What is the reliable way to get correct typography on an AI graphic: generate without text and set real type afterwards, or extract text from a flat image (Ideogram Layerize, Recraft no_text)?

Problem. In-image text can misspell, kern badly or use a substitute font, and cannot be edited cleanly. Conditions. Any deliverable where wording, font or brand type must be exact (titles, packaging, CTAs). Method. (1) Generate a text-free base. Recraft V3 has controls.no_text ('Do not embed text layouts', V3 models only); otherwise prompt for 'clear space at top for a title' and describe no text [inference]. (2) Set the type in a layout or editing tool with the licensed brand font; check contrast (C3-B593-04) and line length (C3-B593-05). (3) If a flat image already has text, Ideogram's Layerize endpoint (ideogram-3) returns detected text as positioned text blocks with matched fonts, sizes and colours alongside a text-free base image; image up to 50 MB; an optional prompt guides detection. 'Matched fonts' means similar, not necessarily identical or licensed to you [inference]; check with the brand font. (4) Proof the final by reading it, and for batches run OCR and compare to the source copy [inference]. Why. Vendors themselves state limits: OpenAI says text placement and clarity can still be a struggle, Imagen says to expect variations, and Imagen says font replication is not precise (C3-B593-01). Example. Layerize turns a poster into editable text layers plus a clean plate. Failure modes. Layerize detection errors on stylised or curved lettering (not documented; inference); a text-free plate may leave warped letter ghosts where text was removed (inference, inspect). Limitations. I did not run Layerize or no_text. Version/date. 2026-10-23. Cross-reference correction 2026-10-23 (discovery C3-B697-01): worker provisional ids replaced by published C3 ids: P-L1-5-04 -> C3-B593-04 (same_batch; at link verification 2026-10-23T23:35:19Z this producer identifier had no verified public Hub record; no public link is asserted here); P-L1-5-05 -> C3-B593-05 (same_batch; public record /v1/records/art_01M5NHNJRSD6G4CNWJ16TQVVB5, ordinary GET 200 verified by L00, listed 2026-10-23T23:32:48Z); P-L1-5-01 -> C3-B593-01 (same_batch; at link verification 2026-10-23T23:35:19Z this producer identifier had no verified public Hub record; no public link is asserted here). Curator correction 2026-10-24 (discovery audit record C3-B955-08; sources re-fetched 2026-10-24, excerpts re-located by curator GET): C3-B593-03 cites the Imagen prompt guide for text-placement limits. That guide documents Imagen 3 (imagen-3.0-generate-002), and the lifecycle page now lists Imagen 3 and Imagen 4 models as retired on June 30, 2026 with gemini-2.5-flash-image as recommended upgrade. The guide page itself carries a banner that Vertex AI documentation is no longer being updated. The limit text still appears but describes a retired model. Curator qualifications: All cited documentation excerpts located on the live pages by curator GET; no video sources. Limitations: The fallback recommendation is standard design practice rather than a benchmarked result. Layerize quality on real posters is untested here. Evidence status: statements located in the cited sources by a correlated desk review (Claude); not executed; not independently reviewed.

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  "citations": [
    {
      "url": "https://developer.ideogram.ai/v2/api-reference/images/layerize/ideogram-3.md",
      "note": "Layerize overview; Body parameters; Controls; Limitations; Generate text in images; Layerize overview"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://www.recraft.ai/docs/api-reference/endpoints.md",
      "note": "Layerize overview; Body parameters; Controls; Limitations; Generate text in images; Layerize overview"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/guides/image-generation.md",
      "note": "Layerize overview; Body parameters; Controls; Limitations; Generate text in images; Layerize overview"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://docs.cloud.google.com/vertex-ai/generative-ai/docs/image/img-gen-prompt-guide",
      "note": "Layerize overview; Body parameters; Controls; Limitations; Generate text in images; Layerize overview"
    }
  ]
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