PhotoSanitize recognizes JPEG, PNG, TIFF, WebP, BMP, GIF, HEIC, HEIF, and AVIF images. These formats differ in their ability to store metadata, transparency, animation, multiple pages, and high-precision image data.
Inspection support does not mean that every image can be decoded or reconstructed with every combination of settings. Some operations also depend on optional Windows codecs or the availability of an appropriate output encoder.
JPEG
JPEG is common in digital photography, smartphones, websites, and social media. It often contains EXIF metadata, including capture information and sometimes GPS coordinates.
PhotoSanitize supports metadata and container cleanup for JPEG files and can preserve the original encoded picture without recompression when the selected operation permits it.
If the image requires visual redaction or reconstruction, a newly encoded output may be necessary. In that case, quality settings and compression behavior become relevant.
PNG
PNG is commonly used for screenshots, illustrations, graphics, and images requiring transparency. It organizes image data and additional information into chunks, some of which may contain metadata or other content.
PhotoSanitize can inspect and sanitize supported PNG content. For images with transparency, reconstruction settings may also affect color information in transparent pixels or flatten the transparency entirely.
Some PNG files contain animation, which requires additional consideration when preserving frames.
TIFF
TIFF is used in photography, scanning, archives, and specialized image applications. A TIFF file may contain several pages or images, high bit-depth samples, or other characteristics not normally present in an everyday JPEG.
PhotoSanitize supports TIFF inspection and applicable sanitization operations. However, certain high-precision images require compatible output settings to preserve their technical properties.
If the pixel values or page structure are important, avoid assuming that an arbitrary output conversion will retain them. Test representative files and inspect the completed results before processing important collections.
WebP
WebP supports photographic compression, transparency, and animation. PhotoSanitize can inspect supported WebP structures and perform applicable sanitization.
When a WebP image is reconstructed or converted, its file size and appearance may depend on the selected encoding settings. Animated files should be checked for the expected frame content and timing.
GIF
GIF files may contain a single image or an animation. Their limited color palette can affect appearance when images are converted to GIF or reconstructed.
PhotoSanitize supports GIF inspection and appropriate sanitization. The selected frame policy determines whether supported multiple frames are retained or the output is reduced to the first frame.
If an animation contains information that appears only later in the sequence, flattening it will remove that content from the result.
BMP
BMP is a raster image format often used by Windows software and graphics utilities. Although many BMP files are relatively simple, their sanitization may still require decoding and creating a new output image.
PhotoSanitize supports inspection and compatible processing of BMP files.
HEIC and HEIF
HEIC and HEIF are commonly encountered in photographs produced by modern smartphones.
PhotoSanitize can inspect supported container information, but operations that need access to the decoded pixels depend on compatible Windows image components.
When Same format when supported is selected, these files normally produce PNG outputs because native same-format encoding is not available through the default output configuration.
AVIF
AVIF can store efficiently compressed images and may include advanced image characteristics. As with HEIC and HEIF, pixel-based operations depend on available decoding support.
Under the normal Same format when supported setting, AVIF files are generally written as PNG when sanitization requires a new output image.
Animated and multipage files
PhotoSanitize provides frame-handling options in Pro and Enterprise. Preserve all frames when supported attempts to retain the applicable animation frames or pages. Flatten to first frame creates a single-image result from the first composed frame.
Preserving frames is important when processing animated GIF, WebP, or PNG files, and when all pages of a TIFF document must remain available.
These choices can change what the recipient actually sees. A still image created from an animation is not equivalent to the complete source animation.
Specialized image characteristics
Professional and scientific images may use unusual color spaces, higher bit depths, high dynamic range information, or numerical sample formats. Some conversions can alter these characteristics or are not supported.
When the output must retain exact technical properties, choose a compatible format and use conservative settings. PhotoSanitize may reject an unsupported operation rather than produce a result that does not meet its requirements.
For routine personal photographs, the predefined profiles normally provide a simpler starting point. For professional archives, scanned records, and specialized image collections, verify representative outputs before processing a large batch.