Which settings should I try first for a tattoo stencil?

What order should I use for the settings?

Take a reference note after each useful change so you can compare it with the next result.

Start with Auto under Source handling, settle how much of the image to include, choose a style, and then change one Fine-tune control at a time. This order lets you check what the tool sees before asking it to extract a different kind of line. Start with a sharp JPG, PNG, or WebP in the stencil maker. If the source is a sketch on paper, photograph it square to the page or scan it first. Open the saved image and check for shadows, cut edges, and faint marks before you select it.

Choose two details to judge before changing the first setting. A compass might need the point on its north arrow and the gap between the ring and its lettering. For a flower, look at an overlapping pair of petals and the fork between the stem and a leaf. Keep the same checkpoints throughout the comparison. A preview can look sharper overall while losing one of the details you need, and a fixed pair of checkpoints makes that easy to spot.

Should I include the whole image or remove the background?

Turn on Remove background when you want to isolate a distinct subject. Include the whole image when a clean scan already contains everything you want or when several separate elements make up the composition. A leaf photographed against grass might benefit from isolation. On a sheet with a wreath and detached lettering, inspect both after subject selection. Losing the lettering changes the composition even if the wreath itself looks clean.

Look at the subject boundary before you spend time on line strength. A missing stem tip might be outside the selected region, while a row of stray lines might come from a table edge that was included. With the background removed, choose Adjust subject if the automatic selection needs correction. Mark an area to keep or exclude, check the selection preview, and select Use this subject when the boundary is right. If the source offers very little separation, try a cleaner crop or another image. Use the illustrated image-to-stencil guide to see where the subject controls appear.

Which mode should I choose for scanned or exported linework?

Try Keep ink when the dark lines in the image already describe the paths you want the tattoo stencil to follow. This is a good comparison with Auto for a clean pencil scan or an exported image of existing ink outlines. Move the comparison divider under Your linework across a bend and a junction. Check that each stroke starts and ends where you expect, and look at the lightest line you still need. If the scan is soft enough to obscure the original stroke, a sharper scan gives you a better starting point.

Try Single stroke if thick and thin input marks ought to serve the same job in the guide. A hand-drawn border, for instance, can vary in weight even though you want one steady path around it. Compare a narrow inside corner in both modes. If even line weight makes a deliberately thick boundary harder to distinguish from a secondary guide, the original variation may be useful. In that case, keep the Keep ink result and review the few inconsistent areas separately.

When should I choose Shape outlines or Photo contours?

Choose Shape outlines for the edges of solid filled shapes. The boundary around a black crescent and the inner edge of a white cutout both describe its geometry. Check an inside opening as well as the perimeter before deciding the mode worked. If you only want the center path of a broad brush stroke, both edges of that stroke may create a doubled line that is harder to follow. Compare Single stroke for that kind of mark.

Choose Photo contours when you need a tracing reference from a photograph and the useful edges come from changes in tone. Look first for the outer shape and a few essential junctions. A change in light can create a strong edge across a surface, while two similarly lit surfaces can meet at a weak edge. Check the extracted line against the original to see what it represents. For a face, a shadow line might be easy to extract while part of the jaw blends into the background. Expect to review or manually trace the important edges that the photo alone does not separate clearly.

Which style preset should I use after choosing a mode?

Try Classic as a baseline for defined outlines, then compare the style that addresses what you see. Detailed is useful to try when small features carry information. On a moth illustration, check whether the spots that identify the wing pattern remain distinct or whether surrounding texture makes them harder to pick out. Minimalist gives you a simpler comparison when the main shape is present but short marks compete with it. Dotted is useful when you deliberately want stippled texture. Examine its effect at the intended size before relying on a fine dotted region to communicate a boundary.

Keep the same source mode and subject selection while comparing presets. Suppose one version of a carved key has the bow, hole, and teeth intact, while another version keeps additional scratches. Compare them using the same scale and the same checkpoints. If the version with scratches also closes the hole visually, the simpler version gives you a better working base. Save a copy before trying a substantially different look so you can compare stable results.

What should I change first under Fine-tune?

Choose the control that matches the problem you can describe in the preview. Try Line thickness if important lines are too light visually or too heavy relative to their gaps. Compare Detail level if the subject is readable but surrounded by extra texture, or if a useful interior feature disappeared. Clean lines offers Low, Medium, and High for cleanup. Test it against both a stray speck and a small deliberate mark. The small intentional mark gives you a way to tell when cleanup has gone too far.

Use Contrast and Line sensitivity to compare how faint and strong features are picked up. If pale edges are the issue, watch one of them and a nearby shadow as you make a small change. Keep the change only if it improves the useful edge without pulling in a competing boundary. Let the preview update before making the next adjustment. If several settings have drifted from a useful baseline, Reset settings gives you a place to restart the comparison.

When should I stop tuning and keep the result?

Stop when the subject boundary is correct, your chosen landmarks are present, and you can explain the remaining lines at the intended size. A single break in a stem or one mark near a letter is a candidate for Repair lines. A missing cluster of shapes or a crop that took off part of the subject calls for another source comparison. Check how to make stencil lines easier to follow to decide whether the issue affects a local junction or the whole drawing.

Finish global adjustments before applying repairs. If you want to compare another global treatment after that, download the repaired result first. Reprocess and replace repairs builds a new result and replaces those manual changes. For future comparisons, jot down the source image, whether you used Remove background, the source mode, and the style. Save any fine-tune values that mattered to the result. A short record is especially useful when you need a second size and want to keep the original linework as a reference.