# Reposition: put your image on a custom-sized canvas

URL: https://helpcenter.readypixl.com/articles/reposition
Markdown: https://helpcenter.readypixl.com/articles/reposition.md
Section: Pipelines
Summary: Puts your image on a new canvas at the exact size you want — perfect for hitting exact size requirements anywhere you upload.

The Reposition tool takes whatever the previous step gave it and puts it on a fresh, custom-sized canvas. It lets you set the exact width, height, and print quality you want. This is the step that makes your output ready to upload.

## Why this step matters

Different websites want different image sizes.

- **Social media posts** often want a square like 1080 by 1080
- **Etsy and Shopify product images** look best at about 2000 by 2000
- **Print files** need a big canvas, like 4500 by 5400 for a shirt print
- Upload the wrong size and the site will either reject the image or squish it

Reposition makes sure every image in your batch comes out at the exact size you want, no matter what the original looked like.

## The settings

Reposition has two boxes to understand: the **canvas** (the final file size) and the **container** (the area inside the canvas where your image is placed). By default the container fills the whole canvas.

| Setting | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| **DPI** (default 300) | A number the printer uses to tell how finely to print. **72** for web / social. **300** for anything printed. |
| **Unit** (px / in / cm) | Whether sizes are in pixels, inches, or centimeters. With inches or cm, DPI turns them into pixels (10 × 10 in at 300 DPI = 3000 × 3000 px). |
| **Canvas width / height** | The size of the final image. |
| **Pasting Mode** | How your image fits its container. **Fit** (default) scales it to fit while keeping its shape. **Stretch** fills the container exactly (can distort). **W Lock** / **H Lock** match the container's width or height. |
| **Alignment** | Where the image sits inside its container: **Center**, **Top**, **Bottom**, **Left**, **Right**. You'll only see a difference when the container is bigger than the image in that direction. |
| **X / Y** | The container's exact position on the canvas. You can also drag the image on the canvas. |
| **Container width / height** | The size of the area your image is placed in. Make it smaller than the canvas for things like pocket prints. |
| **Inside Padding** | Shrinks the image inside its container, leaving a transparent border on all 4 sides. |
| **Guides** | Add horizontal / vertical guides (or click the ruler at the top/left). Drag them; hold **Shift** to snap to steps; arrows nudge; **Del** or double-click removes one; **Alt** disables snapping. The image snaps to guides, so every image lands in exactly the same spot. |

**Double-click the image** to make it fill the whole canvas again.

The new canvas is transparent (see-through). If you want a solid color behind your image, add **Canvas Fill**.

## DPI in plain English

DPI is a number that tells a printer how sharp to make the final print. **It does not change the size of your image.**

- **72 DPI** is fine for anything going on the web or social media
- **300 DPI** is the usual choice for anything printed, because it prints sharper
- A 3000 by 3000 image at 72 DPI has the exact same pixels as a 3000 by 3000 image at 300 DPI — the printer just treats them differently

Use 300 for anything that will be printed on something physical. Use 72 for anything going online.

## Common sizes people use

Type these into Canvas Width and Canvas Height. Make sure Unit is set to **px** (pixels).

| Example use | Width × Height | DPI |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Instagram / social square post | 1080 × 1080 | 72 |
| Website hero image | 2400 × 1200 | 72 |
| Etsy or Shopify product image | 2000 × 2000 | 72 |
| Catalog grid thumbnail | 1200 × 1200 | 72 |
| YouTube thumbnail | 1280 × 720 | 72 |
| 8 × 10 in photo print | 2400 × 3000 | 300 |
| Print-on-demand shirt print (e.g. Amazon Merch) | 4500 × 5400 | 300 |

These are examples. Wherever you're uploading, check that site's own size guide and copy its numbers into Canvas Width and Canvas Height.

## Tips

- **Put Reposition near the end of your pipeline.** Remove the background first (with Color Removal V2). Cut off the empty edges (with Trim). Then put the clean result on your target canvas with Reposition. Doing this in a different order leaves your image small and off-center on a big empty canvas.
- **Save the whole pipeline as a preset.** Once you've set up *"Social 1080 square"* or *"Etsy 2000 square,"* click **Save Current Preset**. Next time, one click loads the whole pipeline — no retyping dimensions.
- **Use Inside Padding if the site crops your image.** Some sites cut a few pixels off each edge during upload. A small inside padding keeps your design safely inside.
- **Center is almost always right.** Alignment: Center works for most product images and designs.
- **Place an image in one area of a bigger canvas** (for example a small logo in a corner, or a pocket print on a shirt file): set the container to that area and place it with guides. Save it as its own preset.
- **Trim first.** If an image won't align where you expect, there are probably stray see-through pixels around it — add **Trim** (or Transparency Cleaner) before Reposition.

## Things Reposition doesn't do

- **It doesn't make your image sharper.** In Fit mode it scales your image to fill the container, but scaling up just stretches the pixels. For a real quality jump, upscale first (the free **Upscaler** or **AI Upscale**).
- **It doesn't give you a colored background.** The canvas is transparent. If you need a color behind your image, use **Canvas Fill**.
- **It has no built-in platform presets.** You have to type the numbers in yourself. But you can save your own pipeline as a preset so you never have to type them twice.

## What to read next

- **[Color Removal V2](color-removal)** — typically the first step before Reposition
- **[Trim](trim)** — typically run between Color Removal V2 and Reposition to remove empty edges
- **[Etsy design prep](../workflows/etsy-design-prep)** — Etsy listings workflow
- **[Presets](../getting-started/presets)** — save your Reposition settings so you don't retype dimensions every time