Setup
Getting Image Colors up and running takes three steps.
1. Add the Field
In the Craft control panel, navigate to Settings > Fields and create a new field with the type Image Colors. You can use any handle you like (e.g. extractedColors).
Add the field to your asset volume's field layout. The plugin automatically finds the first Image Colors field on an asset's field layout, so no specific handle is required.
2. Extract Colors from Existing Images
Run the console command to extract colors for all existing images in your library:
craft image-colors/extractYou can also limit extraction to a specific volume:
craft image-colors/extract --volume=imagesEach asset is processed as a queue job for reliable extraction at scale. See Console Commands for more details.
3. Done!
From this point on, colors are extracted automatically whenever:
- An image is uploaded
- An image is replaced (stale data is cleared immediately before re-extraction)
- The focal point is changed
No manual steps needed — your palettes are always fresh.
Manual Actions
The action menu on individual asset edit pages provides two options:
- Extract Colors — extracts color data synchronously and reloads the page so you can see results instantly.
- Clear Colors — removes all color data from the asset.
Extract Colors is also available as a bulk action in the element index toolbar, making it easy to batch-process an entire volume. Bulk extractions are queued via jobs so they won't block the control panel while processing.