PNG for DTG Printing
DTG (Direct to Garment) printing uses inkjet technology to print directly onto fabric with textile inks. Major machines include the Epson F2100, Epson F3070, Brother GTX Pro, and Kornit Atlas. PNG file quality — especially the transparency mask — determines white underbase accuracy and final print quality.
About PNG for DTG printing
DTG printers apply a white ink underbase layer before printing the colour artwork. The PNG alpha channel tells the DTG RIP (Wasatch SoftRIP, Ergosoft, or Epson Edge Print) where to apply white ink and where to leave the fabric unprinted. Incorrect PNG preparation is the leading cause of poor DTG print quality.
White underbase — the critical DTG concept: The RIP generates the white underbase mask directly from the PNG transparency channel. A fully transparent pixel = no white ink. A fully opaque pixel = full white ink underbase. A semi-transparent pixel = proportional white ink. For the cleanest underbase edge, use hard-edged opaque pixels, not soft anti-aliased feathering.
DTG PNG file requirements: - Transparent background: required. A PNG with a white background tells the RIP to print white ink across the entire white area — causing a large, stiff, visible white rectangle on the garment. - Resolution: 300 DPI minimum at the final print size. Epson F2100 recommends 300–600 DPI for maximum detail. - Colour mode: RGB (sRGB profile). DTG RIP software converts to CMYK+W textile inks. - Hard pixel edges: avoid anti-aliased soft edges. DTG ink spreads slightly on fabric — soft edges become blurry halos on the garment. Use fully opaque pixels at design boundaries.
Machine-specific notes: - Epson F2100 / F3070: Garment Creator 2 software is the native RIP. Accepts PNG and TIFF. - Brother GTX Pro: accepts PNG. GTX Print Maestro handles white underbase calculation. - Kornit Atlas / Avalanche: Kornit Workflow accepts PNG. Uses proprietary NeoPigment inks.
How to prepare PNG for DTG: 1. Upload the design to the vectorizer above; download the clean SVG. 2. In Inkscape, export the final artwork as 300 DPI PNG with transparent background. 3. Submit to the DTG operator with a note of the garment colour (white, light, or dark) for correct underbase settings.
Use the vectorizer above to rebuild any low-quality PNG into a clean, DTG-ready transparent file.