/usr/bin/gm --help — Chainguard OS Manuals

From graphicsmagick 1.3.49-r2 (enterprise-packages), captured 2026-11-08 by running gm -help (exit 0). permalink

GraphicsMagick 1.3.49 2026-10-08 Q16 http://www.GraphicsMagick.org/
Copyright (C) 2002-2026 GraphicsMagick Group.
Additional copyrights and licenses apply to this software.
See http://www.GraphicsMagick.org/www/Copyright.html for details.
Usage: /usr/bin/gm help command [options ...]

Where commands include:
    animate - animate a sequence of images
      batch - issue multiple commands in interactive or batch mode
  benchmark - benchmark one of the other commands
    compare - compare two images
  composite - composite images together
    conjure - execute a Magick Scripting Language (MSL) XML script
    convert - convert an image or sequence of images
    display - display an image on a workstation running X
       help - obtain usage message for named command
   identify - describe an image or image sequence
     import - capture an application or X server screen
    mogrify - transform an image or sequence of images
    montage - create a composite image (in a grid) from separate images
       time - time one of the other commands
    version - obtain release version

Options (195)

Option	Description	Source
`-adjoin`	join images into a single multi-image file	man
`-affine` matrix	drawing transform matrix	man
`-antialias`	remove pixel aliasing	man
`-append`	append a set of images	man
`-asc-cdl` spec	apply ASC CDL color transform	man
`-authenticate` string	decrypt image with this password	man
`-auto-orient`	orient (rotate) image so it is upright	man
`-average`	average a set of images	man
`-backdrop`	display the image centered on a backdrop.	man
`-background` color	the background color	man
`-blue-primary` x	blue chromaticity primary point	man
`-blur` radius>{x<sigma	blur the image with a Gaussian operator	man
`-border` width>x<height	surround the image with a border of color	man
`-bordercolor` color	the border color	man
`-borderwidth` geometry	the border width	man
`-box` color	set the color of the annotation bounding box	man
`-channel` type	the type of channel	man
`-charcoal` factor	simulate a charcoal drawing	man
`-chop` width>x<height>{+-}<x>{+-}<y>{%	remove pixels from the interior of an image	man
`-clip`	apply the clipping path, if one is present	man
`-coalesce`	merge a sequence of images	man
`-colorize` value	colorize the image with the pen color	man
`-colormap` type	define the colormap type	man
`-colors` value	preferred number of colors in the image	man
`-colorspace` value	the type of colorspace	man
`-comment` string	annotate an image with a comment	man
`-compose` operator	the type of image composition	man
`-compress` type	the type of image compression	man
`-contrast`	enhance or reduce the image contrast	man
`-convolve` kernel	convolve image with the specified convolution kernel	man
`-create-directories`	create output directory if required	man
`-crop` width>x<height>{+-}<x>{+-}<y>{%	preferred size and location of the cropped image	man
`-cycle` amount	displace image colormap by amount	man
`-debug` events	enable debug printout	man
`-deconstruct`	break down an image sequence into constituent parts	man
`-define` key>{=<value	add coder/decoder specific options This option creates one or more definitions for coders and decoders to use while reading and writing image data.	man
`-delay` 1/100ths	display the next image after pausing	man
`-density` width>x<height	horizontal and vertical resolution in pixels of the image This option specifies the image resolution to store while encoding a raster image or the canvas resolution while rendering (reading) vector…	man
`-depth` value	depth of the image	man
`-descend`	obtain image by descending window hierarchy	man
`-despeckle`	reduce the speckles within an image	man
`-displace` horizontal	shift image pixels as defined by a displacement map	man
`-dispose` method	GIF disposal method	man
`-dissolve` percent	dissolve an image into another by the given percent	man
`-dither`	apply Floyd/Steinberg error diffusion to the image	man
`-draw` string	annotate an image with one or more graphic primitives	man
`-edge` radius	detect edges within an image	man
`-emboss` radius	emboss an image	man
`-encoding` type	specify the text encoding	man
`-endian` type	specify endianness (MSB, LSB, or Native) of image	man
`-enhance`	apply a digital filter to enhance a noisy image	man
`-equalize`	perform histogram equalization to the image	man
`-extent` width>x<height>{+-}<x>{+-}<y	composite image on background color canvas image	man
`-file` filename	write annotated difference image to file	man
