LightBurn Photo Engraving Guide: Jarvis vs Stucki vs Atkinson

Engraving photorealistic portraits on wood, slate, or acrylic with a laser requires translating subtle shades of gray into a binary signal: laser ON or laser OFF.

In LightBurn, this conversion is handled by Dithering algorithms. Choosing the right dithering mode and line interval determines whether a photo turns into a crisp, detailed portrait or a muddy, overburned silhouette.

Photo of a dog laser engraved onto a wooden circle cutout.

What is Dithering in Laser Engraving?

Laser beams cannot produce half-power shades of gray in real-time across high-speed vector rastering without blurring details.

Dithering solves this by converting continuous gradients into dense dot patterns. Areas with tightly packed dots look dark/deep, while spread-out dots appear light.

Jarvis vs. Stucki vs. Atkinson: Side-by-Side Comparison

Dithering Mode	Dot Distribution Style	Contrast Level	Best Material Use Cases	Strengths & Weaknesses
Jarvis	12-neighbor error diffusion; high-density blending	Medium / Balanced	Wood (Basswood, Birch), Canvas, Painted Canvas	Best all-around photo detail. Smooth transitions on skin tones; can over-saturate dark backgrounds if DPI is too high.
Stucki	Clean 12-neighbor diffusion; slightly crisper edge bias than Jarvis	High / Sharp	Painted Tile, Anodized Aluminum, Black Acrylic	Renders fine lines and text sharply. Slightly faster processing with cleaner edge separation on high-contrast substrates.
Atkinson	6-neighbor diffusion; drops 25% of error bleed to retain bright whites	Highest / Punchy contrast	Slate Coasters, Hardwoods with heavy grain (Oak/Walnut)	Preserves highlights and prevents muddy shadows. Less smooth on subtle skin gradients, but prevents blowout on coarse materials.
Floyd-Steinberg	Classic 4-neighbor diffusion	Standard	General graphics and mixed vector/raster art	Can create visible worm-like artifacts in large solid background areas.
Grayscale	True varying power (3D depth)	Continuous	3D Relief Carving (CO2 only)	Not suited for 2D photo portraits; requires heightmap artwork.

Ideal DPI & Line Interval Settings for Photos

The most common beginner mistake is setting the DPI too high. If the laser’s physical spot size (typically 0.08mm to 0.15mm) is wider than the line interval, the dots will overlap, scorching the material and crushing shadow details.

                 DOT SPACING VS SPOT SIZE
  
  [ HIGH DPI / OVERLAP ]          [ CORRECT INTERVAL]
   (Dots crush shadows)          (Crisp dot separation)
      ●●●●●●●●●●                      ●  ●  ●  ●  ●
      ●●●●●●●●●●                      ●  ●  ●  ●  ●
     (Muddy Burn)                  (Photorealistic)

Recommended Target Settings by Laser Type

Laser Type & Wattage	Recommended DPI	Line Interval (mm)	Recommended Mode	Pass Count
10W – 20W Diode (e.g., Atomstack, xTool)	254 – 300 DPI	0.100 – 0.085 mm	Jarvis or Stucki	1 Pass
50W – 60W CO2 (e.g., OMTech Polar)	300 – 350 DPI	0.085 – 0.072 mm	Jarvis (Wood) / Atkinson (Slate)	1 Pass
80W – 100W CO2 Cabinet	254 – 318 DPI	0.100 – 0.080 mm	Atkinson (Prevents overburn)	1 Pass

Step-by-Step: Preparing and Engraving a Photo in LightBurn

1. Preview Dot Density and Fire – Always run a frame check before firing

Click Preview (Alt + P) in LightBurn and zoom in to confirm that dots look separated and evenly dispersed across facial contours before hitting Start.

2. Import and Crop the Image – Use high-resolution source images (300+ DPI)

Import your image into LightBurn (Ctrl + I / Cmd + I). Right-click the photo and use Crop to cut out busy background clutter, keeping the focus on facial features or key subjects.

3. Invert Image if Necessary – Crucial for dark substrates like slate or black acrylic

When engraving Slate Coasters or White-on-Black materials, the laser creates a light mark where it burns. Double-click the image layer in the Cuts / Layers window and toggle Negative Image to ON so light areas engrave white.

4. Adjust Contrast, Gamma, and Brightness – Fine-tune midtones in the Shape Properties window

Select the image and open the Shape Properties panel. Boost Contrast (+10 to +25) and slightly raise Gamma to pull out hidden facial details from midtones.

5. Assign the Dithering Algorithm and Speed – Double-click the image layer

Set the Image Mode to Jarvis (for wood) or Atkinson (for slate). Set your verified baseline speed and power from the [LightBurn Material Settings Cheat Sheet].

Pro Troubleshooting: Fixing Common Photo Errors

The Face is Completely Burnt / Black: Your power is too high, or your DPI is above 350, causing laser burn dots to bleed into one another. Drop power by 15% or drop DPI to 254.
The Image Looks Washed Out: The material needs pre-treatment (such as a thin coat of clear matte spray or mineral oil on slate), or the line interval is too wide (>0.12mm).
Odd Diagonal Lines Across the Engrave: Ensure Bi-directional Scanning is properly calibrated with reverse interval compensation in Device Settings.

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