exportgraphics
Description
exportgraphics(
saves the contents of the graphics object specified by obj
,filename
)obj
to a file. The
graphics object can be any type of axes, a figure, a standalone visualization, a tiled chart
layout, or a container within the figure. The resulting graphic is tightly cropped to a thin
margin surrounding your content.
exportgraphics(
specifies additional options for saving the file. For example,
obj
,filename
,Name,Value
)exportgraphics(gca,"myplot.jpg","Resolution",300)
saves the contents of
the current axes as a 300-DPI image file.
Examples
Export Axes as Image File
Create a line plot and get the current axes. Then save the contents of the axes as a JPEG file.
plot(rand(5,5))
ax = gca;
exportgraphics(ax,'LinePlot.jpg')
Specify Image Resolution
Display an image and get the current axes. Then save the contents of the axes as a 300-DPI JPEG file.
I = imread('peppers.png'); imshow(I) ax = gca; exportgraphics(ax,'Peppers300.jpg','Resolution',300)
Export Figure
Display a plot with an annotation that extends beyond the bounds of the axes. Save the contents of the figure as a PDF file.
plot(1:10) annotation('textarrow',[0.06 0.5],[0.73 0.5],'String','y = x ') f = gcf; exportgraphics(f,'AnnotatedPlot.pdf')
Export as PDF Containing Only Vector Graphics
Display a bar chart and get the current axes. Then save the contents of the axes as a PDF containing only vector graphics.
bar([10 22 31 43]) ax = gca; exportgraphics(ax,'BarChart.pdf','ContentType','vector')
Export Multipage PDF
To create multipage PDFs, set the 'Append'
name-value argument to true
.
For example, create a line plot and save the contents of the axes to the file myplots.pdf
.
plot([0 0.3 0.1 0.6 0.4 1])
ax = gca;
exportgraphics(ax,'myplots.pdf')
Next, create a bar chart and save the contents of the axes as a second page in myplots.pdf
.
bar(1:10) exportgraphics(ax,'myplots.pdf','Append',true)
Export Animated GIF
Plot a parabola with one marker. Change the location of the marker with every iteration of a for
loop, and capture the changes as frames in an animated GIF.
x = -10:0.5:10; y = x.^2; p = plot(x,y,"-o","MarkerFaceColor","red"); for i=1:41 p.MarkerIndices = i; exportgraphics(gca,"parabola.gif","Append",true) end
Export Tiled Chart Layout
Display two plots in a tiled chart layout. Then save both plots as a PDF by passing the TiledChartLayout
object to the exportgraphics
function.
t = tiledlayout(2,1);
nexttile
plot([1 2 3])
nexttile
plot([3 2 1])
exportgraphics(t,'Layout.pdf')
If you want to save just one of the plots in the layout, call the nexttile
function with the axes return argument. Then pass the axes to the exportgraphics
function.
Export Heatmap as PDF With Transparent Background
Display a heatmap chart. Then save the chart as a PDF containing only vector graphics with a transparent background.
h = heatmap(rand(10,10)); exportgraphics(h,'Hmap.pdf','BackgroundColor','none','ContentType','vector')
Create App for Saving Plot
Create a program file called saveapp.m
that displays a plot and a
button for saving the axes content. In the callback function for the button, call the
uiputfile
function to prompt the user for a file name and location.
Then call the exportgraphics
function with the full path to the
specified file.
function saveapp f = uifigure; ax = uiaxes(f,'Position',[25 25 400 375]); plot(ax,[0 0.3 0.1 0.6 0.4 1]) b = uibutton(f,'Position',[435 200 90 30],'Text','Save Plot'); b.ButtonPushedFcn = @buttoncallback; function buttoncallback(~,~) filter = {'*.jpg';'*.png';'*.tif';'*.pdf';'*.eps'}; [filename,filepath] = uiputfile(filter); if ischar(filename) exportgraphics(ax,[filepath filename]); end end end
Run the app by calling the saveapp
function. When you click the
Save Plot button in the app, a dialog box prompts you for a
file name and location. Then the axes content is saved in the specified file. The area
surrounding the axes, including the button, is not included in the file.
saveapp
Input Arguments
obj
— Graphics object
axes | figure | standalone visualization | tiled chart layout | ...
