PNG

PNG is a lossless raster image format with an 8-bit alpha transparency channel, offering sharp edges and no compression artifacts. It is preferred for converting silhouette-type images into 3D models. Unlike JPG, PNG avoids color banding at edges between dark backgrounds and subjects, so black-and-white height maps or transparent-background silhouettes yield cleaner meshes.

The tradeoff is larger file sizes than JPG at same dimensions, and it lacks print color modes like CMYK. For 3D conversion, use 16-bit grayscale for height maps to preserve terrain details; this site supports max 4096×4096 resolution. Transparent backgrounds are auto-detected and processed, no manual removal needed.