loadimg - Image loading utility

0.5.0 verified Fri May 01 auth: no python

loadimg is a Python package for loading images from various sources (local files, URLs, base64 strings) and converting to multiple output types (PIL, numpy, base64, ASCII art, URL). Current version 0.5.0, released 2025-03-18. Active development.

pip install loadimg

Common errors

error ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'loadimg.utils' ↓

cause Installation of loadimg failed or version <0.4.0 where utils module didn't exist.

fix

Ensure loadimg >=0.4.0 is installed: pip install --upgrade loadimg

error AttributeError: module 'loadimg' has no attribute 'load_img' ↓

cause Using old import `from loadimg import load_img` with loadimg >=0.4.0.

fix

Change to from loadimg.utils import load_img

error ValueError: Unsupported output type: 'pil' ↓

cause Pillow is not installed. PIL output requires the Pillow package.

fix

Install Pillow: pip install pillow

error requests.exceptions.MissingSchema: Invalid URL 'file.jpg': No schema supplied. ↓

cause Passing a local file path without prefix; load_img expects a URL or base64.

fix

Use an absolute path or prefix with 'file://', or use the path input_type (not yet supported). Alternatively, pass as base64.

Warnings

breaking In v0.4.0, import paths changed from `loadimg` to `loadimg.utils`. Code using `from loadimg import load_img` will break. ↓

fix Use `from loadimg.utils import load_img`.

breaking In v0.3.0, the `output_type` parameter was introduced. Old code without `output_type` may return bytes instead of PIL Image. ↓

fix Explicitly specify `output_type='pil'` to get PIL Image.

gotcha The `load_img` function does not automatically detect input type; you must specify `input_type` for non-URL sources (e.g., base64). ↓

fix Use `input_type='base64'` when passing a base64 string.

deprecated The `load_imgs` function (plural) was added in v0.5.0 but may change signature in future releases. ↓

fix Check release notes for updates.

Imports

load_img
wrong
```
from loadimg import load_img
```
correct
```
from loadimg.utils import load_img
```
In versions 0.3.x and earlier, the import was from loadimg; changed in 0.4.0+ but many docs still show old pattern. Use the new path.

load_imgs

wrong

from loadimg import load_imgs

correct

from loadimg.utils import load_imgs

Same as load_img; moved to utils in 0.4.0.

Quickstart

Load an image from URL as PIL Image.

from loadimg.utils import load_img
img = load_img('https://example.com/image.jpg', output_type='pil')
print(type(img))