How to Customize Output Formats and Image Quality Settings in VeryPDF Website Screenshot API for Developers
Meta Description:
Discover how to customise output formats and image quality in VeryPDF Website Screenshot API for perfect, high-res screenshotsfast and easy for dev teams.
Every developer hits this wall eventually.
You’re on a tight deadline. The marketing team needs hundreds of web screenshots, different formats, retina quality, full-page, mobile views all of it. You try open-source tools like Puppeteer or Selenium. Maybe you’ve even wrangled a Frankenstein combo of headless Chrome and CLI scripts. But let’s be honestit’s a mess.
I’ve been there. I had a client project that involved archiving visual snapshots of competitor landing pages every 24 hours. Accuracy mattered. Speed mattered. Quality mattered. But all the tools I tried felt duct-taped together. That’s when I found VeryPDF Website Screenshot APIand let me tell you, it was like finally getting a proper toolbox after years of using butter knives.
Why I Needed a Screenshot API That Didn’t Suck
I needed a screenshot tool that could:
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Handle custom output formats like JPG, WebP, and PDF
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Maintain HD retina quality
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Deal with lazy-loaded content and JavaScript-heavy SPAs
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Automate everything with minimal setup
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Scale up for daily scheduled jobs
Most free tools just couldn’t hack it. Some missed content because of bad timing. Others broke when pages used modern frameworks like React or Vue. And almost all required way too much fiddling.
Then I Found VeryPDF Website Screenshot API
I stumbled across it while searching for “retina quality webpage screenshots with API access”. The setup took literally a few minutes. No credit card needed. You just generate your API key and you’re rolling.
What hooked me wasn’t just the fact that it worked. It was how easy it was to customise output format and quality settings. Most tools lock you into their defaults. Not this one.
Here’s how I put it to useand why I still use it now, months later.
Let’s Talk Output Formats
Right off the bat, VeryPDF gives you full control over how your screenshots are delivered:
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JPG for smaller, compressed images
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PNG for high-quality lossless screenshots
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WebP if you’re going for modern web performance
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PDF for document-ready capture
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JSON if you just want the metadata or embed links
Example request:
I use different formats depending on the job. For daily client reports, I send over PDFs. For performance snapshots, I store WebPs. For marketing decks, JPG works best.
This flexibility is killer. One endpoint, different outputall via a simple tweak in the URL.
Image Quality Settings That Just Work
Now let’s talk about quality.
You ever take a screenshot with some other tool and the result looks like it was printed on a toaster?
Yeah, not here.
With VeryPDF, you can:
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Set retina quality (@2x, @3x)
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Define exact viewport dimensions
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Capture full pageseven infinite scroll pages
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Get mobile versions by tweaking user agents and sizes
I had to screenshot a product page that loaded content only when you scrolled. Most tools would grab a blank section or cut things off. But with VeryPDF’s scroll detection + full-page support, the result was perfectevery time.
Want to block cookie popups or ads?
Yep. It does that too. Just pass flags like --hide-cookie-banner or --block-ads.
Bonus tip: Want a mobile iPhone X view? Just modify the viewport width/height and device scale factor. No custom code needed.
Features That Saved My Sanity
Let me break down a few core features I use all the time:
1. Automatic Timing Detection
Pages with JavaScript? No problem. The API waits until the page is fully loaded before snapping the shot. Saves you from those weird “half-loaded” captures.
2. Full HTTPS Support
Everything runs over HTTPS. Good for compliance. Essential if you’re doing anything involving user data or client URLs.
3. Scales Like a Beast
You can start with 100 free screenshots, no card needed. Once you need more, you can scale up to millions of shots per month. Built on AWS Lambda, so it handles spikes like a champ. I’ve thrown 10K+ URLs at it overnight and it didn’t even flinch.
4. Export to S3
Need to dump your screenshots into S3 for further processing or archiving? Just add the --export-to-s3 flag. It saves me hours every week.
How This Compares to Other Tools
Puppeteer + Headless Chrome
Way too much setup. Needs server, browser instance, dependencies, cron, error handling, ugh.
BrowserStack Screenshots
Not bad for manual tests but slow, no real API control, and you’re stuck in their UI.
PageCapture, Fireshot, other browser extensions
Manual, inconsistent, no automation.
VeryPDF Website Screenshot API?
Quick setup, deep control, infinite scaling, and works on day one.
Who Should Use This?
If you’re a:
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Developer automating screenshot tasks
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QA engineer needing pixel-perfect capture for test suites
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Marketer tracking competitor page changes
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SaaS founder archiving user dashboards
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Startup team needing assets for pitch decks
This tool will save you hours every week.
What You Can Use It For
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Monitor and archive landing pages
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Automate screenshot capture for client reports
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Track SEO visual changes over time
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Catch visual regressions in CI/CD
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Generate clean screenshots for documentation
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Pull mobile vs desktop views for comparison
Final Thoughts: Is It Worth It?
Absolutely.
It solves the exact problem I hadgetting customised, high-quality web screenshots in bulk without jumping through hoops.
I’d highly recommend this to anyone who deals with large volumes of screenshots, especially developers who need real control over output and quality.
Start your free trial here and get 100 screenshots for free:
https://www.verypdf.com/online/webpage-to-pdf-converter-cloud-api/
Need Something More Custom?
VeryPDF isn’t just a screenshot API shop.
They offer full-on custom development servicesand we’re talking real engineering muscle.
If you need:
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PDF utilities for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android
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Tools built in Python, PHP, C++, .NET, JavaScript, or C#
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Virtual printer drivers that output to PDF, EMF, PCL, TIFF
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Print job monitoring and capture
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File access and system-level hook development
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Barcode tools, OCR, scanned form data extraction
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Image converters, document format analysis
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Digital signature, PDF DRM, or TrueType font work
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Cloud-based conversion and viewing APIs
They’ve done it.
They can build it for you.
Talk to their support team to scope out your project:
http://support.verypdf.com/
FAQs
Q: Can I choose between full-page and viewport screenshots?
Yep. Just add a flag in your API request to toggle full-page mode or set custom dimensions.
Q: Does this work with Single Page Applications (SPAs)?
Yes, VeryPDF handles lazy loading and JavaScript rendering automatically. No manual delay setting needed.
Q: Is there mobile device emulation?
Absolutely. Set viewport size and user-agent headers to mimic iPhone, Android, or any custom device.
Q: What formats can I export to?
You can export screenshots as PDF, JPG, PNG, WebP, or even receive metadata via JSON.
Q: Do I need a server to use this?
Nope. You can call the API directly from your app, serverless function, or even Postman.
Tags / Keywords
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Website screenshot API
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Custom output formats API
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HD retina webpage screenshot
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Automated full-page capture
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WebP JPG PDF image quality settings