Image editor

How to use the image editor

The editor is a 900 × 560 pixel canvas that you build up in layers: photos, text, rectangles and circles. Each item stays separate, so you can move, resize or restyle it at any time until you download the finished picture as a PNG. Everything runs in your browser, and your photos are never uploaded. For layer masks, adjustment layers, retouching tools or PSD files, use the full photo editor.

Building a picture

1. Pick a canvas color with BG. It starts white.
2. Click Add image and choose a photo. A large photo is scaled down to fit the canvas, and a small one keeps its size.
3. Click Add text for a text box. Double-click it to type your own words.
4. Add a Rectangle or Circle for a banner strip, a frame or a highlight behind text.
5. Click any item to select it. Drag it to move it, drag a corner to resize it, and use the rotate handle above it to turn it.
6. When it looks right, click Download PNG.

Changing a selected item

The controls under the canvas change with what you select:

• Text: choose a font, set the size from 6 to 200, pick a color, and switch Bold or Italic on and off.
• Shapes: set the fill color, a border color and a border width from 0 to 20.
• Photos: slide Brightness, Contrast and Saturation, or click B&W or Sepia. Reset filters takes the photo back to normal. The filters change only the selected photo.

Layers and order

Newer items sit on top of older ones. To put a caption over a photo, add the photo first and the text second. If something ends up hidden, select it and click Forward until it shows, or select the item covering it and click Back. Duplicate makes a copy just below and to the right of the original, which helps when you want several matching labels or shapes. Delete removes whatever is selected.

Undo and Redo step back and forward through your recent changes, up to 40 of them.

Removing a photo background

Select a photo and click Remove background. The first time, the editor downloads a background-removal model to your browser, which can take a little while on a slow connection. After that, the work happens on your device. It works best on a clear subject, such as a person, a pet or a product, against a plain background. The cut-out keeps its place on the canvas, so you can drop a new background color or another photo behind it with Back. For a single cut-out with no other editing, the background remover is quicker.

What you get when you download

The download is a 900 × 560 pixel PNG of the whole canvas, including the background color. That shape suits a blog header, a slide or a social post. For a different size, open the file in the image resizer afterwards.

Ideas and tips

• Event flyer: a photo, a colored rectangle along the bottom, and the date in large bold text on top of it.
• Product shot: remove the background, set BG to white or a soft color, and add the price in a circle.
• Readable text on a busy photo: put a rectangle behind the words and lower the photo's brightness a little.
• Save as you go: the editor does not keep your work after you close or reload the page, so download a PNG before you leave.
• Use your own photos: only add images you have the right to use, especially for anything you plan to post or print.