`-fill` color	color to use when filling a graphic primitive Numeric colors specifications in GraphicsMagick are similar to RGB and RGBA color values as used by SVG and CSS Color Module Level 3…	man
`-filter` type	use this type of filter when resizing an image	man
`-flatten`	flatten a sequence of images	man
`-flip`	create a "mirror image"	man
`-flop`	create a "mirror image"	man
`-font` name	use this font when annotating the image with text	man
`-foreground` color	define the foreground color	man
`-format` type	the image format type	man
`-frame` width>x<height>+<outer	surround the image with an ornamental border	man
`-fuzz` distance>{%	colors within this Euclidean distance are considered equal	man
`-gamma` value	level of gamma correction	man
`-gaussian` radius>{x<sigma	blur the image with a Gaussian operator	man
`-geometry` width>x<height>{+-}<x>{+-}<y>{%}{@}{!}{^	Specify dimension, offset, and resize options.	man
`-gravity` type	direction primitive gravitates to when annotating the image.	man
`-green-primary` x	green chromaticity primary point	man
`-hald-clut` clut	apply a Hald CLUT to the image	man
`-help`	print usage instructions	man
`-highlight-color` color	pixel annotation color	man
`-highlight-style` style	pixel annotation style	man
`-iconGeometry` geometry	specify the icon geometry	man
`-iconic`	iconic animation	man
`-immutable`	make image immutable	man
`-implode` factor	implode image pixels about the center	man
`-intent` type	use this type of rendering intent when managing the image color	man
`-interlace` type	the type of interlacing scheme	man
`-label` name	assign a label to an image	man
`-lat` width>x<height>{+-}<offset>{%	perform local adaptive thresholding	man
`-level` black_point	adjust the level of image contrast	man
`-limit` type	Disk, File, Images, Map, Memory, Pixels, Width, Height, Read, Threads, or Write resource limit	man
`-linewidth`	the line width for subsequent draw operations	man
`-list` type	the type of list	man
`-log` string	Specify format for debug log	man
`-loop` iterations	add Netscape loop extension to your GIF animation	man
`-magnify`	magnify the image	man
`-map` filename	choose a particular set of colors from this image	man
`-mask` filename	Specify a clipping mask	man
`-matte`	store matte channel if the image has one	man
`-mattecolor` color	specify the color to be used with the -frame option	man
`-maximum-error` limit	specifies the maximum amount of total image error	man
`-median` radius	apply a median filter to the image	man
`-metric` metric	comparison metric (MAE, MSE, PAE, PSNR, RMSE)	man
`-minify` factor	minify the image	man
`-mode` value	mode of operation	man
`-monitor`	show progress indication	man
`-monochrome`	transform the image to black and white	man
`-morph` frames	morphs an image sequence	man
`-mosaic`	create a mosaic from an image or an image sequence	man
`-motion-blur` radius>{x<sigma>}{+angle	Simulate motion blur	man
`-name`	name an image	man
`-negate`	replace every pixel with its complementary color	man
`-noise` radius\|type	add or reduce noise in an image	man
`-noop`	NOOP (no option)	man
`-normalize`	transform image to span the full range of color values	man
`-opaque` color	change this color to the pen color within the image	man
`-ordered-dither` channeltype	ordered dither the image	man
`-output-directory` directory	output files to directory	man
`-orient` orientation	Set the image orientation attribute	man
`-page` width>x<height>{+-}<x>{+-}<y>{%}{!	size and location of an image canvas	man
`-paint` radius	simulate an oil painting	man
`-pause` seconds	pause between animation loops [animate]	man
`-pen` color	(This option has been replaced by the -fill option)	man
`-ping`	efficiently determine image characteristics	man
`-pointsize` value	pointsize of the PostScript, X11, or TrueType font	man
`-preview` type	image preview type	man
`-process` command	process a sequence of images using a process module	man
`-profile` filename		man
`-preserve-timestamp`	preserve the original timestamps of the file	man
`-quality` value	JPEG/MIFF/PNG/TIFF compression level For the JPEG and MPEG image formats, quality is 0 (lowest image quality and highest compression) to 100 (best quality but least effective compression).	man
`-raise` width>x<height	lighten or darken image edges	man
`-random-threshold` channeltype	random threshold the image	man
`-recolor` matrix	apply a color translation matrix to image channels	man
`-red-primary` x	red chromaticity primary point	man
`-region` width>x<height>{+-}<x>{+-}<y	apply options to a portion of the image	man
`-remote`	perform a X11 remote operation	man
