Catalog Images vs Editorial Images: Which Tool Should You Use?

Both tools put your product on a model. The difference is what they optimize for.


  • Catalog Images is for volume and consistency — your PDP and marketplace listings, many outfits in one job, the same model and background across everything.
  • Editorial Images is for one image at a time, made to look like a campaign — ads, banners, social, lookbooks, seasonal stories.


A simple rule of thumb: if you need 200 clean shots that all look the same, use Catalog. If you need 4 shots that all look interesting, use Editorial.




Catalog Images

Editorial Images

Built for

E-commerce listings, PDP, marketplaces

Campaigns, ads, social, banners, lookbooks

Works in

Bulk jobs — 1 to 30 outfits per job

One scene at a time, iterated

Input

Flat lay product shots, front and back views

Products, plus templates, moodboards or a prompt

Creative control

Pick a model, poses and background from templates

Full creative direction: prompt, moodboard, 20,000+ templates, brand styling

Products per image

Up to 3 of your own (top, bottom, footwear) + 1 general accessory

Up to 3 products, positioned with $ references in your prompt

Resolution

2K by default, no separate upscale step

1K / 2K / 4K, chosen per generation

Engines

Fixed pipeline

Fast, Pro and Max

Cost

10 credits per generated image

1–5 credits per image depending on engine and resolution; 1K unlimited on paid plans

Fixing results

3 free regenerations, free Edit with prompt, Photoshop edit 30 credits

Layers, Edit this Image, upscale, brand canvas, resize and expand

Video

—

Any generation can be taken into the Video Agent

Plan allowance

Up to 2 (Free) / 12 (Mini) / 35 (Starter) / 100 (Pro) catalog images

Up to 20 (Free) / 120 (Mini), unlimited on Starter and above



When to Choose Catalog Tool


  • You have a season's worth of flat lays to shoot and every image needs the same model, pose set and background.
  • You need front and back views driven by a defined pose list.
  • You want to set the job up once and rerun it later — hover any job and Duplicate as draft carries over the model, poses, background, outfits and settings.
  • You have your images organised in folders: upload a parent folder with one subfolder per outfit and Caimera sorts, categorises and prepares every look automatically.
  • Consistency matters more than surprise.


Catalog Tool



When to Choose Editorial Images


  • You're making one hero image — a banner, an ad, a Pinterest pin, a social post.
  • You want to direct the scene: a moodboard of up to 8 references with notes on what to take from each, or one of 20,000+ templates.
  • You want to chat your way to it — the creative agent will ideate, then generate, and can build a 4-image editorial story.
  • You need brand styling — your colours, fonts, logos and photography style applied to the output.
  • You'll iterate: layers, prompt edits, upscales, resizes and expansions on the same image.


Editorial Images Tool



They work together


The two tools aren't either/or. A common workflow:

  1. Catalog Tool for the full listing set — every outfit, every pose, consistent.
  2. Editorial Images Tool for the handful of campaign shots that sell the drop.
  3. Both land in your Library, so a catalog result can become an editorial reference, and an editorial image can be taken into the Video Agent.


💡 Pro Tip: You can manage all your Editorial and Catalog generations in one place using the Library — save, delete, and organize multiple generations in bulk. Learn how to manage your generations in the Library here


Your Library also includes a dedicated Products tab, where you can view and manage all the products you’ve added to the Editorial Tool. If you need to add a new product or edit an existing one, simply head to the Products tab. Learn how to use the Products tab step by step here


Library Tool


What about flat lays and ghost mannequins?


Neither of these tools makes a model-free product shot. For that, use Ghost Mannequin / Flat Lay — see How to Create Flat Lay Images in Caimera.




🎨 How to use Editorial Templates on Caimera: Learn how to use Editorial Templates to quickly create consistent, ready-to-use visuals in Caimera.


🧩 How to Add Products in the Editorial Tool: A Step-by-Step Guide: Learn how to add products to the Editorial Tool using the different available methods, step by step.


🛍️ How to Use the Catalog Images Tool (Flat Lay to Catalog): Turn flat-lay product images into consistent, model-based catalog shots.


🪙 Credits Usage: Learn how credits are used across image generation and editing based on the model, tool, and resolution you select.



Have a question or running into an issue? Reach us via the chat bubble or at contact@caimera.ai.

Updated on: 15/09/2026

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