Table of Contents

Migrating from SkiaSharp

If you are coming from SkiaSharp, the biggest adjustment is separating core image work from drawing work. ImageSharp owns loading, saving, metadata, pixel buffers, color conversion, and processing pipelines. ImageSharp.Drawing owns vector drawing, text, paths, and canvas composition.

This page focuses on core ImageSharp workflows. For canvas, brush, pen, path, transform, and text migration examples, see the ImageSharp.Drawing Migrating from SkiaSharp guide.

Core Type Mapping

SkiaSharp concept ImageSharp equivalent
SKBitmap / SKPixmap Image<TPixel>, pixel buffers, or row access APIs
SKImage Image or Image<TPixel>
SKColor Color, or a concrete pixel type such as Rgba32
SKColorType / SKAlphaType generic TPixel plus PixelTypeInfo
SKBitmap.Decode(...) Image.Load(...) or Image.Load<TPixel>(...)
SKImage.Encode(...) Save(...), SaveAsJpeg(...), SaveAsPng(...), or explicit encoder types
SKPixmap.GetPixelColor(...) indexers or ProcessPixelRows(...)
SKPixmap / InstallPixels(...) LoadPixelData(...), WrapMemory(...), CopyPixelDataTo(...), or ProcessPixelRows(...)

Loading, Processing, and Saving

A typical SkiaSharp decode, resize, and encode flow maps to ImageSharp loading, mutation, and saving.

SkiaSharp:

using SkiaSharp;

using SKBitmap source = SKBitmap.Decode("input.jpg");
using SKBitmap output = source.Resize(new SKImageInfo(400, 300), SKFilterQuality.High);
using SKImage image = SKImage.FromBitmap(output);
using SKData data = image.Encode(SKEncodedImageFormat.Png, 100);

using FileStream stream = File.OpenWrite("output.png");
data.SaveTo(stream);

ImageSharp:

using SixLabors.ImageSharp;
using SixLabors.ImageSharp.Processing;

using Image image = Image.Load("input.jpg");

image.Mutate(context => context.Resize(400, 300));
image.SaveAsPng("output.png");

ImageSharp processors run through Mutate(...) for in-place updates or Clone(...) when you want a separate output image.

Pixels: Prefer Row Access Over Per-Pixel APIs

If your SkiaSharp code reads or writes individual pixels, the closest ImageSharp equivalent is the image indexer.

SkiaSharp:

using SkiaSharp;

SKColor pixel = bitmap.GetPixel(10, 20);
bitmap.SetPixel(10, 20, SKColors.White);

ImageSharp:

using SixLabors.ImageSharp.PixelFormats;

Rgba32 pixel = image[10, 20];
image[10, 20] = Rgba32.White;

For real throughput, move to row access instead of per-pixel calls.

SkiaSharp:

using SkiaSharp;

for (int y = 0; y < bitmap.Height; y++)
{
    for (int x = 0; x < bitmap.Width / 2; x++)
    {
        SKColor left = bitmap.GetPixel(x, y);
        SKColor right = bitmap.GetPixel(bitmap.Width - x - 1, y);

        bitmap.SetPixel(x, y, right);
        bitmap.SetPixel(bitmap.Width - x - 1, y, left);
    }
}

ImageSharp:

using SixLabors.ImageSharp;
using SixLabors.ImageSharp.PixelFormats;

using Image<Rgba32> image = Image.Load<Rgba32>("input.png");

image.ProcessPixelRows(accessor =>
{
    for (int y = 0; y < accessor.Height; y++)
    {
        Span<Rgba32> row = accessor.GetRowSpan(y);
        row.Reverse();
    }
});

Color and Pixel Format

SkiaSharp often carries pixel layout through SKImageInfo, SKColorType, and SKAlphaType. ImageSharp makes the working pixel format explicit through Image<TPixel>.

SkiaSharp:

using SkiaSharp;

SKImageInfo info = new(640, 360, SKColorType.Rgba8888, SKAlphaType.Unpremul);
using SKBitmap bitmap = new(info);

ImageSharp:

using SixLabors.ImageSharp;
using SixLabors.ImageSharp.PixelFormats;

using Image<Rgba32> image = new(640, 360);

Use Color when you want a pixel-agnostic color value, and use a concrete pixel type such as Rgba32 when the memory layout matters.

Raw Pixel Buffers

SkiaSharp code that installs or peeks pixel memory usually maps to one of ImageSharp's explicit raw-memory APIs.

SkiaSharp:

using SkiaSharp;

SKImageInfo info = new(320, 200, SKColorType.Rgba8888, SKAlphaType.Unpremul);
using SKBitmap bitmap = new();

bitmap.InstallPixels(info, pixels, info.RowBytes);

ImageSharp:

using SixLabors.ImageSharp;
using SixLabors.ImageSharp.PixelFormats;

using Image<Rgba32> image = Image.LoadPixelData<Rgba32>(pixels, 320, 200);

Use LoadPixelData(...) when ImageSharp should own a normal image copy. Use WrapMemory(...) when you need ImageSharp to operate over existing memory without copying. Use CopyPixelDataTo(...) when you need to export pixels.

Drawing APIs

If your SkiaSharp code mainly uses SKCanvas, SKPaint, SKPath, or text drawing, use the ImageSharp.Drawing migration guide:

Practical Migration Strategy

For most SkiaSharp image migrations:

  1. Replace decode and encode code with Image.Load(...) and Save(...) or format-specific save methods.
  2. Replace SKBitmap pixel storage with Image<TPixel>.
  3. Replace SKColorType and SKAlphaType branching with explicit TPixel choices.
  4. Replace per-pixel loops with ProcessPixelRows(...).
  5. Replace raw memory interop with LoadPixelData(...), WrapMemory(...), or CopyPixelDataTo(...).
  6. Move canvas drawing code to ImageSharp.Drawing rather than mixing it into the core image migration.

Practical Guidance

  • Keep image load/save behavior equivalent before changing processing behavior.
  • Replace pixel storage decisions with explicit Image<TPixel> choices.
  • Use row processing instead of per-pixel object-style APIs.
  • Move canvas drawing concerns to ImageSharp.Drawing rather than forcing them into core ImageSharp processors.
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