Quick Shoot

Quick Shoot takes a product, a look, and a count, and returns that many finished images. It is the API behind the Quick Shoot controls in the LocalAds workspace. Everything runs asynchronously. Each requested image consumes one credit.

What you supply

Input	Where it goes	Notes
A product page URL	`source_url` on `POST /products`	LocalAds reads the page for the product’s name, description, and images
One or more image URLs	`image_urls` on `POST /products`	Public HTTPS URLs, or URLs returned by `POST /uploads/images`. Up to 6
The look	`quick_shoot.look`	`standard`, `close_up`, `lifestyle`, `out_of_the_box`, or `retro`
How many images you want	`quick_shoot.count`	`1`, `3`, `5`, `8`, or `15`

source_url and image_urls are alternatives. Send one or the other, not both. You need an API key with products:create and photoshoots:generate, and enough credits for every requested image.

1. Create the product

From a product page URL:

curl --request POST \
  --url https://makelocalads.com/api/v1/products \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LOCALADS_API_KEY" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "brand_id": "1423f915-beca-4c53-a5e4-7c8c99537be9",
    "source_url": "https://shop.example.com/products/hydrating-face-serum"
  }'

Or from images you already have:

curl --request POST \
  --url https://makelocalads.com/api/v1/products \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LOCALADS_API_KEY" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "brand_id": "1423f915-beca-4c53-a5e4-7c8c99537be9",
    "name": "Hydrating Face Serum",
    "image_urls": ["https://cdn.example.com/serum-front.jpg"]
  }'

Both return 202 Accepted with status: "processing". LocalAds is fetching the page or the images. Retrieve the product until its status is ready:

curl https://makelocalads.com/api/v1/products/a1516a75-9be5-461a-93af-c1896a0a3127 \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LOCALADS_API_KEY"

A Quick Shoot needs the product to have at least one image, so wait for ready before the next step. A product only needs creating once. Reuse its id for every later shoot. If your image is only on disk, upload it first with POST /uploads/images and use the returned url.

2. Start the Quick Shoot

curl --request POST \
  --url https://makelocalads.com/api/v1/photoshoots \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LOCALADS_API_KEY" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --header "Idempotency-Key: quick-shoot-1042" \
  --data '{
    "product_id": "a1516a75-9be5-461a-93af-c1896a0a3127",
    "quick_shoot": {
      "look": "retro",
      "count": 5
    }
  }'

const response = await fetch("https://makelocalads.com/api/v1/photoshoots", {
  method: "POST",
  headers: {
    Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.LOCALADS_API_KEY}`,
    "Content-Type": "application/json",
    "Idempotency-Key": "quick-shoot-1042",
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    product_id: "a1516a75-9be5-461a-93af-c1896a0a3127",
    quick_shoot: { look: "retro", count: 5 },
  }),
});

const photoshoot = await response.json();

The response is 202 Accepted with one outputs entry per requested image, all queued, and a Location header pointing at the photoshoot. Reusing an Idempotency-Key after a network failure returns the original photoshoot instead of starting and charging for a second one.

Looks

`look`	Workspace label	Output size
`standard`	Standard	Square, 1024x1024
`close_up`	Close-up	Square, 1024x1024
`lifestyle`	Lifestyle	Square, 1024x1024
`out_of_the_box`	Out of the box	Square, 1024x1024
`retro`	Retro	Card, 1200x1800 at 300 DPI

look defaults to standard and count defaults to 1.

Optional direction

Add direction to steer the shoot with text, reference images, or both:

{
  "product_id": "a1516a75-9be5-461a-93af-c1896a0a3127",
  "quick_shoot": {
    "direction": {
      "text": "Place the product on a stone pedestal in warm sunlight.",
      "image_urls": ["https://cdn.example.com/reference.jpg"]
    },
    "look": "lifestyle",
    "count": 3
  }
}

When direction is present it must carry text or at least one image URL. Up to eight HTTPS images. Third-party URLs must load without cookies or authorization headers.

