Image Export Checklist for Web and Client Handoff
A free review process for checking dimensions, visual quality, formats, filenames, and delivery context after exporting images.
Export is the point where an editable design becomes a file other people will use. Do not approve the result from the design canvas alone. Open the exported file in a normal viewer and check it at the size the recipient will actually see.
Identify the destination
- I know where the image will be placed and who will upload it.
- I have checked any current format, dimensions, file-size, or background requirements for that destination.
- I know whether the recipient needs an editable source as well as a ready-to-use export.
If a platform's requirements are unknown, do not write “platform ready” on the delivery note. State which formats you are supplying and ask the recipient to test the upload.
Inspect the file itself
- The exported dimensions and aspect ratio match the intended placement.
- Important content remains visible after the expected crop.
- Small text is readable at realistic display size.
- Colors, shadows, and transparency look as intended in a regular viewer.
- There are no broken edges, compression artifacts, or accidental background blocks.
- The file opens successfully and is the actual format named by its extension.
Make this visual check for every meaningful variant. A wide image can look correct while its square crop removes a product label. A transparent PNG can look correct on white and fail against a dark page; preview both backgrounds when transparency matters.
Check content and rights
- The copy in the image matches the approved text.
- Prices, dates, names, and product claims have been checked against the current source.
- Fonts, photos, icons, and other components may be used for this destination.
- A suitable text alternative or caption is prepared when the image carries information on a web page.
For web publishing, write alternative text that conveys the image's useful information in its page context. Decorative images usually need an empty alternative so they do not interrupt the reading experience. See the alt text guide for examples and Google's image guidance for search-related context.
Package for handoff
- Filenames distinguish each placement and variant.
- Approved exports are separated from drafts.
- The delivery note maps each file to its intended use.
- Source files are included only when the agreement and file rights allow it.
- I have opened the package as the recipient would and checked that no required file is missing.
For the fictional Harborfield Coffee project, a note might say: “Use harborfield_header_wide_v03.webp on the website and harborfield_social_square_v03.png for the square post. Editable source is in 02-source.” A short map is more useful than sending six similarly named files with no explanation.
Continue: Build a delivery checklist for the whole package, including documents and source files.