Image This MCP 🎨

A production-ready Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides AI-powered image generation capabilities through multiple providers including Google's Gemini models and Volcengine's Jimeng AI with intelligent provider selection.

⭐ NEW: Multi-Provider Support! 🚀

Now supporting multiple image generation providers:

🏆 Gemini (Nano Banana)

• Flash Model: Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview by default for fast generation (1024px)
• Pro Model: 4K quality up to 3840px with Google Search grounding
• Smart Selection: Automatically chooses optimal model based on prompt
• Advanced Features: Text rendering, reference images, aspect ratio control

🎨 Jimeng AI (Volcengine)

• Chinese-Optimized: Tailored for Chinese language and cultural contexts
• High Quality: Default 3:4 portrait ratio (1536x2048)
• Reference Images: Support for image-based generation
• Serial Queue: Automatic rate limiting protection

✨ Features

• 🎨 Multi-Provider Support: Choose between Gemini and Jimeng AI, or auto-select
• ⚡ Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview: Default fast model (1024px) for rapid prototyping
• 🏆 Gemini 3 Pro Image: High-quality up to 4K with Google Search grounding
• 🤖 Smart Model Selection: Automatically chooses optimal model based on your prompt
• 🌏 Jimeng AI Integration: Chinese-optimized image generation with Volcengine
• 📐 Aspect Ratio Control: Specify output dimensions (1:1, 16:9, 9:16, 21:9, and more)
• 📋 Smart Templates: Pre-built prompt templates for photography, design, and editing
• 📁 File Management: Upload and manage files via Gemini Files API
• 🔍 Resource Discovery: Browse templates and file metadata through MCP resources
• 🛡️ Production Ready: Comprehensive error handling, logging, and validation
• ⚡ High Performance: Optimized architecture with intelligent caching

🚀 Quick Start

Prerequisites

1. Google Gemini API Key - Get one free here
2. Python 3.11+ (for development only)

Installation

Option 1: From GitHub (Recommended)

Install directly from GitHub using uv (recommended):

# Install uv (if not installed)
curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

# Install MCP server from GitHub
uv tool install git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git

# Verify installation
command -v image-this-mcp

# Manage tools
uv tool list
uv tool uninstall image-this-mcp

Run without installing (uvx):

uvx --from git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git image-this-mcp

Option 2: Local Editable Install (Development)

git clone https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git
cd Image-This-MCP
uv pip install -e .

Option 3: Using pip

pip install git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git

🔧 Configuration

Authentication Methods

Nano Banana supports two authentication methods via NANOBANANA_AUTH_METHOD:

1. API Key (api_key): Uses GEMINI_API_KEY. Best for local development and simple deployments.
2. Vertex AI ADC (vertex_ai): Uses Google Cloud Application Default Credentials. Best for production on Google Cloud (Cloud Run, GKE, GCE).
3. Automatic (auto): Defaults to API Key if present, otherwise tries Vertex AI.

Note: NANOBANANA_* environment variables are historical compatibility names. The current package and CLI entrypoint are image-this-mcp.

1. API Key Authentication (Default)

Set GEMINI_API_KEY environment variable.

OpenClaw Plugin (Jimeng 4.5, no MCP server)

If you want to use OpenClaw directly (bypassing the MCP server), install the plugin in this repo and configure OpenClaw:

openclaw plugins install -l ./openclaw-plugin
openclaw gateway restart

Add to ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json:

{
  "plugins": {
    "enabled": true,
    "entries": {
      "img-generator": {
        "enabled": true,
        "config": {
          "apiKey": "<YOUR_ARK_API_KEY>",
          "baseUrl": "https://ark.cn-beijing.volces.com/api/v3/images/generations",
          "model": "doubao-seedream-4.5",
          "size": "1728x2304",
          "watermark": false,
          "timeoutMs": 120000,
          "superbedToken": "<YOUR_SUPERBED_TOKEN>"
        }
      }
    }
  },
  "tools": {
    "allow": ["img-generator"]
  }
}

Notes:

• If superbedToken is set, the tool uploads the image to Superbed and returns a MEDIA: <url> line plus a Markdown image link. This makes the image show up in OpenClaw channels that support media.
• If superbedToken is not set, the tool only returns base64 image data in tool output, which may not render as an image in chat.
• Reference images (referenceImages) accept:
  • HTTP/HTTPS URLs
  • data:image/*;base64,... data URLs (will be sanitized)
  • Raw base64 strings (will be wrapped as data URLs)
  • Local file paths (e.g. ~/Pictures/ref.jpg or file:///...) which are read and encoded
• Size: Jimeng 4.5 rejects small sizes (e.g. 1024x1024). The plugin auto-falls back to 1728x2304 if total pixels are below 3,686,400, and adds sizeRequested/sizeAdjusted/sizeNote to metadata.

2. Third-Party Banana API Support

You can use third-party Banana API services that are compatible with Gemini API by setting a custom API base URL:

# Set your third-party API key
export GEMINI_API_KEY="your-third-party-api-key"

# Set the custom API base URL
export GEMINI_API_BASE_URL="https://your-banana-api-endpoint.com/v1"
# or
export BANANA_API_BASE_URL="https://your-banana-api-endpoint.com/v1"

Example Configuration (Claude Desktop):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "image-this": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["--from", "git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git", "image-this-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "GEMINI_API_KEY": "your-third-party-api-key",
        "GEMINI_API_BASE_URL": "https://your-banana-api-endpoint.com/v1"
      }
    }
  }
}

3. Vertex AI Authentication (Google Cloud)

Required environment variables:

• NANOBANANA_AUTH_METHOD=vertex_ai (or auto)
• GCP_PROJECT_ID=your-project-id
• GCP_REGION=us-central1 (default)

Prerequisites:

• Enable Vertex AI API: gcloud services enable aiplatform.googleapis.com
• Grant IAM Role: roles/aiplatform.user to the service account.

Provider Selection

Choose your default image generation provider via IMAGE_PROVIDER environment variable:

# Use Gemini (default)
export IMAGE_PROVIDER=gemini

# Use Jimeng AI
export IMAGE_PROVIDER=jimeng

# Use OpenAI-compatible images API
export IMAGE_PROVIDER=openai

You can also specify the provider per-request using the provider parameter in the generate_image tool:

• "gemini" - Use Gemini (Nano Banana)
• "jimeng" - Use the Jimeng model family (legacy Jimeng + Seedream/Jimeng 4.5 style models)
• "auto" - Use default provider from environment

To choose a specific model inside a provider family, use the optional model parameter with a model id returned by list_models. For example, provider="jimeng" with model="doubao-seedream-4-5-251128" will route to the correct Jimeng-family backend automatically.

Jimeng AI Configuration

To use Jimeng AI provider, you need Volcengine credentials:

1. Get your credentials at Volcengine Console
2. Set the following environment variables:

export JIMENG_ACCESS_KEY=your_access_key_here
export JIMENG_SECRET_KEY=your_secret_key_here

Example Configuration (Claude Desktop with Jimeng):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "image-this": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["--from", "git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git", "image-this-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "IMAGE_PROVIDER": "jimeng",
        "JIMENG_ACCESS_KEY": "your-access-key",
        "JIMENG_SECRET_KEY": "your-secret-key"
      }
    }
  }
}

Jimeng AI Features:

• Default resolution: 1536x2048 (3:4 portrait)
• Supports reference images for image-to-image generation
• Serial request queue to avoid rate limiting
• Automatic retry with exponential backoff

OpenAI-Compatible Image Configuration

To use OpenAI-compatible image providers such as OpenAI official API or ToAPIs:

export IMAGE_PROVIDER=openai
export OPENAI_API_KEY="your-openai-compatible-key"
export OPENAI_BASE_URL="https://your-openai-compatible-endpoint/v1"
export OPENAI_MODEL="gpt-image-2"

Example:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "image-this": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["--from", "git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git", "image-this-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "IMAGE_PROVIDER": "openai",
        "OPENAI_API_KEY": "your-key",
        "OPENAI_BASE_URL": "https://your-endpoint.example.com/v1",
        "OPENAI_MODEL": "gpt-image-2"
      }
    }
  }
}

Remote HTTP Deployment

If you want many computers to share one MCP server, you can deploy this project once on a remote machine and connect clients to that HTTP MCP endpoint.

