Basic Image Editing
Smartphones have revolutionised photography, putting powerful cameras in our pockets and transforming how we capture and share moments. Today's smartphones aren't just backups for traditional cameras—they're legitimate photographic tools capable of producing professional-quality results when used effectively. Their superpower lies in the fact that we always have our phones with us, so we always have a camera. Their computational photography is closer to human visual processing than more traditional techniques.
This week, we will explore the basics of photo editing on our smartphones—from capturing and adjusting great shots with your native camera app to editing them beautifully with Snapseed, a powerful free editing app available for iOS and Android.
Mastering Your Smartphone's Native Camera
Before we begin editing, capturing the best possible image is essential. Although modern editing tools are powerful, they do have limitations. The closer you get to the desired result when taking the shot, the easier and less complicated the editing will be—and it is far more likely to be successful when there is less to go wrong.
The first step is understanding your phone's native camera app. Practice using it every day so you can adjust the focus, exposure and other settings naturally, without thinking—that way, you’ll keep your mind free to concentrate on your composition and the story you are trying to tell with your photograph. There are several ways to access the camera app:
Android phones typically provide multiple ways to access the camera: (1) Tap the Camera app icon on your Home screen; (2) Find it in the Apps screen by swiping up from the bottom of the Home screen; or (3) Use the quick shortcut by pressing the Power button twice, even when your phone is locked. When opening the Camera app from the Lock screen, you can take photos and see ones you've just taken, but you won't be able to use other features until you unlock the phone.
On iPhones, you can quickly access the Camera app by (1) Swiping left from the lock screen, (2) Tapping the Camera app icon on your home screen, or (3) Using Control Center by swiping down from the top-right corner—on the iPhone X and later—or up from the bottom on earlier models.
Getting Set for Success
Regardless of your device, whether Android, iPhone, or a dedicated digital camera, understanding a few basic settings can dramatically improve your photography. Here’s a brief list of the most important settings that will get you off to a good start:
Enable the Grid for Better Composition: This simple setting divides your frame into nine equal parts, with two horizontal and two vertical lines. It helps you implement the rule of thirds for more balanced compositions. To enable the grid on your iPhone, Go to Settings > Camera > Grid and toggle it on. On Android, go to the Camera app, access settings, and look for the "Gridlines" option.
Turn Off the Flash for Natural Results: Most built-in smartphone flashes create harsh lighting conditions that can ruin your photos. Instead, rely on natural light whenever possible for softer, more flattering results.
Shoot in RAW Format: Many smartphones now support RAW photography through native camera apps or third-party options like ProCamera or Adobe Lightroom. RAW files contain more information about the scene and offer greater flexibility for adjusting exposure in post-processing. You don’t need to shoot everything in RAW all the time—it’s probably overkill for quick casual snapshots—but if you think there’s a chance you’ll want to do further editing, then RAW is the way to go.
Master Focus and Exposure Controls: Tap the screen to set focus on your subject. After tapping to focus on the iPhone, you'll see a sun icon next to the focus box; slide up or down to adjust the exposure. On Android, drag your finger up or down to adjust the exposure levels after tapping to focus.
Lock Exposure and Focus (AE/AF Lock): On most smartphones, you can tap and hold on a point to lock both focus and exposure. This is invaluable when recomposing your shot, especially in scenes with varying brightness levels. After locking, you can typically slide your finger up or down to fine-tune exposure.
Use Exposure Compensation: Most smartphone camera apps allow you to adjust exposure before taking a shot. Look for the +/- symbol or a sun icon, then drag up or down to brighten or darken your image. This simple control can dramatically improve your photos in challenging lighting.
Expose for the Highlights: Set your exposure for the brightest part of any scene. While you can more often recover shadow details during editing, blown highlights typically can't be rescued. This approach is particularly important when photographing scenes with bright skies or reflective surfaces.
