A photo.
A hundred possibilities.
Your free photo-to-cartoon & print studio.
Make a zine. Teach a class. Print a memory.
Find a look worth coming back to.
Your photo stays on your device.
Your next little story starts here.
Drop a photo, choose a file, or try the sample.
Drag the divider to see the difference.JPG, PNG or WebP · up to 20 MB · exports up to 1.5 MP
Make it your process.
Find the settings once. Make them yours for the next photo.
Describe the look.
Start with local commands, or connect your own text model for more flexible wording.
Proposed settings
Local commands are rule based. No API key needed.
Connect a text model (optional)
Only your instruction, current settings and three numeric image measurements go to the provider you choose. Your photo and filename stay here. Your provider receives your key and may charge for tokens.
One request, at most 220 output tokens, 20-second timeout, no automatic retries. The provider must allow browser CORS. A text model proposes filters; it cannot see the photo or generate new image content.
Read the image.
Waiting for pixels- Mean luminance
- —
- Tonal contrast (σ)
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- Local transitions
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Open a photo to inspect its tonal range and texture.
Measured from the working image. Suggestions are heuristics, not learned predictions.
Your recipe shelf 0 / 12
Save a look for your next project. Only settings are stored on this device.
Words guide.
Pixels stay here.
Your settings guide an inspectable image pipeline. Smoothing, shading and outlines run on your device, keeping the work close to the photo.
Explore the method and its limits- AnalyzeLuminance · contrast · texture
- SmoothRange-weighted, edge-aware
- Simplify3–12 tone levels per channel
- OutlineSobel gradients · soft threshold
- Make it realPNG · print · reusable recipe
Good ideas shouldn't
need an upload.
A classroom handout. A zine about your neighbourhood. A print of a favourite place. Sometimes you need a simpler image, without a whole design suite.
Toonforge keeps the photo and the work on your device. It simplifies texture and draws outlines with predictable image filters. It doesn't invent details, and it isn't an anonymity tool.
Read the evidence & limitationsLess mystery. More making.
How does it work?
An edge-aware filter smooths similar neighbouring colours. Tone quantization simplifies shading, then a Sobel edge map adds outlines. A background worker keeps the controls responsive. Every image is processed locally.
What do the live numbers mean?
Processing is the filter's elapsed time on your device, excluding decode and export. Image darkness is mean pixel darkness, not printer toner usage. Compare styles to see how your image changes. The upload count describes this editor's image workflow; your host still receives ordinary page requests.
What has actually been tested?
Controlled synthetic fixtures test texture suppression and boundary retention against simple posterization. They measure engineering behaviour, not whether people prefer the artwork. The full plan and reproducible results are in the repository.
Inspect the evaluation ↗What stays on my device?
Your selected photo, processed pixels, and exports stay in browser memory. There is no photo server, analytics, or account. Clearing removes the active photo from the editor; downloaded files remain on your device. The app caches its public assets for offline use after the first visit.