InvokeAI/docs/features/OUTPAINTING.md

---
title: Outpainting
---

# :octicons-paintbrush-16: Outpainting

## Outpainting and outcropping

Outpainting is a process by which the AI generates parts of the image
that are outside its original frame. It can be used to fix up images
in which the subject is off center, or when some detail (often the top
of someone's head!) is cut off.

InvokeAI supports two versions of outpainting, one called "outpaint"
and the other "outcrop." They work slightly differently and each has
its advantages and drawbacks.

### Outpainting

Outpainting is the same as inpainting, except that the painting occurs
in the regions outside of the original image. To outpaint using the
`invoke.py` command line script, prepare an image in which the borders
to be extended are pure black. Add an alpha channel (if there isn't one
already), and make the borders completely transparent and the interior
completely opaque. If you wish to modify the interior as well, you may
create transparent holes in the transparency layer, which `img2img` will
paint into as usual.

Pass the image as the argument to the `-I` switch as you would for
regular inpainting:

 invoke> a stream by a river -I /path/to/transparent_img.png

You'll likely be delighted by the results.

### Tips

1. Do not try to expand the image too much at once. Generally it is best
   to expand the margins in 64-pixel increments. 128 pixels often works,
   but your mileage may vary depending on the nature of the image you are
   trying to outpaint into.

2. There are a series of switches that can be used to adjust how the
   inpainting algorithm operates. In particular, you can use these to
   minimize the seam that sometimes appears between the original image
   and the extended part. These switches are:

  --seam_size SEAM_SIZE    Size of the mask around the seam between original and outpainted image (0)
  --seam_blur SEAM_BLUR    The amount to blur the seam inwards (0)
  --seam_strength STRENGTH The img2img strength to use when filling the seam (0.7)
  --seam_steps SEAM_STEPS  The number of steps to use to fill the seam. (10)
  --tile_size TILE_SIZE    The tile size to use for filling outpaint areas (32)

### Outcrop

The `outcrop` extension gives you a convenient `!fix` postprocessing
command that allows you to extend a previously-generated image in 64
pixel increments in any direction. You can apply the module to any
image previously-generated by InvokeAI. Note that it works with
arbitrary PNG photographs, but not currently with JPG or other
formats. Outcropping is particularly effective when combined with the
[runwayML custom inpainting
model](INPAINTING.md#using-the-runwayml-inpainting-model).

Consider this image:

<figure markdown>
![curly_woman](../assets/outpainting/curly.png)
</figure>

Pretty nice, but it's annoying that the top of her head is cut
off. She's also a bit off center. Let's fix that!

```bash
invoke> !fix images/curly.png --outcrop top 128 right 64 bottom 64
```

This is saying to apply the `outcrop` extension by extending the top
of the image by 128 pixels, and the right and bottom of the image by
64 pixels. You can use any combination of top|left|right|bottom, and
specify any number of pixels to extend. You can also abbreviate
`--outcrop` to `-c`.

The result looks like this:

<figure markdown>
![curly_woman_outcrop](../assets/outpainting/curly-outcrop-2.png)
</figure>

The new image is larger than the original (576x704)
because 64 pixels were added to the top and right sides. You will
need enough VRAM to process an image of this size.

A number of caveats:

1. Although you can specify any pixel values, they will be rounded up
to the nearest multiple of 64. Smaller values are better. Larger
extensions are more likely to generate artefacts. However, if you wish
you can run the !fix command repeatedly to cautiously expand the
image.

2. The extension is stochastic, meaning that each time you run it
you'll get a slightly different result. You can run it repeatedly
until you get an image you like. Unfortunately `!fix` does not
currently respect the `-n` (`--iterations`) argument.

3. Your results will be _much_ better if you use the `inpaint-1.5`
model released by runwayML and installed by default by
`scripts/preload_models.py`. This model was trained specifically to
harmoniously fill in image gaps. The standard model will work as well,
but you may notice color discontinuities at the border.

4. When using the `inpaint-1.5` model, you may notice subtle changes
to the area within the original image. This is because the model
performs an encoding/decoding on the image as a whole. This does not
occur with the standard model.

## Outpaint

The `outpaint` extension does the same thing, but with subtle
differences. Starting with the same image, here is how we would add an
additional 64 pixels to the top of the image:

```bash
invoke> !fix images/curly.png --out_direction top 64
```

(you can abbreviate `--out_direction` as `-D`.

The result is shown here:

<figure markdown>
![curly_woman_outpaint](../assets/outpainting/curly-outpaint.png)
</figure>

Although the effect is similar, there are significant differences from
outcropping:

- You can only specify one direction to extend at a time.
- The image is **not** resized. Instead, the image is shifted by the specified
number of pixels. If you look carefully, you'll see that less of the lady's
torso is visible in the image.
- Because the image dimensions remain the same, there's no rounding
to multiples of 64.
- Attempting to outpaint larger areas will frequently give rise to ugly
   ghosting effects.
- For best results, try increasing the step number.
- If you don't specify a pixel value in `-D`, it will default to half
   of the whole image, which is likely not what you want.

!!! tip

    Neither `outpaint` nor `outcrop` are perfect, but we continue to tune
    and improve them. If one doesn't work, try the other. You may also
    wish to experiment with other `img2img` arguments, such as `-C`, `-f`
    and `-s`.