Taking Your Best Shot… a Pre-Flight Checklist
So, you’re out with your camera and in the zone, ready to capture a photographic masterpiece. What could go wrong? Very often, in the heat of the moment, it’s easy to forget some of the basics of composition, which can lead to disappointment later when you come to edit your photo. Here are a few last-minute checks you can mentally tick off before you hit the shutter button. This may seem a lot at first, but with daily practice, you’ll run through these without thinking, and your photos will thank you.
Explore the Scene: Are you shooting from the best place? Would moving a little to the left or right improve the angles? Are you shooting from standing height when crouching down would give a more dramatic shot? Would getting closer to your subject improve the image?
TikTok Syndrome: Do you tend to shoot everything on your phone in vertical format? Experiment with other options like horizontal, square, cinematic 16:9, or even panoramic formats. Of course, you can crop later, but learning to find compositions that work best for different formats will definitely improve your photography.
Wonky Horizon Alert: Are you about to take a photo with a crooked horizon? Stop, now! It’s not big, and it’s not clever. Go sit in the corner and think about what you’ve done.
Background Check: It’s easy to focus on your subject (pun intended) and overlook distractions in the background. Make a point of scanning the background to see how it complements your subject or point of interest. Look for trees or telegraph poles behind people’s heads or bright patches that draw the viewer’s eye to the wrong part of the frame.
Edge Patrol: Finally, scan your eye around the edges of the frame for distractions poking into your shot, especially objects that are white or brightly coloured which will draw the viewer’s eye. Check for leading lines going in the wrong direction and leading the eye out of the frame. While removing things later is possible, it’s better to avoid that if you can.
Finished the checklist? Now, take that fantastic shot, and we can move on to getting the best out of it with some imaging editing in Snapseed.
The Rise of Snapseed
Snapseed is a powerful yet intuitive photo editing application that offers professional-grade tools without a steep learning curve. It is free and available on iOS and Android devices without hidden purchases or subscriptions. Its impressive range of editing capabilities can transform ordinary photos into striking images.
The app has significantly influenced the evolution of mobile photo editing. Developed by Nik Software, it was initially launched for the iPad in June 2011 and was named Apple's iPad App of the Year. Following this success, an iPhone version was released two months later, and a Windows desktop version in February 2012.
A significant turning point came in September 2012, when Google acquired Nik Software. Google's Vice President of Engineering, Vic Gundotra, announced, "We want to help our users create photos they love, and in our experience, Nik does this better than anyone." Following this acquisition, Snapseed was released for Android in December 2012, while the desktop version was discontinued. In April 2015, Nik released Snapseed 2.0 for iOS and Android, introducing new tools, features, and a refreshed user interface.
Understanding the Snapseed Interface
When you first open Snapseed, you'll be presented with a clean, minimalist interface. The app is divided into three main sections accessible at the bottom of your screen:
Looks (rainbow icon): preset filters and styles–these are extremely good, far better quality than you find in many smartphone apps
Tools (pencil icon): individual editing tools for precise adjustments–you’ll spend most of your time here during the editing workflow
Export (share arrow): options for saving and sharing your edited image
At the top of the screen, you'll see several buttons, including "Open" to load a new image, an arrow icon to access undo/redo functions and your edit history, an information button (i), and a menu (⋮) to access tutorials and settings.
Snapseed also supports horizontal editing, and the interface adapts nicely when you rotate your phone. This allows landscape-format images to display larger while editing, which is very helpful.
Mastering the Swiping Technique
Snapseed's unique gesture-based control system sets it apart from other editing apps. Rather than using traditional sliders and buttons, Snapseed employs intuitive swiping gestures:
Swipe up or down anywhere on your image to select the parameter you want to adjust (brightness, contrast, saturation, warmth, etc.)
Swipe left or right to increase or decrease the selected parameter's value
Two-finger pinching lets you zoom in and out of your image
Single-finger drag after zooming moves you around the image
When you're satisfied with an adjustment, tap the ✓ icon to confirm. If you're not happy, tap the ✗ icon to cancel.
