This article is about using GIMP-Python, which is a set of Python modules that allow you to do programming in Python to automate commands in GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP). These Python modules are wrappers around the libgimp libraries. GIMP-Python is different from the Script-Fu extensions. In Script-Fu, a plug-in is used to execute scripts. In GIMP-Python, the Python script takes center stage and does the work. You can instantiate the GIMP-Python scripts from inside GIMP itself, or you can use GIMP's batch mode to start it from the command line.
In this article, you learn how to write Python code that allows you to automate two different tasks in GIMP: resizing images and saving them as different formats.
You can install and use both GIMP and Python on many different platforms, including Linux®, Mac OS® X, and Microsoft® Windows®. The cross-platform nature of both GIMP and Python means you can write complex plug-ins for GIMP using Python and be able to run them on a variety of platforms.
Overview of GIMP
GIMP is an open source image manipulation program that many people use as a viable alternative to some of the commercial offerings. GIMP handles complicated features such as layers and paths. GIMP supports a number of different image formats and comes with relatively complex filters. GIMP has strong community support and involvement, so it is usually easy to find information about how to use or extend GIMP.
See Resources for the link to download and install GIMP on your computer.
Overview of Python scripting
Python is an object-oriented scripting language that allows you to write code that runs on many different platforms. Python has been ported to both the .NET and Java™ virtual machines, so there are many different ways that you can execute Python. See Resources to learn how to install Python on your computer.
Many modules exist for Python that provide functionality you can reuse without writing your own (the GIMP-Python modules are an example). An index of the Python modules lists many different pre-built modules that you can use to do a variety of tasks from dealing with Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) and Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) connections to working with Extensible Markup Language (XML) files (see Resources). You can also build your own Python modules, allowing you to reuse parts of code within your enterprise.
Similar to GIMP, Python also has significant community support. This means that you can find information, as well as download and use relatively mature tools that help you in your Python development.
Before proceeding to the rest of the article, install Python on your operating system according to the instructions on Python's site. Make sure you have Python correctly installed by opening a command prompt and typing python --version. The results should look something like those in Listing 1.
Listing 1. Verifying the installation of Python
$ python --version
Python 2.6.6
After you install the Python interpreter, you can create Python files in any text editor and run them with the interpreter. You can also use the PyDev plug-in for Eclipse, which offers syntax highlighting as well as some other features, such as catching syntax errors for you. Another option is to use the Python console directly in Eclipse, which is convenient for finding help.
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