Whether you like to apply changes that affect your photo's quality, feel, and look—or you want to add information on top of your photos, the Photos app in Windows gives you all kinds of options for getting your photos and videos looking their best.
Edit a photo
With the Photos app, you can easily crop, rotate, adjust look and feel, add a filter, and write or draw on your photo to communicate and provide context.
In the search box on the taskbar, type Photos . From the list, select Photos . Then select the photo you’d like to change.
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Select Edit image ( Ctrl + E )
at the top of your screen. -
Select either Crop , Adjustment , Filter , Markup , Retouch , or Background blur to start editing.
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Use these features to tweak the light, color, look, and feel of your photo.
Tip: To cancel all the edits that have been applied to your photo, select Reset on the top left of your screen.
Crop
Crop, flip, or rotate photos to trim out the unwanted parts manually or use preset aspect ratios. You can also rotate a photo left and right by 90 degrees or by incremental degrees—or flip an image by 180 degrees.
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While viewing an image, select Edit image from the top of your screen.
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Select Crop and then, from the tool bar at the bottom, select an option:
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Rotate clockwise
or counterclockwise 
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Use the preset aspect ratio
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Flip image vertically
or horizontally 
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Freely rotate your photo using the slider
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Adjustment
Adjust light and color to se t the mood and quality of photos.
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Select Edit image from the top of your screen.
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Select Adjustment and then, from the adjustment panel on your right, adjust light and colors sliders.
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You can click and hold or press the spacebar to view the original photo.
Filter
Use filters to refine the tone of images or add special effects to transform photos using only one click. To get started, open a photo.
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Select Edit image from the top of your screen.
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Select Filter and then, from the Filter panel on your right, select one of fifteen available filters. No worries if you don’t want to apply any filters—you always have the Original option available.
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You can click and hold or press the spacebar to view the original photo.
Markup
Markup photos: Sometimes, there's more to the story than what pictures can convey on their own. Add a personal touch to your favorite moments by drawing on your photos.
To get started, open the photo or video you'd like to mark up.
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Select Edit image from the top of your screen.
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Select Markup and then, from the toolbar, select one of three drawing tools (2 available pens, and one highlighter).
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Select the type of line (plain line, line with single arrow, line with double arrow) and the color and size from the pen options.
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Go ahead and draw right on your image, and no worries if you mess up—you can always erase markings you don't like with the Eraser tool. Or clear your whole drawing by selecting Clear all ink strokes next to the Eraser tool.
Retouch
To retouch photos to remove blemishes or unwanted parts:
1. Select Edit image from the top of your screen.
2. Select Retouch and then, place the Spot fix tool over the area that you'd like to correct and click to confirm the spot you'd like to correct.
3. You can adjust the Size of the tool to match the size of the area to be corrected.
Background blur
Background blur allows you to separate a subject from the background in a photo and then apply a blur effect on the background. AI is used to separate the background, but the separation process is done locally on your device. This means that your data never leaves your device. For more about our responsible AI journey, the ethical principles that guide us, and the tooling and capabilities we’ve created to assure that we develop AI technology responsibly, see Responsible AI.
1. Select Edit image from the top of your screen.
2. Select Background blur and then, select an option:
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Apply the blur
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Adjust the Blur intensity before applying a blur
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Turn On the Selection brush tool to display more options
3. The Selection brush tool allows you to add more areas to blur when you use the Select area option. Deselect area to remove parts of the selection that you don't want blurred. You can also change the Brush size or Brush softness.
Edit a photo
With the Photos app, you can easily crop, rotate, add a filter, and automatically enhance your photos.
In the search box on the taskbar, enter photos. From the list, select Photos . Then select the photo you’d like to change.
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Select Edit & Create at the top of your screen.
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Select Edit, and then select either Crop & rotate , Filters , or Adjustments .
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Use these features to tweak light, color, clarity, and remove red eyes.
Tip: To make minor changes or touch up blemishes, select Edit & Create > Edit > Adjustments. Then choose Red eye or Spot fix .
For more creative options, select Edit & Create, and then select Add 3D effects or Edit with Paint 3D .
Get creative with your photos and videos
Sometimes, there's more to the story than what pictures and videos can convey on their own. Add a personal touch to your favorite moments by drawing on your photos and videos.
To get started, open the photo or video you'd like to enhance.
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Select Edit & Create from the top of your screen.
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Select Draw and then, from the toolbar, select one of three drawing tools.
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Select your chosen tool a second time to see options for color and size.
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Go ahead and draw right on your image, and no worries if you mess up—you can always erase markings you don't like with the Eraser tool. Or, clear your whole drawing by selecting Clear all ink strokes .
For more creative options, select Edit & Create , and then select Add 3D effects or Edit with Paint 3D .
Share your creations
When you're happy with your drawing, share it! To share a still of your new image or an animated playback of your drawing, with your creation open, select Share .
For more info on videos, see Create videos .
