5 photo editing hacks I wish I knew as a beginner

Have you ever taken what you thought was an amazing photo, only to be disappointed with how it turned out once you viewed it on your computer screen?

We've all been there. As a beginner photographer, learning how to edit your photos can feel overwhelming.

That's why in this blog I will share 5 amazing editing hacks. Let's Dive in.

1. Crop Like a Pro

Cropping is one of the simplest yet most useful skills you can have in your photo editing toolbox. A quick crop can transform an image by removing distractions or changing the composition.

To crop a photo, select the “Crop” tool and drag the corners of the grid overlay to your desired size. Hold the Shift key while dragging to maintain the aspect ratio. Once you have the crop size and position you want, just hit Enter or double-click inside the crop box.

Some pro tips for cropping:

Crop in small increments, checking your work as you go. You can always crop more, but you can’t put back what you’ve cropped away!

Try the “Rule of Thirds” - position key elements like horizons, eyes or text along the grid lines or at the intersections. This natural composition is pleasing to the eye.

Leave some space in front of moving subjects like people, animals or vehicles. This gives the impression of movement and “space to move into”.

Square crops are simple but dramatic. A square crop works great for portraits, product shots or abstracts.

Don’t be afraid to crop dramatically for impact. Cropping in tight on a subject can give a sense of intimacy or focus attention.

The more you do it, the more intuitive it will become.

2. Brighten and Sharpen Your Shots

Brighten and sharpen your shots to make them pop. A few quick edits can transform a dull, lackluster photo into something eye-catching.

Open your photo in editing software like Lightroom or Snapseed and look for the “exposure” and “contrast” sliders. Bump up the exposure a notch or two to brighten the whole photo. Then increase the contrast just a bit to sharpen details. Compare the before and after - subtle changes make a big difference!

Next, adjust the “shadows.” Pulling the shadows slider to the right will brighten the darker areas of your photo without blowing out the highlights. Your subject will look more evenly lit and dimensional.

Finally, increase “clarity” and “sharpness.” These tweaks enhance texture and details for extra crispness. But go slowly - too much can make your photo look unrealistic.

3. Use Filters to Set a Mood

Using filters is one of the easiest ways to instantly transform the mood and feel of your photos. Filters alter the overall tone, color, and light in an image to evoke a particular atmosphere or emotion. Some popular options like sepia or black and white can make a photo look more dramatic or nostalgic.

For a fun, retro effect, try a sepia filter. Sepia replaces the cool tones in a photo with warm browns and oranges to mimic the look of old photographs. It’s perfect for vintage-inspired shots or adding a nostalgic glow.

If you want a more moody vibe, switch to black and white. Removing color from a photo draws attention to shadows, shapes, and textures. Black and white works well for portraits, landscapes, and street photography. It creates a timeless, dramatic quality.

For a bright, vibrant feel, boost the saturation. Increasing color saturation makes the hues in a photo appear more vivid and intense. It’s ideal for photos of landscapes, flowers, or anything with lots of rich colors. But be careful not to oversaturate, or the colors may start to look unnatural.

Filters are an easy way to set the perfect tone and transform the overall feel of your photos. Whether you want a nostalgic glow, dramatic black and white, or vibrant colors, there’s a filter to match any mood.

4. Adjust Colors and Contrast

Adjusting the colors and contrast of your photos can make a huge difference in the overall quality and impact. As a beginner, these quick edits are easy to do and will make your images pop.

Color Balance

If your photo looks too blue or orange, the color balance is off. Most editing tools like Slazzer have an auto-adjust feature to fix this with one click.

You can also manually adjust the temperature slider to make the photo warmer or cooler.

For example, sliding it towards “warm” will reduce the blue tones, making it look more natural.

Contrast

Increasing the contrast adds intensity and drama to a photo by making the dark areas darker and the light areas lighter. Too much contrast looks unnatural though. As a rule of thumb, bump up the contrast slider in small increments, checking how it looks as you go. You can always undo it if you go too far! For the most natural look, aim to add about 10-15% more contrast.

You'll be amazed at the improvement from making these quick color and contrast tweaks.

Your images will gain depth, and warmth and really pop for your viewers.

5. Remove Unwanted Objects and Blemishes

One of the most useful photo editing hacks is the ability to remove unwanted objects and blemishes.

Whether it’s litter in the background, a photobombing stranger, or an unexpected pimple, little imperfections can distract from an otherwise great photo. Luckily, there are a few tools in the market you can use to remove background from image in a fraction of a second.

I will vouch for my personal favorite background remover, which is Slazzer. Slazzer uses AI to remove backgrounds from images, not just backgrounds you can use the in-app editing options to remove all the unwanted objects you want and export the image to the best quality.

Remember subtlety is the key. Don’t edit too much so it looks very unrealistic.

Conclusion

So there you have it, 5 simple but powerful photo editing hacks to take your images to the next level. Just play with images and be realistic with filters and you're done.

Happy Clicking.