What is IIQ?

Phase One IIQ is a professional medium-format raw format used by Phase One digital backs, delivering exceptional image quality for commercial photography.

What is CPT?

Corel PHOTO-PAINT (CPT) is the native project format for Corel PHOTO-PAINT, preserving layers, masks, and editing history.

When Should You Use IIQ vs CPT?

IIQ vs CPT: Key Differences

• •IIQ and CPT diverge on compression: lossless compression for the source, lossless compression for the target.
• •Both formats share lossless compression, so quality behavior is similar across the two — file size differences come from algorithm efficiency rather than compression philosophy.
• •Transparency: Full transparency and alpha channels
• •IIQ files are typically 50-150MB per image from medium-format backs while CPT files range Large due to layer data
• •Primary audience: IIQ is built for professional studio photography, digital back capture scenarios, while CPT focuses on corel image editing, photo manipulation — pick the format that matches your output requirement.

Advantages of IIQ

• ✓IIQ applies lossless compression specifically calibrated for Professional studio photography, digital back capture.
• ✓IIQ enjoys broad native support across operating systems, browsers, and creative tools alike.
• ✓IIQ guarantees every bit of the original data survives — no approximations, no shortcuts.
• ✓You will find IIQ support built into virtually every tool that handles Professional studio photography, digital back capture — no plugins or converters needed.

Advantages of CPT

• ✓CPT uses lossless compression tailored for Corel image editing, photo manipulation.
• ✓CPT is supported natively on virtually every device, browser, and operating system.
• ✓CPT files are bit-for-bit perfect, preserving every pixel and sample for professional work.
• ✓CPT integrates seamlessly with all major photo editing tools and workflows.

Common Use Cases for IIQ to CPT Conversion

• E-commerce product images
• Email marketing campaigns
• Presentation graphics
• Blog and article illustrations
• Mobile app UI assets
• Product photography for marketplaces

Industry Applications

Best Practices for IIQ to CPT Conversion

• →When converting IIQ to CPT, check whether CPT supports transparency — if not, your transparent areas will be filled with a solid color
• →Use CPT for maximum quality archival and IIQ for lossless workflows
• →Optimize images for web to reduce page load times — tools like our converter let you adjust quality settings before conversion
• →Maintain original aspect ratio to avoid distortion during conversion
• →Always keep a backup of your original files before converting
• →Choose the appropriate quality settings for your specific use case

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Troubleshooting IIQ to CPT Conversion

• !CPT shows visible compression artifacts → lower the compression level or switch to a lossless variant
• !The converted CPT image looks washed out → the source IIQ likely uses a wider color space than CPT supports
• !CPT file is much larger than expected → check if the conversion preserved an unnecessarily high resolution
• !Text in the converted CPT looks fuzzy → text-heavy images benefit from higher quality settings or a different output format

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