Photo Merge
Manage PSD preview groups that composite customer designs onto photorealistic product mockups in the Print Editor.
Photo Merge lets you create photorealistic product previews by merging customer designs into layered Photoshop (PSD) files. When a customer customizes a product in the Print Editor, their artwork is composited into the PSD template layers to generate a realistic mockup of the finished product. This is especially useful for products where a flat 2D preview does not adequately represent the final result, such as apparel, drinkware, signage, or packaging.
Photo Merge groups are collections of PSD preview templates. Each group can contain multiple PSD files representing different views of the product (e.g., front, back, angled). Groups are assigned to products via the product's Preview Type setting, and the Print Editor automatically renders previews using WebSocket-based communication with the server.
PSD Transfer Settings
At the top of the Photo Merge page, two fields configure how rendered PSD previews are transferred to external systems for print production.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| PSD Preview Transfer URL | The URL of the external server where rendered photo merge files are transmitted after generation. Used to push finalized PSD renders to a production or proofing system. |
| Basic Authentication | Credentials for the transfer URL in username:password format. Sent as HTTP Basic Authentication when transmitting rendered files. |
Click Update to save changes to the transfer settings.
View Photo Merge Groups
- From your Unified Admin, go to Print Editor > Photo Merge.
- The page displays a grid of all photo merge groups for the current storefront.
- Use the Search button to filter groups by name.
- Click the expand arrow next to any group name to reveal its photo preview items in a detail row.
Group List Columns
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | The name of the photo merge group. Click the expand arrow to view the PSD previews within this group. |
| In Use | A checkbox indicating whether this group is currently assigned to one or more products via the Product.Preview.Psd metadata. Read-only. |
| Action | Three-dot menu with Edit and Delete options. |
Add a Photo Merge Group
- Click the Add Photo Merge Group button in the top-right corner.
- In the dialog, enter a Group Name (required).
- Click Save to create the group. The new group appears in the list with no photo previews.
Edit a Photo Merge Group
- Click the Action menu (three-dot icon) on the group row.
- Select Edit.
- Update the Group Name in the dialog.
- Click Save.
Delete a Photo Merge Group
- Click the Action menu (three-dot icon) on the group row.
- Select Delete.
- Confirm the deletion in the confirmation dialog.
Deleting a group removes all associated PSD preview files and unlinks the group from any products that reference it. Products that were using the deleted group are automatically reverted to Single Page preview mode.
Photo Preview Items
Each group contains one or more photo preview items. These are the individual PSD files that represent different views or angles of the product.
View Photo Previews
Click the expand arrow next to a group name to open the detail row. The detail row shows a grid of photo preview items with drag-and-drop reordering support.
Photo Preview Columns
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Preview | A thumbnail rendering of the PSD file. Supports drag-and-drop to reorder previews within the group. |
| Display Order | The numeric position of this preview in the rendering sequence. Controls the order previews appear in the Print Editor proof view. |
| Title | A descriptive label for this preview (e.g., "Front View", "Back View", "Angled"). |
| Action | Menu with Download and Delete options. |
Add a Photo Preview
- In the expanded group detail row, click Add Photo Preview.
- Enter a Title (required) for the preview.
- Upload a PSD File using the file picker. Only
.psdfiles are accepted. - Click Save. The PSD file is stored on the server and a thumbnail is generated.
Reorder Previews
Drag and drop preview rows by their thumbnail to change the display order. The new order is saved automatically to the server.
Download a Preview
Select Download from the Action menu on a photo preview row to download the original PSD file.
Delete a Preview
Select Delete from the Action menu and confirm. The PSD file is permanently removed from storage.
Associations
Print Editor
| Area | Effect |
|---|---|
| Proof View | When a product's Preview Type is set to Photoshop (5) or Live Photo Merge (7), the Print Editor's proof view uses the assigned photo merge group to generate composite previews. Customer artwork is rasterized and merged into the PSD template layers via a WebSocket connection to the server. |
| PSD Rendering | The Editor UI's PhotoMergeService manages the WebSocket lifecycle, sending product and canvas data to the server and receiving rendered PNG previews. Each render session generates a unique PSD GUID that links the rendered output to the product. |
| Image Gallery | Rendered photo merge previews appear in the proof view's image gallery, showing one image per PSD file in the group (e.g., front view, back view). |
Print Store
| Area | Effect |
|---|---|
| Product Configuration | Products are linked to photo merge groups through the Product.Preview.Psd object metadata. The product's previewType field must be set to Photoshop (5) or Live Photo Merge (7) to activate photo merge rendering. |
| Order Processing | Rendered photo merge outputs are stored as PhotoMergeRender records linked by a PSD GUID. The PSD Transfer URL setting enables automatic transmission of finalized renders to external production systems. |