Recommended phase-1 shape:

• HTTP transport
• Shared Bearer token
• Synchronous image generation
• MinIO/S3-compatible artifact publishing for final images

Server environment example:

export FASTMCP_TRANSPORT=http
export FASTMCP_HOST=0.0.0.0
export FASTMCP_PORT=34128

export MCP_AUTH_TOKEN="replace-with-a-random-token"
export MCP_AUTH_HEADER=Authorization

export IMAGE_PROVIDER=openai
export OPENAI_API_KEY="your-openai-compatible-key"
export OPENAI_BASE_URL="https://your-endpoint.example.com/v1"
export OPENAI_MODEL="gpt-image-2"

# Optional: Gemini provider
export GEMINI_API_KEY="your-gemini-key"
export GEMINI_API_BASE_URL="https://your-gemini-compatible-endpoint/v1"

# Optional: Jimeng legacy provider
export JIMENG_ACCESS_KEY="your-volcengine-access-key"
export JIMENG_SECRET_KEY="your-volcengine-secret-key"

# Optional: Jimeng Seedream / Ark provider
export LAS_API_KEY="your-las-image-api-key"
# Optional fallbacks for older deployments:
export JIMENG45_API_KEY="your-las-image-api-key"
export ARK_API_KEY="your-legacy-ark-key"
export JIMENG45_API_ENDPOINT="https://operator.las.cn-guangzhou.volces.com/api/v1/images/generations"

export MINIO_ENDPOINT="127.0.0.1:9000"
export MINIO_ACCESS_KEY="your-minio-access-key"
export MINIO_SECRET_KEY="your-minio-secret-key"
export MINIO_BUCKET="image-this"
export MINIO_SECURE=false
export MINIO_PUBLIC_BASE_URL="http://your-server:9000"

Start the server:

uvx --from git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git image-this-mcp

Remote MCP client example:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "image-this-remote": {
      "url": "http://your-server:34128/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer replace-with-the-same-token"
      }
    }
  }
}

For a concrete Docker-based deployment example, see docs/REMOTE_DEPLOYMENT.md.

Async Remote Jobs

For remote deployments with multiple clients, you can use the async job tools instead of waiting on a single long request:

• submit_image_job
• get_image_job_status
• get_image_job_result
• list_image_jobs

Recommended flow:

1. Submit a job with submit_image_job
2. Poll with get_image_job_status
3. Fetch final URLs and metadata with get_image_job_result

This is especially useful when several machines share one remote MCP server.

Current Provider Scope

Image generation providers currently supported by this repo:

• Gemini
• Jimeng model family
• OpenAI-compatible image APIs

Moonshot and DeepLX are not image generation providers in this server today, so they are not configurable here yet.

Claude Desktop

Option 1: Using GitHub Directly (Recommended)

Add to your claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "image-this": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["--from", "git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git", "image-this-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "GEMINI_API_KEY": "your-gemini-api-key-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Option 2: Using GitHub Installation

If you installed from GitHub using uv tool install, use the installed command directly:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "image-this": {
      "command": "image-this-mcp",
      "env": {
        "GEMINI_API_KEY": "your-gemini-api-key-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Option 3: Using Local Source (Development)

If you are running from source code, point to your local installation:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "image-this-local": {
      "command": "uv",
      "args": [
        "run",
        "python",
        "-m",
        "image_this_mcp.server"
      ],
      "cwd": "/absolute/path/to/Image-This-MCP",
      "env": {
        "GEMINI_API_KEY": "your-gemini-api-key-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Option 4: Using Vertex AI (ADC)

To authenticate with Google Cloud Application Default Credentials (instead of an API Key):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "image-this-adc": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["--from", "git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git", "image-this-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "NANOBANANA_AUTH_METHOD": "vertex_ai",
        "GCP_PROJECT_ID": "your-project-id",
        "GCP_REGION": "us-central1"
      }
    }
  }
}

