Wolfram Function Repository

Instant-use add-on functions for the Wolfram Language

Function Repository Resource:

 ImageRead

Source Notebook

Read and return an image file from disk

Contributed by: Arnoud Buzing

ResourceFunction["ImageRead"][type,file]

reads file as a type image and returns the image.

Details and Options

The type argument is one of the following: "JPEG", "PNG", "TIFF".
ResourceFunction["ImageRead"] returns $Failed if it cannot read the file as an image of the specified type.
ResourceFunction["ImageRead"] bypasses most of the functionality of Import, making it less flexible and more limited but significantly faster. It should be used judiciously when performance is critical.

Examples

Basic Examples (2) 

Import an image:

In[1]:=
ResourceFunction["ImageRead"]["PNG", FindFile["ExampleData/spikey2.png"]]
Out[1]=

Export a random image as a PNG file:

In[2]:=
file = Export["test.png", RandomImage[1, {1000, 1000}]]
Out[2]=

Import the file with ImageRead one hundred times, noting the elapsed time:

In[3]:=
timing1 = Do[ResourceFunction["ImageRead"]["PNG", file], 100] // AbsoluteTiming // First
Out[3]=

Repeat the same experiment with Import:

In[4]:=
timing2 = Do[Import[file], 100] // AbsoluteTiming // First
Out[4]=

Note how ImageRead is significantly faster than Import:

In[5]:=
timing2/timing1
Out[5]=

However, ImageRead only imports a file as an Image. Import provides many more options:

In[6]:=
Import[file, "Elements"]
Out[6]=

Scope (2) 

Read from a "JPEG" image file:

In[7]:=
ResourceFunction["ImageRead"]["JPEG", FindFile["ExampleData/coneflower.jpg"]]
Out[7]=

Read from a "TIFF" image file:

In[8]:=
ResourceFunction["ImageRead"]["TIFF", FindFile["ExampleData/spikey.tiff"]]
Out[8]=

Publisher

Arnoud Buzing

Version History

  • 1.0.0 – 16 July 2020

Related Resources

License Information