# Extract Frame

> Pull a single still frame out of a video as a PNG image.

## Overview

The Extract Frame node converts a frame of video into a still image you can route into image-based nodes (modify, edit, upscale, generate-image as reference, etc.). Six pick modes:

- **First** — the first frame of the video
- **Last** — the final rendered frame
- **Timestamp** — a specific second-precision offset (e.g., 2.5s into the clip)
- **Nearest keyframe** — snap to the nearest keyframe at or after a given timestamp (faster, no inter-frame decode; defaults to `0` = first keyframe)
- **Frame # from start** — extract by frame index (`0` = first frame); worker probes source fps to seek precisely
- **Frame # from end** — extract by frame index from the end (`0` = last, `1` = second-to-last, etc.); worker probes duration + fps

## Configuration

| Field | Type | Default | Description |
|-------|------|---------|-------------|
| Mode | Select | first | One of the six modes above |
| Timestamp (s) | Number | 0 | Seconds into the video (used by `timestamp` and `keyframe`) |
| Frame # from start | Number | 0 | Frame index from the start (used by `frame-index`) |
| Frames back from end | Number | 0 | Frame index from the end, 0 = last (used by `frame-from-end`) |

## Inputs & Outputs

**Inputs:** Video (required, connected upstream or via Upload Video)
**Outputs:** Image (PNG)

## Credit Cost

**1 credit** per extraction, regardless of mode or video length.

## Best Practices

- Use **last** mode to grab the closing frame of a generated video for use as the start frame of a follow-up i2v generation — that's the trick behind continuous multi-clip storytelling.
- Use **first** mode to verify what an upstream video starts with when chaining nodes.
- Use **frame # from end** when you want "the second-to-last frame" or "10 frames back from the end" without caring about the source's exact length.
- Use **frame # from start** when you need an exact frame index (e.g., frame 24 for the second of a 24fps clip).
- Use **nearest keyframe** when extraction speed matters or when the source is high-bitrate — keyframe extraction skips inter-frame decoding (`-skip_frame nokey`).
- Timestamp mode honors decimals (e.g., `2.5` for 2.5 seconds in). Out-of-range timestamps clamp to the nearest valid frame.
- The output image inherits the video's resolution — to resize it before downstream use, route through Resize Video upstream or use a generative node's resolution control.

## Common Use Cases

- Capture the final frame of a VEO/Kling clip to seed the next i2v step (perfect-loop or storyboard-chain workflows).
- Pull a representative still for a thumbnail before posting to social.
- Extract a specific moment from a long video for editing or reference.
- Grab the start frame of an upstream clip to use as a reference image for a Generate Image node.
- Extract "the frame just before the end" (e.g., 5 frames back) when the last frame has dissolve artifacts — `frame-from-end` with `framesFromEnd=5`.

## Tips

- Frame extraction does NOT incur Topaz / VEO / KIE provider charges — it's a local FFmpeg operation costing one Nodaro credit for orchestration.
- The frame is exported as PNG (lossless), not JPEG — safe to route into upscale or edit-image without compression artifacts.
- `frame-index` and `frame-from-end` hard-fail if the source's fps or frame-count probe yields an invalid value (rather than silently mis-converting).
- Combine with **Combine Videos** to take a still from clip A, run it through Generate Image to remix, and stitch the result back into a new clip.