.paste()

The .paste() method in Pillow allows pasting one image onto another at a specified position. It is commonly used for image composition, watermarking, or creating collages. An optional mask can be provided to handle transparency.

Syntax

Image.paste(im, box=None, mask=None)

Parameters:

• im (Image | integer | float | string | tuple): The source image to paste or a solid color. If a color is provided (tuple for RGB/RGBA, integer for grayscale, or color string like "red"), the box parameter must be specified.
• box (tuple, optional): Specifies where to paste the image. If a 2-tuple (x, y) is given, it defines the top-left corner. If a 4-tuple (left, upper, right, lower) is given, it defines a bounding box, and the pasted image is resized to fit it.
• mask (Image, optional): A mask image controlling transparency. Must be in mode "1", "L", "LA", "RGBA", or "RGBa". Only areas where the mask is nonzero are pasted.

Return Value:

This method modifies the original image in-place and does not return a new image.

Example

This is the background image that will be used for the collage:

This is the foreground image that will be pasted onto the background:

This example demonstrates how to paste one image onto another to create a collage:

from PIL import Image

# Open the background and foreground images
background = Image.open('background.jpeg')
foreground = Image.open('foreground.jpeg')

# Resize the foreground image to fit better on the background
foreground = foreground.resize((200, 200))

# Define the position where the foreground will be pasted (top-left corner)
position = (100, 100)

# Paste the foreground image onto the background
background.paste(foreground, position)

# Save the result
background.save('collage_result.jpeg')

# Display the image
background.show()

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In this example, foreground.jpeg is pasted onto background.jpeg at the position (100, 100).

The code above produces the image below: