transform-remove-background-with-transloadit

name	transform-remove-background-with-transloadit
description	One-off background removal (local image -> transparent PNG) using the official `@transloadit/node` CLI. Use a minimal `/image/bgremove` steps JSON and download the result to an explicit `.png` path via `-o`.

Inputs

• Absolute path to a local input image
• Optional output path; default to an explicit sibling .png

Prepare Instructions

Resolve credentials in this order:

• Shell environment variables
• The current working directory .env only
• ~/.transloadit/credentials

If your .env lives in a parent directory, export the variables into the shell first.

Create steps.json in the current working directory.

Important:

• For the current CLI, the file passed to --steps must be a flat object keyed by step name.
• Do not wrap the steps under a top-level "steps" key.

{
  ":original": {
    "robot": "/upload/handle"
  },
  "background_removed": {
    "use": ":original",
    "robot": "/image/bgremove",
    "format": "png",
    "result": true
  }
}

Run (Local Input Image)

npx -y @transloadit/node assemblies create \
  --steps ./steps.json \
  -i ./input/source.jpg \
  -o ./out/result.png

Replace ./input/source.jpg with your real input image path when needed.

After the command finishes, confirm the PNG exists at the expected output path.

Debug If It Fails

npx -y @transloadit/node assemblies get <assemblyIdOrUrl> -j

Notes:

• Keep format: "png" so the downloaded output preserves transparency.
• Prefer ~/.transloadit/credentials as the default fallback when you want a reusable user-level setup.
• A current-directory .env still takes precedence, so avoid it when deterministic account selection matters.
• If credentials only exist in a repo-root .env, run the command from that directory or export the variables first.
• Prefer an explicit PNG filename like ./out/result.png. With the current CLI, using a directory output for a single result may preserve the input path instead of giving you a .png filename.
• Prefer a clear foreground subject photo; background removal quality depends on the source image.