JPG to SVG converter
JPEG compression leaves blotches and halos around every edge. Makerfern filters them out before tracing, so a saved-from-the-web logo still comes out as clean shapes.
What this preset does
These are the starting values when you open this page. They are Makerfern's defaults, chosen to be sensible for the job, not a manufacturer specification. Every one is adjustable in the settings panel.
| Setting | Starts at | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Background | Everywhere | JPG has no transparency, so the backdrop color is removed wherever it appears, including inside letters. |
| Colors | Automatic | Compression noise is spread across many near-identical shades; they are grouped back into the few real colors. |
| Noise floor | Always on | Clusters of a few pixels are merged away on every conversion. JPEG artifacts are never real artwork. |
| Smoothness | 0.45 | Enough to hide a ragged edge without rounding off real corners. |
Getting a good result from a JPG
- Use the largest copy of the image you can find. A 300-pixel thumbnail has already lost the edge you are trying to trace.
- Drop it on the mat. If the background survives, set Background to "Everywhere" in the settings.
- If a color splits into two layers ("Red" and "Red 2"), lower the color count by one.
What JPEG does to an edge
JPEG saves space by describing the image in 8×8 pixel blocks and throwing away detail the eye is bad at seeing. Around a sharp edge that leaves "mosquito noise": faint blotches of slightly wrong color on both sides. A naive trace follows every blotch, and you get hundreds of specks and a wobbly outline.
Makerfern handles this in three places. Color grouping works in a perceptual color space, so near-identical shades join the same layer. A majority filter replaces lone pixels that disagree with most of their neighbours. And every piece smaller than a few pixels is merged into its surroundings before tracing starts.
If the image was saved as JPG many times over, the damage can be bigger than any filter can undo. Try raising Smallest piece in the settings, or find the original PNG or PDF of the logo.
Questions
Why did white parts inside my logo disappear?
With Background set to "Everywhere", every region the color of the background is removed, including the inside of letters. That's usually right for cutting. If you need a white shape inside the design as its own layer, switch Background to "Outside only".
Does it work on JPEG photos?
You'll get a posterised, flat-color version rather than a photo. For stencils or single-color engraving from a photo, use the Stencil or Laser preset with 2 colors.