Graphics object, specified as one of these objects:
Any type of axes: an
Axes
,PolarAxes
, orGeographicAxes
object.A figure created with either the
figure
oruifigure
function.A standalone visualization such as a
heatmap
chart.A tiled chart layout, which you create with the
tiledlayout
function.A container within a figure: a
Panel
,Tab
, orButtonGroup
object.
Capture Area
exportgraphics
captures the contents of the object you
specify. It does not capture UI components such as buttons or sliders.
It also does not capture adjacent containers or child containers. For example, consider a figure containing a line plot with an adjacent panel containing a heatmap:
f = figure; ax = axes(f,'Position',[0.1 0.1 0.4 0.8]); plot(ax,[0 1]) p = uipanel(f,'Position',[0.55 0.1 0.4 0.8]); heatmap(p,rand(10,5)) exportgraphics(f,'myfigure.png') exportgraphics(p,'mypanel.png')
When you run the preceding code, myfigure.png
contains the line
plot, but not the heatmap. Similarly, mypanel.png
contains the
heatmap, but not the line plot.
filename
— File name
character vector | string scalar
File name, specified as a character vector or a string scalar that includes the file
extension. If filename
does not include a full path, MATLAB® saves the file in the current folder. You must have permission to write to
the file.
The following table lists the supported file formats and the file extensions (which are not case sensitive).
File Format | File Extension |
---|---|
Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) | 'jpg' or 'jpeg' |
Portable Network Graphics (PNG) | 'png' |
Tagged Image File Format (TIFF) | 'tif' or 'tiff' |
Graphics Interchange Format (GIF) | 'gif' |
Portable Document Format (PDF) The PDF includes
embeddable fonts when the | 'pdf' |
Enhanced Metafile for Windows® systems only (EMF) | 'emf' |
Encapsulated PostScript® (EPS) | 'eps' |
Example: exportgraphics(gca,'myfile.jpg')
saves the contents of
the current axes to a JPEG file called myfile.jpg
.
Name-Value Arguments
Specify optional pairs of arguments as
Name1=Value1,...,NameN=ValueN
, where Name
is
the argument name and Value
is the corresponding value.
Name-value arguments must appear after other arguments, but the order of the
pairs does not matter.
Before R2021a, use commas to separate each name and value, and enclose
Name
in quotes.
Example: exportgraphics(gca,'myplot.jpg','Resolution',300)
saves the
contents of the current axes to a 300-DPI image file.
ContentType
— Type of content
'auto'
(default) | 'vector'
| 'image'
Type of content to store when saving as an EMF, EPS, or PDF file. Specify the value as one of these options:
'auto'
— MATLAB controls whether the content is a vector graphic or an image.'vector'
— Stores the content as a vector graphic that can scale to any size. If you are saving a PDF file, embeddable fonts are included in the file.'image'
— Rasterizes the content into one or more images within the file.
Note
The
'vector'
option is not supported for JPEG, TIFF, and PNG files.If you specify the
'vector'
option, some visualizations might contain stray lines or other artifacts.
Resolution
— Resolution (DPI)
150
(default) | whole number
Resolution in dots per inch (DPI), specified as a whole number that is greater
than or equal to 1
.
Specifying the resolution has no effect when the ContentType
is 'vector'
.
Data Types: single
| double
| int8
| int16
| int32
| int64
| uint8
| uint16
| uint32
| uint64
BackgroundColor
— Background color
[1 1 1]
(default) | 'current'
| 'none'
| RGB triplet | 'r'
| 'g'
| 'b'
| ...
Background color, specified as 'current'
,
'none'
, an RGB triplet, a hexadecimal color code, or a color
name. The background color controls the color of the margin that surrounds the axes or chart.
