Windows Help & Advice - UK (2020-04)

Windows 10

Free apps you can’t live without

April 2020 | |^13

Edit images like a pro

PAINT.NET: Get advanced image-editing

tools for zero cos t thank s to thisf ree app

1

Installbrowser

Visithttps://forums.getpaint.net

andnavigateto‘Plugins– Publishing

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Browser’threadanddownload

PluginBrowser-Installer.ziptoyour

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thenextractandrunPluginBrowser-

Installer.exe.

2

Locatenewplugins

Afterinstallation,openPaint.

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Browser’toviewcurrentlyinstalled

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tool:thiscanbeusedtosearchthe

plug-inindexonlinetotrackdown

moreplugins– justclicka hyperlinkto

betakentotherelevantpage.

3

Install new plugin

Plugins are downloaded as

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VLPSO\H[WUDFWWKHGOOÀOHLQVLGHWKH

zip archive to the relevant subfolder

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• this is typically Effects or FileTypes
  (note that you’ll need administrator
  access to do so).

veryone needs to edit

images at some point in

their lives, and while

Windows ships with the

Photos tool, it’s more of

an organiser than an

editor.Attheother end of the scale are

expensivetools such as Photoshop that

come with complexity on top of the

asking price. For most people, though,

something in the middle is what’s

required, and Paint.NET is that tool.

It’s relatively straightforward to use

– load an image, and you’ll find all the

basic tools you need to crop, rotate,

resize it and so on. There is a variety of

selection tools for working on part of

theimage– includingthemagicwand

andmagneticlassoforirregularobjects.

You’llalsofindvariouscorrectiontools,

frombrushesanderaserstoa clone

stamptoolforeradicatingdust,

scratchesandotherunwantedelements

fromscannedvintagephotos.

TheEffectstabprovidesaccesstoa

varietyofdifferentfiltersforfurther

editing– theserangefromspecial

effectslikeapplyingart-likeeffects

(suchasoilpaintingorpencilsketch)

toperformingfurthercorrectionsusing

theBlurandPhotocategories.

LikePhotoshop,Paint.NETsupports

layers– thisallowsyoutoapplynon-

destructiveeffectstoyourimage

byduplicatingtheoriginalimage

andperformingyoureditstothe

secondlayer.TheAdjustments

menu also provides numerous ways

of improving an image’s lighting

• focus on the Curves and Levels
  tools for professional-level editing.
  You can also apply colour filters to
  your image from here – including
  Sepia and Posterize.

Free powerups

Can’t find the tool or effect you’re

looking for? Paint.NET supports

plugins, allowing you to expand the

program’s functionality further. The

step-by-step guide reveals how to

incorporate them into the program.

Plugins we recommend include

Shadow/Highlight Recovery and

Sharpen+ (an improved version of the

default tool) for correcting photos.

Paint.NET supports a wide variety

of file types, but any missing ones

– such as Photoshop’s native PSD

format (which supports layers) – can

be added via the plug-in browser.

ALSO CONSIDER: Need to rename,

convert or edit multiple files? Save time

by performing batch operations on

them using the brilliant Faststone Photo

Resizer (www.faststone.org).

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Paint.NET is packed with tools to help you edit and transform your photos.