Straightening, Cropping & Removing Distractions
The Rotate Tool
It’s best to start your editing workflow by straightening the image using the Rotate tool—this is your last chance to fix that wonky horizon and avoid the naughty step. The Rotate tool helps straighten horizons and correct tilted images:
From the Tools menu, select Rotate
Swipe left or right to rotate the image smoothly and make fine adjustments
You can tap the 90° rotation button at the bottom of the screen for quick right-angle turns
Use the mirror-flip button to flip the image horizontally
The grid overlay makes aligning horizontal or vertical elements in your photo easy
The Crop Tool
The Crop tool allows you to reframe your pictures and adjust composition. It is most commonly used to change an image's format or aspect ratio. These terms are used interchangeably and refer to the picture's width and height. For example, a square-format image would have an aspect ratio of 1:1, while the widescreen TV format is 16:9. Traditional 35mm film has an aspect ratio of 3:2, and most mobile phones have sensors that are 3:4. You don’t have to stick to a set format, though. You can crop the image to whatever you feel best suits the composition of your photograph (free-form cropping).
Open your image and tap on Tools at the bottom of the screen
Select Crop from the tools menu
You'll see two main options at the bottom: a rotation control and an aspect ratio/format button
For free-form cropping:
Tap the format/aspect ratio button and select Free
Drag any corner of the crop frame to adjust the visible area of your image
For fixed ratio cropping–ideal for social media or making prints:
Tap the format/aspect ratio button and select the desired ratio (1:1, 3:2, 16:9, etc.)
Move the crop frame to position the area you want to keep
To switch between landscape and portrait orientation with the same ratio, tap the rotate button
The Healing Tool
At this stage, it’s worth getting rid of any little blemishes and distractions, like litter in a landscape or spots in a portrait. The degree to which you do this is a matter of personal taste and the story you are trying to tell with your photograph. The Healing tool is brilliant for removing unwanted elements, but it is best to use it before applying filters or other effects, especially those that add grain or texture to the image—otherwise, the healing tool can leave a visible mark.
Select Healing from the Tools menu.
Zoom in to the area containing the blemish or unwanted object
Draw over the element you want to remove
Snapseed will automatically replace it with nearby textures
For best results, work on small areas at a time and zoom in closely
Exposure and Curves
Once you have straightened and cleaned up the image and you’re happy with the aspect ratio and framing, it’s time to adjust the exposure and contrast in your photograph. Snapseed's histogram feature is an invaluable tool that can significantly improve your photo editing results once you understand how to use it.
What Is a Histogram and Where to Find It
In Snapseed, the histogram appears as a graph icon in the lower left corner of your screen. Simply tap this icon to display the histogram, or tap it again to minimise it. The histogram will remain visible while using the Tune Image tool as a helpful exposure guide during editing. This small but powerful graph visually represents the tonal distribution in your image, showing how many pixels fall within various brightness ranges from pure black to pure white.
Tune Image Tool
The Tune Image tool is your go-to for simple exposure and colour adjustments across the whole image. You’ll probably use it 90% of the time. The Ambiance slider is particularly powerful. It helps lift details and add vibrancy to images naturally.
From the Tools menu, select Tune Image
Swipe up or down to access different parameters:
Brightness: overall lightness/darkness
Contrast: adjusts the difference between light and dark areas
Saturation: colour intensity
Ambiance: a sophisticated adjustment that enhances images without causing oversaturation
Highlights: control for the brightest areas
Shadows: control for the darkest areas
What Is the Curves Tool and How Does It Work?
The Curves tool presents itself as a graph with a diagonal line running from the bottom left to the top right of a square grid. This graph maps the tonal range of your image. The bottom left corner represents the shadows (dark areas), while the top right corner represents the highlights (bright areas). Everything in between constitutes the mid-tones.
By tapping anywhere on this diagonal line, you create anchor points that can be dragged to adjust different tonal regions of your image.
You can tap the eye icon to hide the curve and see its effect on your image, allowing you to make precise adjustments.
To brighten your photo, simply tap to create an anchor point in the middle of the line and drag it upward and slightly to the left. Conversely, to darken the image, drag the anchor point downward and to the right.
