely
  • Grey areas become darker variants of the new color
  • Black areas (shadows) remain black

Set up colorize layer​

  • Create a Farbmerkmal or edit an existing one.
  • Switch to the Actions tab.
  • Check the Colorize layer box.
  • Select the Layer whose image is to be colored.
  • Click on
    Loading...
    .
  • On the Values tab, you can now specify the desired color for each color value.
  • The preview shows how the image will look with this color.

Creating an optimal initial image​

The quality of the source image is crucial for coloring to work well.

Ideal properties​

  • The product color on the image should be as light as possible, ideally white or very light shades of gray
  • Shading and material textures should be present as shades of gray
  • Darker areas (shadows, folds) remain dark when coloring and thus retain spatial depth
  • Lighter areas take on more of the selected color

Practical tips for creating images​

Photographing:

  • Photograph the product in white or very light gray
  • Ensure good, even lighting
  • Keep natural shadows and textures

Image editing:

  • If you only have a colored product, you can desaturate it in an image editing program
  • Increase the brightness so that the product appears as white as possible
  • But keep the contrasts for wrinkles and textures

Example: A white T-shirt with gray folds and shading can be perfectly colored in red, blue, green, etc., while the folds always remain visible.

Test different colors

First create a test image and try out different colors. This will quickly show you whether your original image is suitable or still needs to be adjusted.

When you should NOT colorize​

The colorize function is not suitable for all applications:

When separate images are better

Use separate images for each color when:

  • Your source image already has a strong inherent color (e.g. a red T-shirt)
  • The colors should have very different brightnesses
  • Different colors represent different textures or materials
  • You need full control over the exact color representation

In these cases, the result with the coloring function will not be satisfactory.

Example: T-shirt with color dyeing​

Here is a complete example of a T-shirt configurator with color dyeing:

Step 1: Preparation​

  1. Create an image of your T-shirt in white or very light gray
  2. Make sure that folds and textures are visible as shades of gray
  3. Upload the image to the configurator

Step 2: Create view and layer​

  1. Create a "Front" view
  2. Create a "T-shirt" layer in this view
  3. Optional: Create additional layers for patterns or details

Step 3: Configure color feature​

  1. Create a "T-shirt color" color feature
  2. Add values: red, blue, green, yellow, black
  3. Switch to the Actions tab
  4. Activate Colorize layer
  5. Select the "T-shirt" layer
  6. Save

Step 4: Assign colors​

  1. Switch to the Values tab
  2. Define the corresponding color for each value
  3. Check in the preview whether the result is satisfactory

Result​

With just one uploaded image, you can now offer an unlimited number of color variants without having to create a new image for each color!

Combination with other functions​

The coloring function can be perfectly combined with other image stack features:

With multiple layers​

Ebene 1: T-Shirt (weiß, wird eingefärbt)
Ebene 2: Muster (separate Bilder für verschiedene Muster)
Ebene 3: Logo (separate Bilder oder leer)

This allows you to configure color and pattern independently of each other.

With imprints​

Combine colouring with kundenspezifischen Aufdrucken to offer customizable products in many colors.

Troubleshooting​

Problem: The colors do not look good​

Solution: Your original image is probably too dark or has too much inherent color. Lighten it in an image editing program.

Problem: The shadows are disappearing​

Solution: Make sure that the shadows in the original image remain as dark gray tones. Do not increase the brightness of the entire image evenly, but only of the product area.

Problem: Some colors work, others do not​

Solution: Very dark colors (such as dark blue or black) only work if the source image is very light. Very bright colors (such as yellow) may require an even brighter source image.

Problem: Different areas are colored differently​

Solution: This is normal and desirable - shading is retained. If the difference is too great, adjust the differences in brightness in the source image.

Summary​

The coloring function is a powerful tool for offering many color variants with minimal effort. Success depends heavily on the correct source image:

✅ Success factors:

  • Very bright source image (ideally white)
  • Shades of gray for textures and details
  • Good lighting when taking photos
  • Testing different colors in the preview

With these prerequisites, you can create a flexible product configurator that offers customers a wide range of colors while only having to maintain a single image.