diff --git a/src/lib/media/image-manipulator.ts b/src/lib/media/image-manipulator.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..41fde37c81
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/lib/media/image-manipulator.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+import {
+  ImageManipulator,
+  type ImageManipulatorContext,
+  type ImageResult,
+  type SaveOptions,
+} from 'expo-image-manipulator'
+
+export async function renderImage(
+  source: string,
+  manipulate?: (context: ImageManipulatorContext) => void,
+  saveOptions?: SaveOptions,
+): Promise<ImageResult> {
+  const context = ImageManipulator.manipulate(source)
+
+  try {
+    manipulate?.(context)
+    const image = await context.renderAsync()
+
+    try {
+      return await image.saveAsync(saveOptions)
+    } finally {
+      image.release()
+    }
+  } finally {
+    context.release()
+  }
+}
diff --git a/src/lib/media/manip.ts b/src/lib/media/manip.ts
index 904e3c48ca..49136b7e96 100644
--- a/src/lib/media/manip.ts
+++ b/src/lib/media/manip.ts
@@ -12,12 +12,13 @@ import {
   StorageAccessFramework,
   writeAsStringAsync,
 } from 'expo-file-system/legacy'
-import {manipulateAsync, SaveFormat} from 'expo-image-manipulator'
+import {SaveFormat} from 'expo-image-manipulator'
 import * as MediaLibrary from 'expo-media-library/legacy'
 import * as Sharing from 'expo-sharing'
 
 import {logger} from '#/logger'
 import {IS_ANDROID, IS_IOS} from '#/env'
+import {renderImage} from './image-manipulator'
 import {type PickerImage} from './picker.shared'
 import {type Dimensions} from './types'
 import {convertCdnPreset, getResizedDimensions} from './util'
@@ -78,7 +79,7 @@ export async function shareImageModal({uri}: {uri: string}) {
   }
 
   const downloadedPath = await downloadImage(uri, String(uuid.v4()), 15e3)
-  const {uri: jpegUri} = await manipulateAsync(downloadedPath, [], {
+  const {uri: jpegUri} = await renderImage(downloadedPath, undefined, {
     format: SaveFormat.JPEG,
     compress: 1.0,
   })
@@ -199,7 +200,7 @@ async function doResize(
   // Now instead, we have to supply the final dimensions to the manipulation function instead.
   // Performing an "empty" manipulation lets us get the dimensions of the original image. React Native's Image.getSize()
   // does not work for local files...
-  const imageRes = await manipulateAsync(localUri, [], {})
+  const imageRes = await renderImage(localUri)
   const newDimensions = getResizedDimensions(
     {
       width: imageRes.width,
@@ -217,9 +218,9 @@ async function doResize(
     const qualityPercentage = Math.round(
       (maxQualityPercentage + minQualityPercentage) / 2,
     )
-    const resizeRes = await manipulateAsync(
+    const resizeRes = await renderImage(
       localUri,
-      [{resize: newDimensions}],
+      context => context.resize(newDimensions),
       {
         format: SaveFormat.JPEG,
         compress: qualityPercentage / 100,
diff --git a/src/platform/misc.web-check.d.ts b/src/platform/misc.web-check.d.ts
index d3eaf3e971..dfa41bf6a4 100644
--- a/src/platform/misc.web-check.d.ts
+++ b/src/platform/misc.web-check.d.ts
@@ -113,17 +113,8 @@ declare module 'expo-file-system' {
 declare module 'expo-image-manipulator' {
   import {type ImageManipulator as ImageManipulatorModule} from 'expo-image-manipulator/build/ImageManipulator.types'
   export const ImageManipulator: ImageManipulatorModule
+  export {useImageManipulator} from 'expo-image-manipulator/build/ImageManipulator'
   export {
-    manipulateAsync,
-    useImageManipulator,
-  } from 'expo-image-manipulator/build/ImageManipulator'
-  export {
-    type Action,
-    type ActionCrop,
-    type ActionExtent,
-    type ActionFlip,
-    type ActionResize,
-    type ActionRotate,
     FlipType,
     type ImageResult,
     SaveFormat,
diff --git a/src/state/gallery.ts b/src/state/gallery.ts
index fbb5edd4c2..15c3a9e5b6 100644
--- a/src/state/gallery.ts
+++ b/src/state/gallery.ts
@@ -5,14 +5,10 @@ import {
   makeDirectoryAsync,
   moveAsync,
 } from 'expo-file-system/legacy'
-import {
-  type Action,
-  type ActionCrop,
-  manipulateAsync,
-  SaveFormat,
-} from 'expo-image-manipulator'
+import {type ImageManipulatorContext, SaveFormat} from 'expo-image-manipulator'
 import {nanoid} from 'nanoid/non-secure'
 
+import {renderImage} from '#/lib/media/image-manipulator'
 import {getImageDim} from '#/lib/media/manip'
 import {openCropper} from '#/lib/media/picker'
 import {type PickerImage} from '#/lib/media/picker.shared'
@@ -22,7 +18,7 @@ import {logger} from '#/logger'
 import {IS_NATIVE, IS_WEB} from '#/env'
 
 export type ImageTransformation = {
-  crop?: ActionCrop['crop']
+  crop?: Parameters<ImageManipulatorContext['crop']>[0]
 }
 
 export type ImageMeta = {
@@ -160,11 +156,8 @@ export async function manipulateImage(
   img: ComposerImage,
   trans: ImageTransformation,
 ): Promise<ComposerImage> {
-  const rawActions: (Action | undefined)[] = [trans.crop && {crop: trans.crop}]
-
-  const actions = rawActions.filter((a): a is Action => a !== undefined)
-
-  if (actions.length === 0) {
+  const crop = trans.crop
+  if (!crop) {
     if (img.transformed === undefined) {
       return img
     }
@@ -173,7 +166,7 @@ export async function manipulateImage(
   }
 
   const source = img.source
-  const result = await manipulateAsync(source.path, actions, {
+  const result = await renderImage(source.path, context => context.crop(crop), {
     format: SaveFormat.PNG,
   })
 
@@ -244,9 +237,9 @@ export async function compressImage(
       continue
     }
 
-    const res = await manipulateAsync(
+    const res = await renderImage(
       source.path,
-      [{resize: {width: w, height: h}}],
+      context => context.resize({width: w, height: h}),
       {
         compress: qualityPercentage / 100,
         format: SaveFormat.JPEG,
@@ -362,8 +355,8 @@ function blobToDataUri(blob: Blob): Promise<string> {
  * media to a post. They live alongside our own `bsky-composer` dir under the OS
  * cache directory. expo-image-picker copies every originally selected photo and
  * video here, and expo-image-manipulator leaves intermediate full-resolution
- * outputs here (compressImage makes several manipulateAsync passes, only the
- * last of which gets moved into `bsky-composer`). Nothing else cleans these up,
+ * outputs here (compressImage makes several rendering passes, only the last of
+ * which gets moved into `bsky-composer`). Nothing else cleans these up,
  * so on iOS - where the OS exposes no "clear cache" - they accumulate
  * indefinitely, one full-resolution copy per attached item.
  */