To add contrast, a common adjustment that makes photos pop, create an "S-curve" by lifting the upper portion of the line (brightening highlights) while simultaneously pushing down the lower portion (darkening shadows).
Helpful Tips for Working with Curves
The Curves tool is one of the most powerful features in Snapseed, allowing photographers to fine-tune brightness, contrast, and colour tones with remarkable precision. While it might appear complex at first glance, mastering this tool can dramatically elevate your photo editing skills, enabling you to create professional-looking images directly from your mobile device.
Start by exploring Snapseed's preset curves adjustments to get a feel for what different curve shapes accomplish.
Remember that subtle changes often yield the most professional results when making adjustments.
The Luminance curve is particularly useful for beginners, as it lets you adjust brightness values without affecting colour saturation.
Use Snapseed's masking feature for more targeted edits. This feature allows you to use the brush tool to apply curve adjustments selectively to specific parts of your image while leaving others untouched.
As with any editing tool, practice is key to mastery. Try experimenting with curves on different images to see how various adjustments affect landscapes, portraits, or still-life photos.
Colour Adjustment Tools
White Balance
White Balance is one of the most essential tools for correcting colour casts caused by different lighting conditions. You can use the Auto White Balance option for quick fixes or manually adjust the Temperature and Tint sliders to fine-tune the colours. For even more precision, the Colour Picker lets you tap on a neutral grey area in your photo to set the correct balance. This tool is handy for ensuring natural skin tones in portraits, correcting warm or cool lighting in landscapes, and setting the proper mood:
From Tools, select White Balance
Use the Temperature slider to make the image warmer (yellowish) or cooler (bluish)
Use the Tint slider to adjust between green and magenta tints
For automatic correction, select the eyedropper tool and tap on an area that should be neutral grey or white
Colour Filters and Effects
For creative enhancements, the Looks menu offers a variety of preset filters that apply stylish colour grading with a single tap. These are great for experimenting with dramatic effects or artistic interpretations. You can also customise these filters by combining them with Selective adjustments or the Brush tool to refine specific areas of your image.
For even more creative colour adjustment tools:
Try the Black & White tool for converting to monochrome with adjustable colour filters
Explore the Vintage, Grainy Film, or Retrolux tools for stylised colour effects
Use the Drama tool to enhance textures while maintaining natural colours
Selective Editing Tools
Selective Tool
The Selective Tool in Snapseed is one of its most powerful features. It allows you to make targeted changes to brightness, contrast, saturation, or structure, limited to specific regions of your image, rather than applying adjustments globally. Tap the area you wish to enhance to create a control point (which appears as a small blue dot), then swipe up or down to select the parameter you want to adjust—brightness, contrast, saturation, etc.
The control point automatically selects pixels similar in brightness and colour to the point you have chosen. For example, if you tap on a bright patch of skin, it will select nearby skin tones of similar brightness, limited by a circular area you can pinch to resize.
From Tools, select Selective
Tap the + button to add a control point on your image
Pinch outward to expand the selection area or inward to reduce it
Swipe up/down to choose between Brightness, Contrast, Saturation or Structure
Swipe left/right to adjust the value
Add multiple control points for different areas
The brilliance of this tool lies in how you can control the affected area—pinch with your fingers to expand or contract the selection radius. This creates what would be called a mask in professional photo editing software, automatically expanding to include similar colours and tones.
Brush Tool
When you need even more precision than the Selective Tool offers, Snapseed's brush functionality becomes invaluable. The brush allows you to paint directly onto your image to apply or remove effects with pinpoint accuracy. This is particularly useful for creating selective colour effects (also known as colour splash) where you want to isolate a specific coloured object whilst converting the rest to black and white. To use this feature, make your initial edit (such as applying a black and white filter), then tap the View Edits button, select the edit layer, and use the brush tool to precisely remove the effect from specific areas by carefully brushing over them. Take your time around the edges for a clean result—this technique requires patience but delivers stunning results that will make your subject pop dramatically.
