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Material guide

Laser engraving photos on cork

Cork marks dark and is forgiving to burn, but its grain hides fine detail. The cork preset pushes contrast so a photo still reads through the texture.

The laser marks
Darker than the surface
The file
Not inverted
Default dither
Stucki
Mirror
Off by default
Try it on corkStart free
A terrier photo engraved for Cork by our engine, previewed as dark marks on the surface
Our engine’s file for Cork, previewed on the material the way the app shows it. The grain hides fine detail. Bold, high-contrast subjects work best.

What happens on cork

Cork darkens where the laser hits it, so the file goes as is, without inverting. The catch is the surface: cork is made of granules with gaps and colour changes between them. Fine detail such as single hairs or small text gets lost in that texture.

That is why the cork preset is the most aggressive of the ten. It turns on local contrast (CLAHE at 1.3), adds contrast, lifts the midtones with a gamma of 1.1 and sets the black point at 6 and the white point at 250, so the darkest and lightest parts of the photo are clipped to solid. The app's cork preset dithers with Stucki, which gives very smooth gradients that sit well in the grain. The try bench on this page uses Ultra for every material, so you can compare both in Easy Mode.

Cork also burns quickly and can char at the edges of dense areas. Fine-grained cork sheet holds more detail than coarse agglomerated cork, so pick the finest grain you can find for photos.

Recommended DPI by laser type

Recommended DPI on cork for each laser type
LaserDPINotes
Diode254Diodes engrave cork easily. Start at 254 DPI; higher adds little on a textured surface.
CO₂254Standard 2 in lens. Cork marks fast, so test low power first.
CO₂ fine254 to 318Finer lines help only on fine-grained cork. On coarse cork, 254 is enough.
Fiber508Fiber lasers are made for metal. They can mark cork, but test before a real piece.
Galvo / UV423Fine for small items. The grain still limits how much detail shows.

On cork the grain, not the laser, sets the detail limit. A high DPI makes the job slower without showing more. Use the default for your laser type and spend the effort on a bold, high-contrast photo instead. The DPI calculator gives the default for your spot size.

Try it on cork

Drop a photo, or use a sample. Our real engine makes a 4 in file at 254 DPI for Cork with the Ultra dither, here in the page. The photo stays on your device.

Material

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How to prepare a photo for cork

  1. Choose a bold photo

    A simple subject with strong light and a plain background reads best on cork.

  2. Open the app

    Use One Click or Easy Mode if you want to compare dithers.

  3. Pick Cork

    The preset raises local contrast, clips the extremes and dithers with Stucki.

  4. Crop to the coaster

    Use the circle crop for round coasters, or rounded for square ones.

  5. Set the size and laser

    Enter the coaster size and pick your laser type.

  6. Compare on material

    Check the On material tab. Try the Punchy look if the subject still looks flat.

  7. Export

    PNG, BMP or a .lbrn2 project for LightBurn at the coaster's real size.

Prep tips

  • Pick photos with a clear subject and few small details. Faces close up, pets, silhouettes.
  • Remove a busy background so the grain is not competing with clutter. See background removal.
  • Use fine-grained cork for photos. Coarse cork suits text and simple shapes better.
  • Hold thin cork flat. It curls with heat and moves out of focus.
  • Cork chars easily. Work with ventilation and keep an eye on the job.
  • If you make sets of coasters, save the settings as a recipe and run the whole set in Batch.

Common mistakes

Choosing a detailed photo
Small faces in a group shot or fine patterns disappear in cork grain. Crop tight or choose another photo.
Raising the DPI to fix detail
The grain sets the limit. More DPI only adds time and charring.
Too much power
Cork burns fast. Dense areas can char into black patches. Test low first.
Low-contrast photos
A flat, dim photo stays flat on cork even with the preset. Start with good light, or try the Punchy look.

Questions

About engraving photos on cork. More in the guides.

Can you laser engrave photos on cork?
Yes, but cork's grain hides fine detail. Bold, high-contrast photos with simple subjects work best.
Do I invert the photo for cork?
No. Cork marks dark, so the preset sends the photo as is.
Which dither is best for cork?
The app's cork preset uses Stucki for smooth gradients. Ultra is also worth a try. Compare them in Easy Mode, or read about each in image dithering for laser.
What DPI should I use for cork?
254 DPI for most diode and CO2 lasers. Going higher rarely shows more on cork.
How do I make a set of photo coasters?
Make one recipe with the cork preset, the circle crop and your coaster size, then run all photos at once in Batch.

Make your cork file.

Sign up free to download the file you made here, then use One Click, Easy Mode and Batch in the app.

Start free

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