When a picture won't open
When Cobalt Photo cannot show a picture, it says why in the middle of the window. Here is what each message means, and what helps.
| It says | Why, and what helps |
|---|---|
| … is a HEIC picture: Windows reads it with the free HEIF Image Extensions | Install Microsoft's HEIF Image Extensions (and, if it still does not open, the HEVC Video Extensions) from the Microsoft Store — HEIC. |
| Windows cannot read … | An AVIF needs Windows' free AV1 Video Extension — AVIF. Any other format: the file is probably damaged or not quite a picture; open it in the app that made it and save it again. |
| Cannot read …: … | A WebP, JPEG XL, TGA, icon, Photoshop or Krita file that Cobalt Photo reads itself, and that is damaged or of a kind it does not know; the part after the colon says what went wrong. |
| Cannot draw … | An SVG with something Cobalt Photo cannot draw; the message says what. |
| preview only on the plate | A Photoshop file saved without Maximize compatibility: only its small preview is in it. Save it in Photoshop with Maximize compatibility on to see it whole. |
Photos kept only in the cloud
A photo OneDrive or Dropbox keeps only online has no thumbnail of its own, details or place until it is on this PC — reading it would download it. Opening it in the viewer downloads it; or choose Always keep on this device for the folder in Explorer.
A picture takes long to open
Very large pictures — a 100-megapixel TIFF, a long panorama — are read at the size the screen needs first, and in full only when you zoom in. A RAW file shows the camera's picture at once; developing it from the sensor takes a second or more each time. A file on a network drive or a slow card is as quick as the drive.
Still not right?
If a picture other apps open does not open in Cobalt Photo, please tell us, with the file if you can: ⋯ → Help → About has the version, and the link to send feedback is in Settings.