> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/d2phap/ImageGlass/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Export Frames

> Extract individual frames from animated images and multi-frame files using igcmd

The `export-frames` command extracts individual frames from animated images (GIF, WebP, APNG) and multi-frame files (TIFF, ICO) into separate image files.

## Syntax

```bash theme={null}
igcmd.exe export-frames <imagePath>
```

## Parameters

<ParamField path="imagePath" type="string" required>
  Full path to the animated or multi-frame image file

  **Supported formats:**

  * Animated GIF (`.gif`)
  * Animated WebP (`.webp`)
  * Animated PNG/APNG (`.png`)
  * Multi-frame TIFF (`.tiff`, `.tif`)
  * Multi-icon ICO (`.ico`)
</ParamField>

## Exit Codes

| Code | Description                              |
| ---- | ---------------------------------------- |
| `0`  | Frames exported successfully             |
| `2`  | Error (file not found or invalid format) |

## Behavior

### Interactive Folder Selection

When you run the command:

1. **File validation** - Checks if the specified file exists
2. **Folder picker** - Opens a dialog to select the destination folder
3. **Frame extraction** - Extracts all frames to the selected folder
4. **Progress display** - Shows extraction progress
5. **Completion** - Displays summary of extracted frames

### Output Files

Extracted frames are saved as:

* **Naming pattern:** `frame_001.png`, `frame_002.png`, etc.
* **Format:** PNG (preserves transparency)
* **Numbering:** Sequential, zero-padded
* **Location:** User-selected destination folder

## Examples

### Basic Usage

```bash theme={null}
igcmd.exe export-frames "C:\Images\animation.gif"
```

Opens folder picker, then extracts all frames from the GIF file.

### Export Animated WebP

```bash theme={null}
igcmd.exe export-frames "C:\Downloads\animated.webp"
```

Extracts frames from an animated WebP file.

### Export APNG Frames

```bash theme={null}
igcmd.exe export-frames "C:\Graphics\logo.png"
```

Extracts frames if the PNG file is animated (APNG format).

### Multi-Frame TIFF

```bash theme={null}
igcmd.exe export-frames "C:\Scans\document.tiff"
```

Extracts individual pages from a multi-page TIFF file.

## Advanced Usage

### Batch Frame Extraction

```batch theme={null}
@echo off
setlocal enabledelayedexpansion

set "input_folder=C:\Animations"
set "output_folder=C:\ExtractedFrames"

for %%f in ("%input_folder%\*.gif") do (
    echo Processing: %%~nxf
    
    rem Create output subfolder
    set "dest=%output_folder%\%%~nf"
    mkdir "!dest!" 2>nul
    
    rem Export frames (note: will show folder picker)
    igcmd.exe export-frames "%%f"
    
    if !ERRORLEVEL! EQU 0 (
        echo Success: %%~nxf
    ) else (
        echo Failed: %%~nxf
    )
)

echo.
echo Batch extraction complete
pause
```

### PowerShell Batch Extraction

```powershell theme={null}
# Process multiple animated files
$sourceFolder = "C:\Animations"
$files = Get-ChildItem $sourceFolder -Include *.gif,*.webp -Recurse

foreach ($file in $files) {
    Write-Host "Extracting frames from: $($file.Name)" -ForegroundColor Cyan
    
    & "C:\Program Files\ImageGlass\igcmd.exe" export-frames $file.FullName
    
    if ($LASTEXITCODE -eq 0) {
        Write-Host "  Success" -ForegroundColor Green
    } else {
        Write-Host "  Failed" -ForegroundColor Red
    }
}

Write-Host "Batch extraction complete" -ForegroundColor Green
```

### Error Handling

```batch theme={null}
@echo off
set "image=C:\Images\animation.gif"

if not exist "%image%" (
    echo Error: File not found: %image%
    exit /b 3
)

echo Extracting frames from: %image%
echo.

igcmd.exe export-frames "%image%"

if %ERRORLEVEL% EQU 0 (
    echo.
    echo Frames exported successfully
) else if %ERRORLEVEL% EQU 2 (
    echo.
    echo Error: Invalid file or extraction failed
    exit /b 2
) else (
    echo.
    echo Unknown error occurred
    exit /b 1
)
```

### PowerShell with Error Handling

```powershell theme={null}
function Export-ImageFrames {
    param(
        [Parameter(Mandatory=$true)]
        [string]$ImagePath
    )
    
    if (-not (Test-Path $ImagePath)) {
        Write-Error "File not found: $ImagePath"
        return $false
    }
    
    Write-Host "Extracting frames from: $(Split-Path $ImagePath -Leaf)"
    
    $process = Start-Process -FilePath "igcmd.exe" `
        -ArgumentList "export-frames", $ImagePath `
        -Wait -PassThru -NoNewWindow
    
    if ($process.ExitCode -eq 0) {
        Write-Host "Extraction successful" -ForegroundColor Green
        return $true
    } else {
        Write-Host "Extraction failed (exit code: $($process.ExitCode))" -ForegroundColor Red
        return $false
    }
}

# Usage
Export-ImageFrames "C:\Images\animation.gif"
```

