Snapseed: The Ultimate Guide to One of the Most Powerful Photo Editors for Android and iOS

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

This free editor is enough for you to get great pictures.

The first steps

Snapseed is pretty easy to use. Immediately after opening, the application will prompt you to select a photo from the gallery. And you will go to editing the image, where you will see three tabs: "Styles", "Tools" and "Export".

Styles are a collection of filters that you can apply to your photo. Unfortunately, you cannot customize styles manually in Snapseed.

But they can be created. It is enough to edit the image and select the "Save settings" function. To find it, just scroll to the end of the style bar and click on the plus sign icon. After that, you can apply a new filter to any image.

If you would like to share your style, please use the QR code. After scanning it, the device automatically overlays the saved style on the image. This function is located in the Edit Filter Set menu.

Be sure to check the settings before processing the image. There you can select a dark theme and change the export and publish options.

If you want to get the best quality when saving a picture, do not forget to select PNG or-j.webp

Instruments

Snapseed has everything you need to make basic photo adjustments: crop, rotate, double exposure, add text, and more.

Each tool has its own parameters. To adjust the image, for example, in the Adjustment tool, you need to scroll the screen horizontally and change the brightness, contrast, light balance and highlights.

Click on the checkmark when you're ready to switch to another tool. If you want to correct a step, use the "Edit filter set" button located in the upper right corner. In the "View Changes" menu, you can edit all your actions, repeat certain effects, or delete them.

Many Snapseed tools have pre-built filters that already have their own autotuning. For example, open the Curves tool and go to the Styles window. A lot of them. So take a look at everything and find the one that suits you best.

The same can be done with the Coarse Grain tool. This is where all the most beautiful Snapseed filters are located. Some of them are comparable in quality to those of the other popular VSCO editor. Just set the grain to zero and choose a style.

Mask overlay

A very interesting function that allows you to remove or enhance any effect in a certain place in the picture.

In the menu "Edit a set of filters" select the desired action and click on the "Apply mask" button. All you need to do next is adjust the strength of your tool (in our case, the HDR Effect tool) and drag your finger over the places where you want the mask.

If you select the "Apply mask" mode from the menu, these places will be colored red.

Adding text

It is enough to select the tool of the same name and type on the keyboard what you want to see in your photo. There are quite a few options for styles and fonts, so go through all and choose the one that suits you best. In the same place, go to the choice of the color of your text.

In the "Opacity" menu, you can invert the text. The photo will fit inside the letters, and the rest of the screen will be filled with the color you chose for the text. This can come in handy for those looking to make a logo quickly.

Mask Overlay allows you to hide part of the text or send it to the background. Just set the effect of the "Type" tool to the number 0, and then carefully paint over the part that should be in front with the mask.

Crop, perspective and enlargement

Each of these tools will allow you to resize or format your image, and hide unwanted elements (such as trees or the corners of houses).

If in the Crop tool you simply choose the image size you want, then Perspective will help you correct distorted perspective in the picture. Use drag and drop gestures and the app will automatically fill in the blank edges of the photo.

The Expand tool automatically enlarges your photo and flattens the horizon. There you can choose three fill modes: "Smart", "White" and "Black". But the first one does not always correctly cope with the task. So it's better to use a regular white fill.

Processing portraits

To do this, Snapseed offers you five tools. The first is called “Portrait”. There are several styles of face lighting here. You can also change the light and shadow correction, skin smoothing, and lightening of the eyes for more noticeable shine.

The Head Position tool will also come in handy. Just slide your finger slowly across the screen and you can choose the perfect angle.

You can also change the size of the pupils and the tips of the mouth in this tool. Ideal for those looking to add a smile to their photos.

"Blur" will help hide unwanted details in the photo. Snapseed automatically detects the elliptical area around the face and leaves it intact while blurring everything else.

If you want a bokeh effect, be sure to keep enough detail in focus. This way you will avoid the effect of hovering in space, and your photography will become more professional.

Using Spot Correction, you can get rid of small imperfections on your face or cover up an extra part, and the Brush tool will make your picture brighter or, conversely, darker.

Saving a photo

The Export menu prompts you to save a copy of the image and select an appropriate folder. There you can also share the image through any application on your device.