While Adobe PhotoShop has long been the preferred image editing software of graphic designers and other industry professionals, its price tag leaves it out of reach for many casual users. The program is also so heavily laden with features that it is not user-friendly. Deep menus and highly technical information make the software too advanced for a lot of people to comprehend.
For those who lack the budget or technical skill to use PhotoShop for image editing, there are some alternatives available in the form of cheaper, stripped-down variations on the software. Some of these programs are even available for download from the internet. However for those who seek a free image editor, the answer may not downloading, but rather uploading.
Free Online Photo Editing
Online photo editing is quickly gaining popularity, with an assortment of photo editing websites emerging around the web. These websites allow users to upload images, then use a set of tools and filters to make adjustments and change the look of the images.
While there are a number of such websites now available, each site offers a different set of features. Simpler features, such as resizing, cropping, and adding text, are common amongst these free photo editors. Some sites also offer more advanced features, allowing users to distort their photos, change colors, and add other special effects.
Editing Photos with FotoFlexer
FotoFlexer is a photo editing website with a nice assortment of basic features. Users can upload photos directly from their computers, or can connect to many common social networking sites to retrieve photos posted in online albums.
FotoFlexer’s features are easy to use and are presented in a simple, straight-forward manner. Users can crop and rotate photos, add plain or glitter text to images, or run their photos through a number of filters to achieve different effects. For instance, the “cartoon” filter will make the photo appear to be drawn as a comic, while the “old photo” feature transforms images to sepia tones and adds graininess for an aged effect.
One drawback of FotoFlexer lies in the site's menus. In order to make changes to any work already done to a photo, users must access the elements from the “layers” screen, which may be confusing to inexperienced users. FotoFlexer also lacks the more advanced options and filters offered by some other sites.
The FotoFlexer photo editing website is ideal for those who wish to make simple, basic tweaks and adjustments to their photos. Users who are seeking more advanced features should instead consider using Picnik.
Picnik Free Online Photo Editor
Like FotoFlexer, Picnik allows users to upload photos from their computers or from various social networking sites. Picnik also offers all of the same features as FotoFlexer, plus more! Picnik users have access to even more tools and effects, including the ability to create collages out of multiple photos.
Additionally, Picnik has a wide array of features that are more advanced but still quite simple to use. Many of these features are available in the free version of Picnik, while the Premium features require a subscription (as little as $2.08 a month) to access.
Picnik also offers seasonal features, which let users modify and decorate photos in holiday themes. For instance, the Halloween features include “Zombify,“ a brush which when used over skin tones makes the subject appear to be reanimated. These seasonal features are available for free use near their respective holidays, but premium users can access these tools and effects throughout the year.
Picnik’s wide array of features, both free and premium, along with its ease of navigation and use, make it stand out amongst the competition.
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