## Supported File Formats

### Animated GIF

```bash theme={null}
igcmd.exe export-frames "animation.gif"
```

* **Format:** Graphics Interchange Format
* **Typical use:** Web animations, simple animations
* **Frames:** Unlimited
* **Output:** Individual PNG files

### Animated WebP

```bash theme={null}
igcmd.exe export-frames "animation.webp"
```

* **Format:** WebP with animation
* **Typical use:** Modern web animations, high-quality animations
* **Frames:** Unlimited
* **Output:** PNG files with alpha channel

### Animated PNG (APNG)

```bash theme={null}
igcmd.exe export-frames "animation.png"
```

* **Format:** Animated Portable Network Graphics
* **Typical use:** High-quality animations with transparency
* **Frames:** Unlimited
* **Output:** PNG files preserving transparency

### Multi-Frame TIFF

```bash theme={null}
igcmd.exe export-frames "document.tiff"
```

* **Format:** Tagged Image File Format
* **Typical use:** Scanned documents, multi-page images
* **Frames:** Multiple pages
* **Output:** PNG files (one per page)

### Multi-Resolution ICO

```bash theme={null}
igcmd.exe export-frames "icon.ico"
```

* **Format:** Windows Icon
* **Typical use:** Application icons with multiple sizes
* **Frames:** Multiple resolutions (16x16, 32x32, 48x48, etc.)
* **Output:** PNG files (one per resolution)

## Use Cases

### Extract GIF Frames for Editing

```batch theme={null}
@echo off
echo Extracting frames for editing...
igcmd.exe export-frames "source_animation.gif"
echo.
echo Edit the extracted frames, then recreate the GIF with your preferred tool.
pause
```

### Analyze Animation Sequences

```batch theme={null}
rem Extract frames to analyze animation sequence
igcmd.exe export-frames "complex_animation.webp"
echo Frames extracted for frame-by-frame analysis
```

### Convert Animation to Image Sequence

```batch theme={null}
@echo off
echo Converting animation to image sequence...
igcmd.exe export-frames "%1"
if %ERRORLEVEL% EQU 0 (
    echo Image sequence created successfully
)
```

### Extract Icon Sizes

```batch theme={null}
rem Extract different icon resolutions
igcmd.exe export-frames "application.ico"
echo Individual icon sizes extracted
```

### Quality Comparison

```batch theme={null}
rem Extract frames from different compression formats for quality comparison
igcmd.exe export-frames "animation_original.gif"
igcmd.exe export-frames "animation_compressed.webp"
echo Compare extracted frames to evaluate compression quality
```

## Output Characteristics

### Frame Naming

Extracted frames follow this pattern:

```
frame_001.png
frame_002.png
frame_003.png
...
frame_100.png
```

* **Format:** PNG (lossless)
* **Padding:** Zero-padded numbers (001, 002, etc.)
* **Transparency:** Preserved from source
* **Color depth:** Preserved from source

### Frame Quality

* **No quality loss** - Lossless PNG format
* **Transparency preserved** - Alpha channel maintained
* **Exact pixels** - Pixel-perfect extraction
* **Original resolution** - No scaling applied

### Destination Folder

The folder picker allows you to:

* Select existing folders
* Create new folders
* Navigate to any location
* See pinned places (Quick Access)

## Limitations

### Interactive Requirement

```
Note: This command requires user interaction (folder selection dialog)
and cannot run fully automated or in silent mode.
```

For automated workflows, you may need to:

* Pre-create destination folders
* Use alternative frame extraction tools
* Develop custom automation scripts

### File Size Considerations

Extracting frames from large animations:

* **High frame count** - Can generate hundreds of files
* **Disk space** - PNG files may require significant storage
* **Processing time** - Large files take longer to process

**Example:**

* 100-frame GIF (1920x1080) → \~200MB of PNG files
* 500-frame animation → \~1GB of PNG files

## Troubleshooting

### File Not Found Error

```bash theme={null}
if not exist "animation.gif" (
    echo Error: File not found
    echo Please check the file path
    exit /b 2
)
```

### Invalid Format Error

Ensure the file is actually animated:

* **Static images** - Cannot extract frames from single-frame images
* **Corrupt files** - Damaged files may fail to extract
* **Unsupported formats** - Some formats are not supported

### Exit Code 2 Troubleshooting

If you receive exit code 2:

1. Verify the file exists
2. Check file is not corrupted
3. Ensure file format is supported
4. Confirm file contains multiple frames
5. Try opening the file in ImageGlass first

## Related Commands

### lossless-compress

Compress extracted frames to reduce file size:

```bash theme={null}
rem Extract frames
igcmd.exe export-frames "animation.gif"

rem Compress each frame
for %%f in (*.png) do (
    igcmd.exe lossless-compress "%%f"
)
```

### start-slideshow

View extracted frames as a slideshow:

```bash theme={null}
rem Extract frames to a folder
igcmd.exe export-frames "animation.gif"

rem View frames as slideshow
igcmd.exe start-slideshow "frame_001.png"
```

## See Also

* [CLI Overview](/cli/overview)
* [All Commands](/cli/igcmd-commands)
* [Lossless Compression](/cli/igcmd-commands#lossless-compress)
* [Start Slideshow](/cli/igcmd-commands#start-slideshow)