Configuration file locations:

• macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
• Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

Claude Code (VS Code Extension)

Install and configure in VS Code:

1. Install the Claude Code extension
2. Open Command Palette (Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + P)
3. Run "Claude Code: Add MCP Server"
4. Configure:

   {
     "name": "image-this",
     "command": "uvx",
     "args": ["--from", "git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git", "image-this-mcp"],
     "env": {
       "GEMINI_API_KEY": "your-gemini-api-key-here"
     }
   }
   

Cursor

Add to Cursor's MCP configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "image-this": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["--from", "git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git", "image-this-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "GEMINI_API_KEY": "your-gemini-api-key-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Continue.dev (VS Code/JetBrains)

Add to your config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": [
    {
      "name": "image-this",
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": ["--from", "git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git", "image-this-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "GEMINI_API_KEY": "your-gemini-api-key-here"
      }
    }
  ]
}

Open WebUI

Configure in Open WebUI settings:

{
  "mcp_servers": {
    "image-this": {
      "command": ["uvx", "--from", "git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git", "image-this-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "GEMINI_API_KEY": "your-gemini-api-key-here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Gemini CLI / Generic MCP Client

# Set environment variable
export GEMINI_API_KEY="your-gemini-api-key-here"

# Run server in stdio mode
uvx --from git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git image-this-mcp

# Or with pip installation
python -m image_this_mcp.server

🤖 Model Selection

Nano Banana supports two Gemini models with intelligent automatic selection:

🏆 Pro Model - Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image) ⭐ NEW!

Google's latest and most advanced image generation model

• Quality: Professional-grade, production-ready
• Resolution: Up to 4K (3840px) - highest available
• Speed: ~5-8 seconds per image
• Special Features:
  • 🌐 Google Search Grounding: Leverages real-world knowledge for accurate, contextual images
  • 🧠 Advanced Reasoning: Configurable thinking levels (LOW/HIGH) for complex compositions
  • 📐 Media Resolution Control: Fine-tune vision processing detail (LOW/MEDIUM/HIGH/AUTO)
  • 📝 Superior Text Rendering: Exceptional clarity for text-in-image generation
  • 🎨 Enhanced Context Understanding: Better interpretation of complex, narrative prompts
• Best for: Production assets, marketing materials, professional photography, high-fidelity outputs, images requiring text, factual accuracy
• Cost: Higher per image (premium quality)

⚡ Flash Model (Gemini 3.1 Flash Image Preview)

Fast, reliable model for rapid iteration

• Speed: Very fast (2-3 seconds)
• Resolution: Up to 1024px
• Quality: High quality for everyday use
• Best for: Rapid prototyping, iterations, high-volume generation, drafts, sketches
• Cost: Lower per image

🤖 Automatic Selection (Recommended)

By default, direct calls use the Flash tier. You can still choose auto to let the server analyze your prompt and requirements:

Pro Model Selected When:

• Quality keywords detected: "4K", "professional", "production", "high-res", "HD"
• High resolution requested: resolution="4k" or resolution="high"
• Google Search grounding enabled: enable_grounding=True
• High thinking level requested: thinking_level="HIGH"
• Multi-image conditioning with multiple input images

Flash Model Selected When:

• Speed keywords detected: "quick", "draft", "sketch", "rapid"
• High-volume batch generation: n > 2
• Standard or lower resolution requested
• No special Pro features required

Usage Examples

# Automatic selection (recommended)
"Generate a professional 4K product photo"  # → Pro model (quality keywords + 4K)
"Quick sketch of a cat"                     # → Flash model (speed keyword)
"Create a diagram with clear text labels"   # → Pro model (text rendering)
"Draft mockup for website hero section"     # → Flash model (draft keyword)

# Explicit model selection
generate_image(
    prompt="A scenic landscape",
    model_tier="flash"  # Force Flash model for speed
)

