diff --git a/appium/webdriver/extensions/images_comparison.py b/appium/webdriver/extensions/images_comparison.py
index cae80168..04b8f114 100644
--- a/appium/webdriver/extensions/images_comparison.py
+++ b/appium/webdriver/extensions/images_comparison.py
@@ -147,4 +147,7 @@ def _add_commands(self) -> None:
 
 
 def _adjust_image_payload(payload: Base64Payload) -> str:
-    return payload if isinstance(payload, str) else payload.decode('utf-8')
+    try:
+        return payload if isinstance(payload, str) else payload.decode('utf-8')
+    except UnicodeDecodeError as e:
+        raise ValueError('The image payload cannot be serialized to a string. Make sure to base64-encode it first') from e