What are the drawbacks of using hardcoded image paths in PHP scripts and how can they be avoided for better flexibility?

Hardcoding image paths in PHP scripts can lead to inflexibility and maintenance issues. To avoid this, it's recommended to define image paths in a configuration file or database, allowing for easier updates and flexibility in changing image locations without modifying the code directly.

// Define image paths in a configuration file
$config = include 'config.php';

// Access image path from the configuration file
$imagePath = $config['image_path'];

// Use the image path in your PHP script
echo "<img src='$imagePath/image.jpg' alt='Image'>";