File formats you can open and export
Every file type Voidcanvas opens and saves, across the Editor, Effects, quick tools and Studio, and exactly what each one keeps.
Intermediate9 min readUpdated 25 September 2026Editor · Import and export
On this page
This page covers every format Voidcanvas can open and every format it can save, and what survives the trip. Check it before you send a file to a client or printer, or before you open a colleague’s PSD, so nothing is lost without you knowing.
Everything happens in your browser. Files you open are read on your device and files you export are made on your device; nothing is uploaded.
Opening files in the Editor
Use File, Open (Ctrl+O), drop files on the start screen or canvas, or paste an image with Ctrl+V. If no design is open, the first image sets the canvas size. If one is open, each image arrives as a new layer.
| Format | What you get | What is kept |
|---|---|---|
| PNG, JPG, WebP, GIF, AVIF and other images your browser can read | One pixel layer per file | Pixels and transparency. Images larger than 4096 px on the long side are scaled down to 4096 px. Animated GIFs open as a single frame |
| SVG | One pixel layer | How it looks, drawn at its own size. The vector shapes are not editable |
| PSD | A layered design | Layers, groups, masks, text, adjustments and layer styles, with a report of anything changed. Details below |
| One pixel layer per page | How each page looks. Text and vectors become pixels | |
| .void and .void.png | Your full Voidcanvas project | Everything: layers, masks, text, groups, boards, guides, swatches |
PSD: what comes across
Photoshop files open as real layered designs. Anything that cannot be rebuilt exactly is kept as pixels and listed in a report when the file opens, so nothing changes silently. Open a PSD or PDF walks through it.
| Kept and editable | Kept, but changed | Left out |
|---|---|---|
| Pixel layers, positions, opacity, fill and visibility | Text with mixed fonts, sizes or colours, warped text and text on a path: kept as pixels | Satin effect |
| Groups, including nesting | Smart objects: kept as pixels | Pattern overlay effect |
| Layer masks | Vector shapes and vector masks: kept as pixels | Group masks |
| Simple text: font, size, colour, alignment, leading, tracking, paragraph boxes, underline, strikethrough, caps | Blend modes Voidcanvas does not have, such as Linear burn or Vivid light: shown as the nearest match | Black and white tint |
| Adjustment layers: Brightness/contrast, Levels, Curves, Exposure, Vibrance, Hue/saturation, Colour balance, Black and white, Photo filter, Channel mixer, Invert, Posterize, Threshold, Gradient map | Adjustments clipped to one layer: now affect everything below | Any other adjustment type |
| Layer styles: drop shadow, inner shadow, outer and inner glow, stroke, colour overlay, gradient overlay, bevel and emboss | Gradient or pattern strokes: solid colour. Gradient overlays with more than two colours: first and last colour only | |
| Clipping masks, locks, colour labels | 16 and 32-bit files: converted to 8-bit. CMYK and other colour modes: converted to RGB | |
| Artboards: become boards, with their background colour |
PDF: what comes across
- Each page becomes its own pixel layer, named Page 1, Page 2 and so on. The canvas takes the size of page 1.
- Only page 1 is visible when the file opens. Turn the other pages on in the Layers panel.
- Pages are drawn at 1× to 2× the PDF’s own size, aiming for about 1600 px wide, so an A4 page comes in at about 1190 px wide. That suits screen work. For large print artwork, go back to the original files if you can.
- Password-protected PDFs cannot be opened.
Other files the Editor reads
| Format | Where | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| .cube | Image, Adjustments, Colour lookup (.cube LUT) | Adds a 3D colour lookup as an adjustment layer, for film looks and colour grades |
| TTF, OTF, WOFF, WOFF2 | Character panel, or the Some fonts are missing dialog | Adds a font from your device. It is saved inside each design that uses it, so the design still looks right on another device |
| Images | Brand kit, Logos | Adds a logo you can place in any design |
Opening files in Effects, quick tools and Studio
| Where | Accepts | Limits |
|---|---|---|
| Effects | PNG, JPG, WebP, GIF, AVIF, BMP, SVG | Up to 25 MB per file |
| Quick tools (Halftone, Dither, Glitch) | Any image your browser can read | |
| Studio references and review images | Any image your browser can read | |
| Studio brands and brand guideline logo | Images and SVG | An SVG logo is also offered as an SVG download in the HTML handoff |
| Brand guideline fonts | WOFF2, WOFF, TTF, OTF |
Exporting from the Editor
File, Export as (Ctrl+E) opens the Export dialog. Pick a File type and a Size, then Download or Copy image.
| File type | Transparency | Quality setting | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| PNG | Yes | None, always lossless | Graphics, text, logos, anything with sharp edges or see-through parts |
| JPG | No: see-through areas become white | 40 to 100% | Photos, when file size matters |
| WebP | Yes | 40 to 100% | Websites: smaller than PNG and keeps transparency |
| No: on white | 40 to 100%, never below 90% inside the PDF | Sending to clients and printers |
- Size offers 0.5×, 1×, 2× and 3× the design size, with the pixel result shown on each button. Sizes that would pass 8192 px on the long side are hidden.
- Leave out the background colour appears for PNG and WebP when the design has a background colour. Tick it for a see-through background.
- PDF is one page holding the design as a high-quality JPG. Designs with a long side over 2000 px get a 300 dpi page size; smaller ones get 96 dpi. Text in the PDF cannot be selected or edited, and there is no bleed or crop marks. For print PDFs with bleed, see Export for print.