# Leverage Nano Banana Pro features
generate_image(
    prompt="Professional product photo of vintage camera on wooden desk",
    model_tier="pro",              # Use Pro model
    resolution="4k",               # 4K resolution (Pro-only)
    thinking_level="HIGH",         # Enhanced reasoning
    enable_grounding=True,         # Use Google Search for accuracy
    media_resolution="HIGH"        # High-detail vision processing
)

# Pro model for high-quality text rendering
generate_image(
    prompt="Infographic showing 2024 market statistics with clear labels",
    model_tier="pro",              # Pro excels at text rendering
    resolution="4k"                # Maximum clarity for text
)

# Control aspect ratio for different formats ⭐ NEW!
generate_image(
    prompt="Cinematic landscape at sunset",
    aspect_ratio="21:9"            # Ultra-wide cinematic format
)

generate_image(
    prompt="Instagram post about coffee",
    aspect_ratio="1:1"             # Square format for social media
)

generate_image(
    prompt="YouTube thumbnail design",
    aspect_ratio="16:9"            # Standard video format
)

generate_image(
    prompt="Mobile wallpaper of mountain vista",
    aspect_ratio="9:16"            # Portrait format for phones
)

📐 Aspect Ratio Control ⭐ NEW!

Control the output image dimensions with the aspect_ratio parameter:

Supported Aspect Ratios:

• 1:1 - Square (Instagram, profile pictures)
• 4:3 - Classic photo format
• 3:4 - Portrait orientation
• 16:9 - Widescreen (YouTube thumbnails, presentations)
• 9:16 - Mobile portrait (phone wallpapers, stories)
• 21:9 - Ultra-wide cinematic
• 2:3, 3:2, 4:5, 5:4 - Various photo formats

# Examples for different use cases
generate_image(
    prompt="Product showcase for e-commerce",
    aspect_ratio="3:4",    # Portrait format, good for product pages
    model_tier="pro"
)

generate_image(
    prompt="Social media banner for Facebook",
    aspect_ratio="16:9"    # Landscape banner format
)

Note: Aspect ratio works with both Flash and Pro models. For best results with specific aspect ratios at high resolution, use the Pro model with resolution="4k".

⚙️ Environment Variables

Configuration options:

# Authentication (Required)
# Method 1: API Key (Google Gemini API or Third-party Banana API)
GEMINI_API_KEY=your-gemini-api-key-here

# Third-party Banana API Configuration (Optional)
# If using a third-party Banana API service, set the custom base URL:
GEMINI_API_BASE_URL=https://your-banana-api-endpoint.com/v1
# or
BANANA_API_BASE_URL=https://your-banana-api-endpoint.com/v1

# Method 2: Vertex AI (Google Cloud)
NANOBANANA_AUTH_METHOD=vertex_ai
GCP_PROJECT_ID=your-project-id
GCP_REGION=us-central1

# Model Selection (optional)
NANOBANANA_MODEL=pro  # Options: flash, pro, auto (default: pro)

# Optional
IMAGE_OUTPUT_DIR=/path/to/image/directory  # Default: ~/image-this
LOG_LEVEL=INFO                             # DEBUG, INFO, WARNING, ERROR
LOG_FORMAT=standard                        # standard, json, detailed

🐛 Troubleshooting

Common Issues

"GEMINI_API_KEY not set"

• Add your API key to the MCP server configuration in your client
• Get a free API key at Google AI Studio

"Server failed to start"

• Ensure you're using the latest GitHub version: uvx --from git+https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git image-this-mcp
• Check that your client supports MCP (Claude Desktop 0.10.0+)

"Permission denied" errors

• The server creates images in ~/image-this by default
• Ensure write permissions to your home directory

Development Setup

For local development:

# Clone repository
git clone https://github.com/GalaxyXieyu/Image-This-MCP.git
cd Image-This-MCP

# Install with uv
uv sync

# Set environment
export GEMINI_API_KEY=your-api-key-here

# Run locally
uv run python -m image_this_mcp.server

📄 License

MIT License - see LICENSE for details.

🆘 Support

• Issues: GitHub Issues
• Discussions: GitHub Discussions