🖼️ GIMP Instagram Carousel Plugins

A collection of custom GIMP 3.0 plugins for streamlined Instagram carousel creation — including layout, slicing, and high-quality export with TIFF support.

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📦 Plugin Contents

• instagram_add_19_guides.zip
  Adds 19 vertical guides to a 21600×1350 canvas for 20-image Instagram carousels.

• slice_by_guides.zip
  Uses GIMP's built-in guillotine slicing to split the image along guides.

• Scale_and_Center_Layers.zip
  Automatically scales each layer to fit vertically within the canvas (1350px tall).
  Does not reposition or spread layers horizontally — placement must still be done manually.

• batcher.zip
  A slightly tweaked version of the open-source Batcher plugin for export.

  • ❗ Menu location changed: The "Useful Tool" button now appears under the Guides menu (instead of its original location) to match the rest of this plugin suite.

• instagram_tiff_export.batcher.json
  A preconfigured export profile for use with Batcher. Exports sliced images as .TIFF to preserve HDR quality.

• 21600×1350 canvas.xcf
  A base canvas template matching Instagram’s vertical 4:5 aspect ratio.

• INSTALL_README.txt
  Installation instructions for users.

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🧩 Requirements

• GIMP 3.0+
• Python 3.12 or later
• Recommended: Batcher Plugin for export automation

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📤 Exporting with Batcher

This plugin set uses a customized version of the Batcher plugin by kamilburda to automate exporting Instagram carousel slices as TIFF files.

⚙️ Tweak Note: The Batcher plugin included in this repo has been modified to move the Useful Tool menu under Guides, keeping all Instagram-related tools in one place.

To use:

1. Install Batcher (included in this repo).
2. Launch it via Guides → Useful Tool.
3. Import the provided .json export profile.
4. Use Quick Export to save all slices as high-quality .TIFF.

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⚠️ Export Bug Warning – 32-bit Float Issues

🐛 Known Issue: Exporting images in 32-bit floating point precision mode causes black or white image outputs when using Batcher, especially if "Save Layers" is enabled.

✅ Solution:
Before slicing and exporting:

• Convert your image to 16-bit Integer (Gamma-corrected) via:

  Image > Precision > 16-bit Integer (non-linear)
  

• Then slice and export normally.

🔎 Why this matters:
This fixes the export glitch, but means you are no longer working in true HDR (32-bit float). The result is visually identical for Instagram, but technically not full HDR.

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🛠️ Installation

1. Extract each .zip folder into your GIMP plug-ins directory:

   • Windows: %appdata%\\GIMP\\3.0\\plug-ins\\
   • Mac: ~/Library/Application Support/GIMP/3.0/plug-ins/
   • Linux: ~/.config/GIMP/3.0/plug-ins/

2. Ensure each plugin folder contains its .py file directly inside.

3. Restart GIMP.

4. Find the tools under the Guides menu.

Troubleshooting

On unix systems, you might need to add executable permission to each .py file by the chmod +x command:

chmod +x batcher/batcher.py 
chmod +x instagram_add_19_guides/instagram_add_19_guides.py
chmod +x Scale_and_Center_Layers/Scale_and_Center_Layers.py
chmod +x slice_by_guides/slice_by_guides.py