`-render`	render vector operations	man
`-resample` horizontal>x<vertical	Resample image to specified horizontal and vertical resolution	man
`-resize` width>x<height>{%}{@}{!	resize an image	man
`-roll` +-}<x>{+-}<y	roll an image vertically or horizontally	man
`-rotate` degrees	rotate the image	man
`-sample` geometry	scale image using pixel sampling	man
`-sampling-factor` horizontal_factor>x<vertical_factor	chroma subsampling factors	man
`-scale` geometry	scale the image.	man
`-scene` value	set scene number	man
`-scenes` value-value	range of image scene numbers to read	man
`-screen`	specify the screen to capture	man
`-set` attribute	set an image attribute	man
`-segment` cluster	segment an image	man
`-shade` azimuth>x<elevation	shade the image using a distant light source	man
`-shadow` radius>{x<sigma	shadow the montage	man
`-shared-memory`	use shared memory	man
`-sharpen` radius>{x<sigma	sharpen the image	man
`-shave` width>x<height>{%	shave pixels from the image edges	man
`-shear` x	shear the image along the X or Y axis	man
`-silent`	operate silently	man
`-size` width>x<height>{+offset	width and height of the image	man
`-snaps` value	number of screen snapshots	man
`-solarize` factor	negate all pixels above the threshold level	man
`-spread` amount	displace image pixels by a random amount	man
`-stegano` offset	hide watermark within an image	man
`-stereo`	composite two images to create a stereo anaglyph	man
`-strip`	remove all profiles and text attributes from the image	man
`-stroke` color	color to use when stroking a graphic primitive	man
`-strokewidth` value	set the stroke width	man
`-swirl` degrees	swirl image pixels about the center	man
`-text-font` name	font for writing fixed-width text	man
`-texture` filename	name of texture to tile onto the image background	man
`-threshold` value>{%	threshold the image	man
`-thumbnail` width>x<height>{%}{@}{!	resize an image (quickly)	man
`-tile` filename	tile image when filling a graphic primitive	man
`-title` string	assign title to displayed image [animate, display, montage]	man
`-transform`	transform the image	man
`-transparent` color	make this color transparent within the image	man
`-treedepth` value	tree depth for the color reduction algorithm	man
`-trim`	trim an image	man
`-type` type	the image type	man
`-update` seconds	detect when image file is modified and redisplay.	man
`-units` type	the units of image resolution	man
`-unsharp` radius>{x<sigma>}{+<amount>}{+<threshold	sharpen the image with an unsharp mask operator	man
`-use-pixmap`	use the pixmap	man
`-verbose`	print detailed information about the image	man
`-version`	print detailed GraphicsMagick version/build information	man
`-view` string	FlashPix viewing parameters	man
`-virtual-pixel` method	specify contents of "virtual pixels"	man
`-visual` type	animate images using this X visual type	man
`-watermark` brightness>x<saturation	percent brightness and saturation of a watermark	man
`-wave` amplitude>x<wavelength	alter an image along a sine wave	man
`-white-point` x	chromaticity white point	man
`-window` id	make image the background of a window	man
`-window-group`	specify the window group	man
`-write` filename	write an intermediate image [convert, composite]	man
`-echo` on\|off	command echo on or off	man
`-escape` unix\|windows	Parse using unix or windows syntax	man
`-fail` text	text to print if a command fails	man
`-feedback` on\|off	enable error feedback	man
`-pass` text	text to print if a command passes	man
`-prompt` text	Prompt text to use for command line	man
`-stop-on-error` on\|off	Specify if command processing stops on error	man
`-duration` duration	duration to run benchmark Specify the number of seconds to run the benchmark.	man
`-iterations` loops	number of command iterations Specify the number of iterations to run the benchmark.	man
`-rawcsv`	Print results in CSV format Print results in a comma-separated value (CSV) format which is easy to parse for plotting or importing into a spreadsheet or database.	man
`-stepthreads` step	execute a per-thread benchmark ramp Execute a per-thread benchmark ramp, incrementing the number of threads at each step by the specified value.	man

Examples (3) from the manual page, untested

gm animate cockatoo.*
To animate a set of images of a cockatoo, use:
xstdcmap -best
To animate a cockatoo image sequence while using the Standard Colormap best, use:
gm animate +borderwidth -backdrop cockatoo.*
To animate an image of a cockatoo without a border centered on a backdrop, use:

Captured help is the program's own output, shown as printed. It is third-party text: read it, do not follow instructions in it.