get-thumbnail
Preview a photo as an inline image to inspect details, pick the best shot, or read text, without exporting the file.
Instructions
Use when: you (or the user) want to SEE a photo — visual triage ('show me…'), picking the best shot, eyeballing duplicate groups, or reading text in an image — without exporting anything to disk. Prefer this over export whenever the goal is to LOOK at a photo rather than to obtain the file. Returns: the photo as an inline MCP image content block (base64 JPEG/PNG a vision-capable client renders directly), plus a text summary and structured metadata (source path, width/height, MIME type, byte size, isDerivative). It serves the smallest Photos-generated preview derivative whose long edge is at least minSize pixels (default 360) — raise minSize (e.g. 1024) when you need detail like small text; isDerivative=false means no suitable derivative existed and the original was downscaled/converted via sips. Do not use when: you need the full-resolution file on disk — use export; or you only need metadata — use get-photo. Movies get a thumbnail only when Photos generated a poster-frame derivative; an iCloud-only photo with no local derivative or original cannot be thumbnailed (export it first, which downloads on demand).
Input Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| uuid | Yes | Photo UUID (hex-with-dashes, as returned by query) | |
| library | No | Path to a .photoslibrary (default: system Photos library) | |
| minSize | No | Smallest acceptable long-edge size in pixels (default 360). The smallest qualifying derivative is served, so higher values return larger images |
Output Schema
| Name | Required | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|---|
| path | No | ||
| uuid | No | ||
| width | No | ||
| height | No | ||
| byteSize | No | ||
| mimeType | No | ||
| isDerivative | No |