Opening Image Source Properties or changing image file causes rendering lag and skipped rendering frames on macOS (Apple Silicon)

Operating System Info

Other

Other OS

Mac OS Tahoe 26.5.2

OBS Studio Version

32.2.1

OBS Studio Version (Other)

No response

OBS Studio Log URL

https://obsproject.com/logs/VlQeIe0h9fsAPRJh

OBS Studio Crash Log URL

No response

Expected Behavior

Opening the Properties window of an Image Source or changing its image file should not interrupt rendering or cause skipped rendering frames.

Even while streaming, replacing an image should not significantly reduce rendering FPS or cause visible frame drops.

Current Behavior

While streaming, simply opening the Properties window of an Image Source already causes a small rendering lag.

Changing the image using the Browse button causes a much larger rendering lag.

The rendering FPS immediately drops:

• 59.94 FPS → around 20–30 FPS
• 29.97 FPS → around 10–15 FPS

The lag lasts for approximately half a second before returning to normal.

During that period, OBS reports "Skipped Frames Due to Rendering Lag".

Typical skipped frames:
• About 30 frames at 59.94 FPS
• About 15 frames at 29.97 FPS

This happens every time an image is changed.

Network dropped frames remain at 0.
Encoder skipped frames remain at 0.
CPU usage remains around 2–3%.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Create a new scene.
2. Add one Color Source.
3. Add one Image Source.
4. Start streaming (or recording).
5. Open the Image Source Properties window.
6. Click Browse and select another PNG or JPG image.

The rendering FPS immediately drops and "Skipped Frames Due to Rendering Lag" increases.

The issue occurs every time.

Anything else we should know?

Environment

• macOS (Apple Silicon)
• MacBook Pro M3 Max
• 36 GB RAM

OBS versions tested:
• 32.2.1 (64-bit)
• 31.1.2

The issue occurs in both versions.

Output settings:

• Apple Hardware H.264
• 1920 × 1080
• 7500 kbps
• Tested at both 59.94 FPS and 29.97 FPS

Image information:

• PNG or JPG
• Approximately 200–300 KB
• Resolution: 1920 × 255
• Stored on the internal SSD

Troubleshooting already performed:

Even with a completely clean scene (only one Color Source and one Image Source), the issue is still reproducible.

• Created a brand-new scene containing only one Color Source and one Image Source.
• Disabled Preview.
• Reduced the OBS window size.
• Tested with both OBS 31.1.2 and 32.2.1.
• Tested at both 59.94 FPS and 29.97 FPS.
• CPU usage remained below 3%.

The behavior remained unchanged in every case.

Real-world workflow:

I use OBS to livestream dance competitions. During an event, I frequently need to manually replace overlay images such as player names, tournament brackets, sponsor graphics, and event information.

Preloading every possible image is not always practical because new graphics sometimes need to be created or updated during the live broadcast.

The issue is consistently reproducible on my system and occurs every time I replace an image through the Image Source Properties window.

Screen recording:

A short screen recording demonstrating the issue is available here:

https://youtu.be/1dD-7TfCrvY

The video shows:

• Opening Image Source Properties
• Changing the image using Browse
• Rendering FPS immediately dropping
• "Skipped Frames Due to Rendering Lag" increasing
• Network and encoder skipped frames remaining at zero

Start by reproducing the Image Source Properties and Browse workflow on macOS Apple Silicon, using the provided OBS log and screen recording as references. Trace the image replacement path from that entry point and measure rendering FPS during streaming or recording. Done means replacing a PNG or JPG no longer causes rendering lag or skipped frames while network and encoder frames remain unaffected.