The retro look

retro is a generative look. The other looks apply a fixed treatment to the product. retro reads the product first, then invents a different printed scene for every image in the shoot, in the register of mid-century Indian print culture: souvenir and advertising cards, halftone screens, faded ink, paper grain. Three things behave differently:

Output is a print-ready 4 x 6 card. Every image is 1200x1800 at 300 DPI: the artwork mounted on aged paper, the card’s line set in italics beneath it, and the localads mark in the corner. It prints as it arrives, no layout step on your side.
direction.image_urls are ignored. Each scene is composed from the product itself. direction.text is still read and used as guidance.
The first image takes about a minute longer. The look derives a brief from the product and renders one shared reference packshot before any output starts. Every image in the shoot uses that same packshot, which is what keeps the set reading as one product. Later images arrive at the usual pace.

Ask for more than one image when you use it. Each card is a distinct printed format, so a shoot of 5 or 8 shows the range. A shoot of 1 returns one card and none of the variety the look exists for.

3. Poll for the images

curl https://makelocalads.com/api/v1/photoshoots/e8766ffd-66f7-47c9-86bc-0d93e6868d06 \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LOCALADS_API_KEY"

Finished images appear on their outputs while the rest continue:

{
  "id": "e8766ffd-66f7-47c9-86bc-0d93e6868d06",
  "brand_id": "1423f915-beca-4c53-a5e4-7c8c99537be9",
  "product_id": "a1516a75-9be5-461a-93af-c1896a0a3127",
  "template_id": null,
  "status": "in_progress",
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "19025a65-5395-41c9-af90-d7cca7fb6421",
      "position": 1,
      "status": "completed",
      "image_url": "https://cdn.example.com/generated-card-1.png",
      "width": 1200,
      "height": 1800,
      "caption": "The mill ran two shifts and the tea went out by the crate. Somebody's mother packed the first one. You can still taste that care in the cup."
    },
    {
      "id": "4f52bad2-2da3-4b36-93ac-03788f35daca",
      "position": 2,
      "status": "in_progress",
      "image_url": null,
      "width": null,
      "height": null,
      "caption": null
    }
  ],
  "created_at": "2026-07-24T15:00:00.000Z",
  "updated_at": "2026-07-24T15:00:04.000Z"
}

Stop polling when status is completed, failed, or canceled. Use backoff between requests rather than polling continuously. Individual outputs can fail while the rest of the shoot succeeds, so check each output’s own status. caption is the line printed in italics under the artwork. It is part of the card, so take it with the image. The retro look writes a different one for every output, tied to what that specific card shows. Every other look returns null. Every completed image for a product stays retrievable without tracking individual photoshoot IDs:

curl "https://makelocalads.com/api/v1/products/a1516a75-9be5-461a-93af-c1896a0a3127/creatives?type=photoshoot" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LOCALADS_API_KEY"

Errors worth handling

Status	Code	What happened
400	`invalid_request`	An unknown field, or a `count` outside the allowed values
404	`product_not_found`	The product does not exist or belongs to another organization
422	`missing_product_images`	The product has no images yet. Wait for `status: "ready"`
422	`insufficient_credits`	Fewer credits than requested images
409	`idempotency_conflict`	The `Idempotency-Key` was reused with a different body

Full error format is in Errors.

Last modified on August 12, 2026

Start here

Build with LocalAds

Help

What you supply

1. Create the product

2. Start the Quick Shoot

Looks

Optional direction

The retro look

3. Poll for the images

Errors worth handling

​What you supply

​1. Create the product

​2. Start the Quick Shoot

​Looks

​Optional direction

​The retro look

​3. Poll for the images

​Errors worth handling

What you supply

1. Create the product

2. Start the Quick Shoot

Looks

Optional direction

The retro look

3. Poll for the images

Errors worth handling