| name | pdf-to-images |
| description | Rasterize PDF pages to numbered image files (JPEG, PNG, or TIFF) at a specified resolution (DPI). Use when you need to convert PDF content to standalone images — one image per page — with optional page range selection. |
| disable-model-invocation | false |
| allowed-tools | Bash(pdftoppm *), Bash(ls *), Bash(mkdir *), Read, Write |
Rasterize PDF to Images
Convert PDF pages to raster images (JPEG, PNG, or TIFF) using pdftoppm. Each page becomes a numbered image file. Different from pdf-extract-embedded-images — this rasterizes the entire page content.
When to use
- Converting a scanned PDF or document PDF to standalone images for archival, editing, or distribution.
- Extracting pages as thumbnails or preview images at lower DPI.
- Creating image sequences from a multi-page PDF without needing OCR or text extraction.
Inputs to gather
- Input PDF file — path to the PDF. Required.
- DPI (resolution) — dots per inch. Default: 300 (suitable for archival and print). Ask if the user needs lower DPI for faster processing or smaller file size (e.g., 150 for thumbnails, 600 for high-quality scans).
- Output format —
jpeg, png, or tiff. Default: jpeg (good balance of size and quality). PNG for lossless, TIFF for archival.
- Page range (optional) — ask if they want all pages or a subset. If a subset, capture start page and end page (e.g., pages 5–10).
- Output directory — optional. Default: current directory.
Procedure
1. Check tooling
command -v pdftoppm || echo "pdftoppm not installed — install with: sudo apt install poppler-utils"
Abort if missing.
2. Validate PDF
file "<input.pdf>"
pdfinfo "<input.pdf>"
If invalid, abort. Print page count for user awareness.
3. Build command
Base command:
pdftoppm -r <DPI> -<format> "<input.pdf>" "<output-prefix>"
Examples:
- All pages, JPEG at 300 DPI:
pdftoppm -r 300 -jpeg input.pdf output_
- Pages 5–10, PNG at 150 DPI:
pdftoppm -r 150 -png -f 5 -l 10 input.pdf output_
- All pages, TIFF at 600 DPI:
pdftoppm -r 600 -tiff input.pdf output_
Flags:
-r <DPI> — resolution in DPI.-<format> — output format: jpeg, png, tiff.-f <N> — first page (optional).-l <N> — last page (optional).
4. Execute
pdftoppm -r <DPI> -<format> <page-flags> "<input.pdf>" "<output-prefix>"
Show progress and warn if the PDF is large (many pages or high DPI — processing may take a minute or more).
5. Report
After conversion:
- Count of images created.
- Output directory and filename pattern (e.g.,
output_001.jpg, output_002.jpg, ...).
- File sizes and total space used.
- If a page range was used, note which pages were extracted.
Output / side effects
- Numbered image files created (e.g.,
prefix-000001.png). Naming convention depends on pdftoppm version; typically zero-padded 6-digit page numbers.
- Original PDF unchanged.
Notes
- Rasterization vs. embedding:
pdftoppm rasterizes the entire page at the specified DPI. This is lossy compared to the original PDF vector content, but suitable for archival, sharing, or thumbnail workflows. See pdf-extract-embedded-images for extracting embedded photos without rasterization.
- DPI guidance: 300 DPI is standard for documents and photos. 150 DPI is adequate for thumbnails or web preview. 600 DPI or higher for fine scanning or print-quality archival.
- Format choice: JPEG for smaller files (good for photos within PDFs). PNG for lossless (documents with text). TIFF for professional archival (larger files, lossless, can embed metadata).
- Large PDFs: Page rasterization is I/O and CPU intensive. A 100-page PDF at 300 DPI can take 1–2 minutes. Warn the user before starting large jobs.
- Depends:
apt install poppler-utils.
