Introduction to IIIF Image API

Overview

The Image API provides for a standardized way to request and deliver images. Having this standardization allows both browser and server applications to reuse software and provide a consistent experience for requesting images.

Here is an example of requesting an image with the Image API:

https://stacks.stanford.edu/image/iiif/hg676jb4964%2F0380_796-44/full/pct:10/0/default.jpg

This IIIF Image API request is asking for the full image from our server, at pct:10 (10%) of its original size.

Now lets say we just want to return a certain part of that image, a crop. The IIIF Image API lets us do that too.

https://stacks.stanford.edu/image/iiif/hg676jb4964%2F0380_796-44/1015,1460,799,824/pct:25/0/default.jpg

That IIIF Image API request looks similar to the first one, but we now are requesting a specified pixel region 1015,1460,799,824 instead of the full image and we increased the size returned to pct:25 (25%).

- https://stacks.stanford.edu/image/iiif/hg676jb4964%2F0380_796-44/full/pct:10/0/default.jpg
+ https://stacks.stanford.edu/image/iiif/hg676jb4964%2F0380_796-44/1015,1460,799,824/pct:25/0/default.jpg

If you want to play around with changing these parameters, check out the IIIF Image API Playground.