- Copy image puts a PNG on your clipboard to paste into another app.
- With boards, Boards to export appears: This board, All, or a range such as 1-3, 5. Several boards download as one file each, zipped, at the size you pick, optionally numbered in board order.
- Save editable file (.void.png, previews as your design, keeps layers) saves a PNG that looks like your design in any image viewer, with the whole editable project stored inside it. The preview picture is at most 1600 px on the long side; the layers inside are full size.
- Download also saves a version of the design, so you can go back to exactly what you sent.
Other ways to save from the Editor
| Command | Saves | Keeps |
|---|---|---|
| File, Save to disk… (Ctrl+Shift+S) | A .void file in a folder you choose | The whole project. In Chromium browsers the design stays linked, so Ctrl+S keeps the file up to date |
| File, Download project file (.void) | A .void file | The whole project in one self-contained file. Use it for backups and moving work between devices |
| File, Resize for other formats | A ZIP of PNGs, one per format | Flattened pictures at each preset size |
| Layer, Path, Export path as SVG | An .svg file | The current path as a vector, for Figma, Illustrator or code |
| Layer, Path, Copy path as SVG | SVG on the clipboard | The same, ready to paste |
| Edit, Copy merged (Ctrl+Shift+C) | A PNG on the clipboard | Everything visible, or just the selected area |
| Start screen, a design’s menu, Export PNG | A PNG | A saved design at full size, without opening it |
Exporting from Effects and quick tools
| Where | Formats | Size and notes |
|---|---|---|
| Effects | PNG, JPG, WebP | Rendered again at the photo’s own size, up to 8000 px on the long side. JPG and WebP at 95% quality |
| Effects, Open in Editor | Live filter layer | The photo plus the effect as its own filter layer you can still tune, hide or mask. Shift-click to send one flattened image instead |
| Quick tools, Download PNG | PNG | Full size, up to 8000 px on the long side |
| Quick tools, Send to Layer Stack | Live filter layer | Opens in the Editor with the effect still adjustable |
Exporting from Studio
Brand guideline builder
The Export tab of the brand guideline builder offers the following. Every brand guideline export explains when to use each.
| Export | File | What it holds |
|---|---|---|
| Screen PDF | One page per guideline page, for reading on screen and sending by email | |
| Print PDF | 300 dpi pages on a real trim size (A4 portrait for Document, 297 × 167 mm for Deck), 3 mm bleed, crop marks, trim and bleed boxes set for the printer | |
| HTML handoff | .html | One file the client opens in a browser: pages with arrow-key navigation, logo downloads (full colour, reversed white and dark mono PNG, plus the original SVG when you supplied one) and click-to-copy colours. Fonts are embedded where possible so it works offline |
| Editor | Opens in the Editor | Each page as a board, with real layers: text stays text, shapes stay shapes, the logo stays an image |
| Tokens: CSS | -tokens.css | Colours, type and spacing as CSS custom properties |
| Tokens: Tailwind | tailwind.<name>.js | The same values as a Tailwind theme |
| Tokens: JSON | .tokens.json | The same values as JSON design tokens |
| Download .ase | .ase | Adobe Swatch Exchange, grouped by role. Opens in Illustrator, Photoshop and InDesign |
Jobs
| Tab | Export | File |
|---|---|---|
| Directions | A PDF with one 1920 × 1080 sheet per direction | |
| Directions | WhatsApp images | A ZIP of 1080 × 1350 JPGs, one per direction |
| Review | Send a review link | A link the client opens in a browser to comment and approve |
| Review | Review pack PDF | The version you are showing the client, as a PDF |
| Review | WhatsApp images | JPGs of the version, one per image (a ZIP when there are several) |
| Review, Mockups | Download mockup | A JPG of the design placed in the mockup scene |
| Deliver | Build the package | A ZIP with every format rendered at full size, a delivery note (HTML) and, if you choose, a brand sheet (HTML) |
In the delivery package you choose PNG, JPG, WebP or Print PDF for each format. Print and Outdoor formats start with Print PDF and JPG ticked; the rest start with PNG and JPG. Print PDFs get a 3 mm bleed made by extending the edges, crop marks, and a slug line with the trim size. Files are named client_job_format_v1 and so on, so the client can sort them.
Which format keeps what
| Format | Layers | Editable text | Transparency | Vectors |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| .void / .void.png | Yes | Yes | Yes | Paths and shapes stay editable |
| PNG | No | No | Yes | No |
| WebP | No | No | Yes | No |
| JPG | No | No | No | No |
| PDF (any) | No | No | No | No, pages are images |
| SVG (path export) | No | No | Yes | Yes, one path |
| HTML handoff | No | Colours and tokens can be copied | Logo PNGs yes | Only the original SVG logo |
Good to know
- All exports are RGB. Voidcanvas does not write CMYK. Print PDFs say so on the slug line: ask your printer to convert with their profile. More in Designing for print.
- Voidcanvas opens PSD files but cannot save them. To hand editable work to someone else using Voidcanvas, send a .void or .void.png file.
- A .void.png looks like an ordinary PNG. If someone opens it in another app and saves over it, the project inside may be lost. Keep a copy.
- Photos over 4096 px on the long side are scaled down when you open them in the Editor. If you need the full resolution for print, check the size in Image size after opening.
- If an export fails on a very large design, pick a smaller Size. Browsers have a limit on how big a single image can be.
- Some formats depend on your browser. If a photo from your phone will not open, export it as JPG or PNG from the phone first.
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