How To Edit Images In Preview On a Mac

The Preview app can be used to view both image files and PDFs. You can also do quite a bit of editing on image files, such as color adjustments, cropping, copy and pasting selections, resizing, markup and exporting into another format.

Comments: 8 Responses to “How To Edit Images In Preview On a Mac”

    Mick
    3 years ago

    I've been using Preview for ages, but in just a few minutes I've learnt how to do so much more with the mark up tools in this application. As always, Thank You

    Douglas Brace
    3 years ago

    I have two questions, Gary:

    (1) does Preview have a pixelation figure in it for redacting something from an image?

    (2) does Preview retain elements (e.g. shapes and text) as layers that are added to it for PNG files?

    3 years ago

    Well, for an image you would just draw a box over the area and save it out as a new image. For PDFs there is a proper "redact" tool. Preview doesn't do layers.

    Douglas Brace
    3 years ago

    Yes, Gary, it is possible to just draw a box over something and make sure that it has some sort of fill to it but the effect of pixelation can look a little bit better. I am referring to functionality that is possible in the app "Skitch". It is the main reason I use it because the pixelation feature is so easy. Thanks for the info about "Preview" not supporting layers at all. It would be nice if it did, especially PNGs.

    3 years ago

    Douglas: There is no way to blur or pixelate a selection in Preview. Can be done in most other image editing apps though.

    Jim Terrinoni
    2 years ago

    Gary, as always, even though I’ve been using Preview for a LONG time you provide a little detail that tweaks my process, making things more efficient. Before printing a jpeg file I always review the horizontal bar graph (Tools > Adjust Color) to verify the lows (especially) are where I want them.

    Mo
    2 years ago

    how can I edit psd files on Mac?

    2 years ago

    Mo: A PSD file is a Photoshop Document. So Photoshop or Photoshop Elements is the best way. But other apps like Pixelmator Pro will open it, though the features will vary.

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