From Tools, select Brush
Choose an effect: Dodge & Burn, Exposure, Temperature, or Saturation
Adjust the strength of the effect—if you set the strength to zero, it becomes an eraser brush to remove the effect
Paint over the areas where you want to apply the effect
Use the eye icon to show or hide your brush strokes
For precision work, zoom in using pinch gestures—great for edges and tight corners
Choosing the Right Selective Tool for Your Editing Needs
Snapseed's selective editing tools provide remarkable flexibility without overwhelming complexity. Start with simple adjustments using the Selective Tool before progressing to more complex brushing and masking techniques. With practice, you'll intuitively understand which tool works best for different scenarios.
The Selective Tool is ideal for broad adjustments to distinct areas with clear colour boundaries. It is perfect for enhancing skies, water, or prominent foreground elements. Use it when you need subtle, graduated adjustments that blend naturally.
The brush tool excels at precise work like selective colour effects, removing distractions, or working along complex edges and details. For comprehensive editing workflows, combine both approaches: start with the Selective Tool for broad adjustments, then refine with brushing techniques.
Remember that less is often more—subtle, targeted adjustments typically yield more natural-looking results than dramatic changes applied across the entire image.
Managing Your Edits
Snapseed's non-destructive editing system lets you revisit and adjust previous edits:
To view your edit history, tap Edit Stack at the top right of the screen, then View Edits
This shows all the tools and adjustments you've applied
Tap any tool in the list to adjust or remove it—or apply masking using the Brush option
Masking Techniques for Advanced Control
Snapseed doesn't have traditional masking tools like you might find in Lightroom or Photoshop, but you can achieve excellent masking effects by cleverly using its Brush features. After applying edits, tap Edit Stack at the top right corner, then View Edits to see your editing history. From here, you can select specific edits and use brushing to control precisely where those adjustments apply—essentially creating masks for each editing layer. This non-destructive approach means you can always refine your masks later.
For example, to selectively enhance just the sky in a landscape photo, apply your desired effect to the entire image, then use the brush to remove it from everything except the sky. This technique works beautifully for enhancing specific elements like architecture, portraits, or any subject that requires targeted adjustments.
Give it a try!
Snapseed offers an impressive suite of tools that can dramatically improve your photos with just a few simple adjustments. As you become more comfortable with the essential tools covered in this tutorial, explore the app's more advanced features, such as Double Exposure, Lens Blur, and Text overlay. The beauty of Snapseed lies in its combination of powerful editing capabilities and intuitive interface, which makes professional-quality editing accessible to photographers of all skill levels.
Remember that good editing enhances a photo without making it look obviously edited. Subtlety is key to creating natural-looking improvements that make your photography shine.
Resources
Here’s a handy video from David Addison: a half tutorial, half review of Snapseed, demonstrating various tools, including RAW Develop, RGB Curves, HDR Scape and Stacks, to get a feel for the app and a good idea of what it can do.
Another good video tutorial, this one is from History Ben: his complete guide to Snapseed for beginners and experienced users—every feature and tool explained in 15 minutes. No music! “Snapseed is one of the easiest and most effective editing tools on mobile. Use this Snapseed tutorial to learn how to enhance your mobile photography with some basic editing tools; really take control with the brush and selective tools; and improve your edits with my easy tips and advice. This tutorial is suitable for beginners using Snapseed for the first time, and I also explain features which many experienced users are unaware of.”
Finally, a third video, from iPhone Photography School that examines selective editing and masking in Snapseed in more detail. In this technique, the brush tool is used to apply adjustments to specific parts of the image.
This week’s assignments…
Your brief for this week’s daily photos is to experiment with Snapseed’s editing tools; you can follow the order explained here to start with, but you will quickly find you discover your preferences and develop your own workflow. Try challenging the limits of the editing tools and good taste—experiment with dialling the adjustments up to eleven, and see what happens; then dial it back and see where things start to look realistic again.
Let’s see photographs that demonstrate your image editing skills. In particular, extra credits for showing off skilful selective editing and applying separate adjustments to different parts of the picture.