A value of
'current'
sets the background color to the parent container's color.A value of
'none'
sets the background color to transparent or white, depending on the file format and the value ofContentType
:Transparent — For files with
ContentType='vector'
White — For image files, or when
ContentType='image'
When
ContentType='auto'
, MATLAB sets the background color according to the heuristic it uses to determine the type content to save.
Alternatively, specify a custom color or a named color.
Custom Colors and Named Colors
RGB triplets and hexadecimal color codes are useful for specifying custom colors.
An RGB triplet is a three-element row vector whose elements specify the intensities of the red, green, and blue components of the color. The intensities must be in the range
[0,1]
; for example,[0.4 0.6 0.7]
.A hexadecimal color code is a character vector or a string scalar that starts with a hash symbol (
#
) followed by three or six hexadecimal digits, which can range from0
toF
. The values are not case sensitive. Thus, the color codes'#FF8800'
,'#ff8800'
,'#F80'
, and'#f80'
are equivalent.
Alternatively, you can specify some common colors by name. This table lists the named color options, the equivalent RGB triplets, and hexadecimal color codes.
Color Name | Short Name | RGB Triplet | Hexadecimal Color Code | Appearance |
---|---|---|---|---|
"red" | "r" | [1 0 0] | "#FF0000" | |
"green" | "g" | [0 1 0] | "#00FF00" | |
"blue" | "b" | [0 0 1] | "#0000FF" | |
"cyan"
| "c" | [0 1 1] | "#00FFFF" | |
"magenta" | "m" | [1 0 1] | "#FF00FF" | |
"yellow" | "y" | [1 1 0] | "#FFFF00" | |
"black" | "k" | [0 0 0] | "#000000" | |
"white" | "w" | [1 1 1] | "#FFFFFF" |
Here are the RGB triplets and hexadecimal color codes for the default colors MATLAB uses in many types of plots.
RGB Triplet | Hexadecimal Color Code | Appearance |
---|---|---|
[0 0.4470 0.7410] | "#0072BD" | |
[0.8500 0.3250 0.0980] | "#D95319" | |
[0.9290 0.6940 0.1250] | "#EDB120" | |
[0.4940 0.1840 0.5560] | "#7E2F8E" | |
[0.4660 0.6740 0.1880] | "#77AC30" | |
[0.3010 0.7450 0.9330] | "#4DBEEE" | |
[0.6350 0.0780 0.1840] | "#A2142F" |
Append
— Append content to existing file
false
(default) | true
Append content to existing file, specified as true
or
false
.
This option is useful for:
Exporting the content as the last page of an existing PDF file. Call
exportgraphics
with theAppend
option multiple times to add multiple pages.Exporting the content as the last frame in an animated GIF file. Call
exportgraphics
with theAppend
option multiple times to add multiple frames.
Note
You can use the Append
argument to create basic animated
GIF files from charts that have the same axes limits. If the axes limits differ
between charts, consider using axis('manual')
or the xlim
, ylim
, or zlim
functions to freeze the axes
limits when creating your charts.
To create animations of images or more elaborate graphics, use imwrite
. For more information on
using imwrite
, see Write Animated GIF.
If you set the Append
option to false
with
the name of an existing file, MATLAB overwrites the contents of the file with the new content.
This option supports PDF and GIF files only.
Colorspace
— Color space
'rgb'
(default) | 'gray'
| 'cmyk'
Color space of the saved graphic, specified as 'rgb'
,
'gray'
, or 'cmyk'
.
'rgb'
— Export truecolor RGB content.'gray'
— Convert the content to grayscale.'cmyk'
— Convert the content to cyan, magenta, yellow, and black (CMYK) before exporting the content. This color space is only supported for EPS files.
Alternative Functionality
Hovering over the Export button in the axes toolbar reveals a drop-down menu with options for
exporting content:
: Save the content as a tightly cropped image or PDF.
: Copy the content as an image.
: Copy the content as a vector graphic.
Version History
Introduced in R2020aR2022a: Create animated GIF files
Create animated GIF files by calling exportgraphics
multiple times
with the Append
name-value argument set to
true
.
See Also
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