Tutorial · Photo to vector
How to turn a photo into an SVG for laser cutting
Customers send phone photos of monograms, wedding signs, logos, kids' drawings and handwriting. Generic image-to-SVG converters give you lumpy edges, background specks and closed-up letters. This guide shows how to get smooth, cut-ready outlines instead.
7 minute read · Free to follow · 2 free batch exports + 1 free single export included
Short answer
Upload the photo, tap the preview card that looks closest, drop the texture around the design, keep the letter holes open, tidy the shapes as vectors, then export at the exact mm width. Save objects to your tray to combine several photos into one job.
Built into WeldWords
The WeldWords photo tracer removes speckled surfaces and edge clutter, keeps every letter hole, turns the result into selectable vector objects with thumbnails, and exports true-size layered SVGs that open at the right size in xTool, Glowforge and LightBurn.
The tutorial explains what WeldWords is doing for you, plus what to check before you cut.
What you need
- A flat, well-lit photo of the design
- The finished width you want in mm or inches
- Laser software that imports SVG
- The WeldWords photo tracer
Step by step
Step 1
Take the photo flat and bright
Shoot straight down in even daylight. Fill the frame with the design. Shadows and tilt are the main reason traces look lumpy, so a flat, bright photo saves the most cleanup.
Step 2
Upload it and pick a starting look
The photo tracer shows live preview cards: Clean design, Fine script & dates, Solid silhouette, Cut outlines only and Everything dark. Tap the one that already looks closest. No AI is involved — each card is plain image maths you can fine-tune.
Step 3
Drop the counter top and texture
Granite, gravel, wood grain and paper-towel weave trace as thousands of specks. Tick Drop speckled texture and Drop clutter touching the photo edge. Pieces you keep are never reshaped or filled.
Step 4
Keep the inside of every letter
Holes like the inside of an R, A or 0 stay open by default. Fill one only when you want it: click it with Fill / open hole, or use Fill holes on a selected shape.
Step 5
Pull out just the part you want
Use Box select to trace one design out of a sheet of several, Pull out object to click a single item, or Keep clicked design to drop everything that isn't touching it.
Step 6
Edit the shapes as vectors
Open the Shapes view. Click pieces, right-click to cut, copy, paste, duplicate, add to object, weld, smooth, or send to a Cut, Score, Engrave or Backing layer. Drag points to fix a curve, slice with the knife, or draw a clean bridge.
Step 7
Save objects to your tray
Every object gets a thumbnail card. Save the ones you want to your tray to build a bigger project from several photos, or add them straight to the sheet nester files.
Step 8
Set the real size and export
Type the finished width in mm. The SVG is saved at that exact physical size with each layer in its own group, so it imports into xTool Creative Space, Glowforge and LightBurn at the right size.
Tips that save material and time
- Shoot straight down; a tilted photo gives tapered letters.
- Use Fine script & dates for thin swirls and small numbers.
- Use Cut outlines only when you don't want any engraving.
- Reset all changes takes you back to the original photo in one click.
- Right-click → Add to object keeps a monogram and its date together.
- Save each object to your tray to build a bigger project.
Questions people ask
Will the inside of my letters stay open?
Yes. Holes are never filled automatically. You choose which ones to fill, and you can re-open them later.
Can I trace just one design from a photo of several?
Yes. Box select one, click it with Pull out object, or trace everything and keep only the object you want from the Objects cards.
Does it use AI?
No. It uses image maths — local contrast, texture detection and curve fitting — so the same photo always gives the same result and nothing is uploaded.
Which laser software can open the file?
The SVG is a standard file in real millimetres with Cut, Score, Engrave and Backing groups. xTool Creative Space, Glowforge, LightBurn, Inkscape and Illustrator all open it.
Do it now instead of reading about it
Type the word, let it weld, export the production file. Try 2 free batch exports and 1 single export, shared per account and internet connection.
Try it in the maker