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01 / API Development

Production Screenshot API

A production-ready website screenshot service built with Flask, Selenium and Headless Chrome, designed for authenticated and configurable browser capture.

Role Backend / API Developer
Project Type Production API
Status Deployed
Python Flask Selenium Headless Chrome REST API Pillow

Project Overview

The project is a secure screenshot automation API capable of capturing websites from URLs with configurable viewport and device presets, PNG/JPG output formats, custom headers, cookies, user-agent strings, capture delay, full-page capture and dark mode — all behind API-key authentication.

Role Backend / API Developer
Platform REST API
Environment Headless Browser
Deployment Production
The Challenge

More than loading a URL.

Reliable browser screenshot automation involves much more than simply loading a URL. Browser lifecycle, responsive dimensions, HTTP customization, rendering time and output handling must all work consistently.

01

Browser Automation

Reliable Chrome and Selenium startup, execution and cleanup across every request, including failure paths.

02

Responsive Capture

Handling predefined viewport sizes that accurately represent different devices and screen widths.

03

Request Customization

Support for custom headers, cookies and user-agent configuration so authenticated or restricted pages can be captured.

04

Production Reliability

Error handling, guaranteed browser cleanup and predictable API responses under real production load.

Technical Solution

An end-to-end capture pipeline.

1 API Request
2 Validation
3 API Authentication
4 Browser Configuration
5 Headless Chrome
6 Screenshot Capture
7 Image Processing
8 PNG / JPG Response
Key Capabilities

Built for configurable browser capture.

01 API Key Authentication
02 Responsive Device Presets
03 Full-page Screenshots
04 PNG / JPG Output
05 Custom Headers
06 Cookies
07 User-Agent Control
08 Dark Mode
09 Configurable Delay
10 Request ID Tracking
11 Batch / Concurrency Workflows
12 Controlled Browser Lifecycle
Request Configuration

Predictable, structured API I/O.

Request POST /api/screenshot 
{
  "url": "https://example.com",
  "device": "laptop",
  "format": "png",
  "full_page": true,
  "dark_mode": false,
  "delay_ms": 1500
}
Response 200 OK 
{
  "success": true,
  "data": {
    "request_id": "...",
    "duration_ms": "...",
    "screenshot": {
      "width": "...",
      "height": "...",
      "format": "png"
    }
  }
}
Engineering Challenges

Problems and how they were solved.

01

Browser Lifecycle Management

Problem

Every request creates browser resources that must be cleaned up correctly even when capture fails.

Solution

Use controlled driver initialization and guaranteed browser cleanup after screenshot processing.

02

Full-page Screenshot Capture

Problem

Normal viewport screenshots do not capture content below the visible browser area.

Solution

Support full-page capture by adjusting browser dimensions based on page content before capture.

03

Custom Headers & Cookies

Problem

Some websites require specific HTTP headers, authenticated cookies or custom browser identity.

Solution

Apply request headers through Chrome DevTools Protocol and inject cookies/browser configuration before capture.

04

JPG / JPEG Processing

Problem

Browser screenshot output is naturally PNG while clients may require JPG/JPEG.

Solution

Use image processing to safely convert screenshot output into the requested image format.

05

Production Stability

Problem

Automated browser processes can leave resources behind when failures occur.

Solution

Use structured exception handling, predictable API responses and driver cleanup.

Technology Stack

Tools behind the API.

Python Core language
Flask Web framework
Selenium Browser automation
Headless Chrome Render engine
Pillow Image processing
REST API Interface
Docker Containerization
Outcome

Production-ready screenshot infrastructure.

The final API provides authenticated website screenshot generation with responsive viewport presets, configurable browser requests, multiple image formats and controlled browser automation.

  • Authenticated API access
  • Configurable capture behavior
  • Responsive viewport support
  • Multiple image formats
  • Structured API responses
  • Production deployment
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