How do I turn a photo of a pencil sketch into an SVG?

Updated on 6 October 2026

Drop the photo or scan of your drawing into the Homotope workshop and pick Line art for filled shapes you can download as a free SVG, or Single stroke for one line per pass, whose download counts as a production export.

Felt-pen lamp sketch scanned as a JPEG: wobbly lines on grainy grey paper. — 700 × 700 px JPEG scan and the engine SVG, “Single stroke” preset, “Corner angle” set to 80°, untouched: the paper is gone and each line becomes a single pass at the measured width. Downloading a single-stroke trace counts as a production export.

The same sketch as a centreline trace: a single stroke per pass. — 700 × 700 px JPEG scan and the engine SVG, “Single stroke” preset, “Corner angle” set to 80°, untouched: the paper is gone and each line becomes a single pass at the measured width. Downloading a single-stroke trace counts as a production export.

×6 detail: the lamp joint: paper grain and wobbly line, then a single stroke. Drag the slider to compare; hover over the image or hold your finger on it to move the magnifier.

Try it with your image Open this example in the workshop

Filled shapes or a single stroke: two different results

Line art: each line becomes a filled shape that follows both its edges, with its changes in width. Two colours, paper noise removed. The right choice to print, edit in a drawing program or cut in vinyl. The SVG is free, with no account.
Single stroke: the workshop traces the axis of each line, one path per pass, at the measured width. This is what a pen plotter or laser line engraving expects (see a single-line file for embroidery or a plotter). Every Single stroke download, SVG included, is a production export.

Production exports (DXF, EPS, PDF, separations): 2 free per month with an account, unlimited with Pro; without Pro, 1 credit each beyond those 2. The details: how much vectorizing costs.

From photo to SVG, step by step

Photograph the drawing flat, in even light (near a window, with no shadow from your hand or phone), cropped tight. A scan is even better.
Open the workshop and drop the photo (JPG, PNG or WebP).
Pick Line art or Single stroke, then compare the original and the result with the slider.
A very light pencil line disappears? Switch to the Black and white preset and move the “Threshold” slider until the faint lines come back.
Download the SVG.

Nothing leaves your computer: see vectorize without uploading.

When it does not work well

Pencil shading and hatching turn into solid patches: the workshop keeps two colours, not the shades of grey. Eraser marks, notebook lines or a sketchbook grid are traced like everything else: start from a blank sheet. In Single stroke, very thick lines give wobbly axes; the workshop says so and suggests “Line art”. For a colour scan, see converting a JPG to SVG instead.

Frequently asked questions

Scan or phone photo?

A scan gives even light and flat paper, so less noise. A well-lit photo taken straight from above works too.

Is my drawing uploaded to a server?

No. Processing runs in your browser; the image only leaves it if you save it to your account.

Can I keep the grey shades of the pencil?

Not with these presets, which trace two colours. Illustration keeps more, as flat areas: never a continuous gradient.

Is the Line art SVG really free?

Yes, with no account and no limit, except transparent background and recolouring (Pro). Only production exports (DXF, EPS, PDF, separations, Single stroke) are counted.

Guides and conversions

Try it with your image