Gimp or The GNU Image Manipulation Program is freeware or free software used for graphic and photo manipulation. The latter use is perhaps the most common because of the wide range of photo editing tools available in the program inclusive of resizing, cropping photos, editing, converting between different formats and amalgamating many images. Additionally it maintains very basic animation capabilities in GIF format. This article will highlight some of the more fundamental uses of gimp in an easy to follow step-by-step format.
What You Will Need
- GIMP
- Functional Computer
Instructions
- Go to the official website and download Gimp.
- Install GIMP which should work perfectly on MAC, Linux or Windows.
- Open the program once you have completed installation.
- Upon opening you should see the toolbox to the left side of the screen and the layers, channels, paths, undo – brushes, patterns gradients box to the right side with the main window in the centre of the screen. All boxes can be moved around the screen to your liking.
- Go to [New] and from the box that appears you will be able to determine image size and chose a template from the drop down box. If you do not desire to start a project you can open a photo for editing by clicking on the [Open] option at [File] and browsing through the pictures in your directory.
- To carry out various functions use the tool box to select the needed tool. You can use these tools to create graphics on a blank canvas or edit a photo. For example, you can draw with paint and pencil tools or you can edit the photo by using the crop , edge enhance, dodge and burn tools for better results.
- You can also do other things to your photo by using the[Colors] tab to correct or alter colour and saturation. You can change the photo to a black and white photo and improve the overall picture quality by adjusting the levels.
- To add effects to a photo select the [Filters] tab and select any option to apply the effect of your choice. There are a wide variety of choices that can be used. Experiment with all these effects to see which ones work with the present photo that is being edited.
- You can also use the Filters section to create logos and animations.
- Once you have completed editing or have created your project, remember to save your changes. There are a wide range of formats that can be used dependent on your file needs.
Do’s and Dont’s
- Familiarize yourself with the program so that you’re able to become more versed using it.
- Be wary of any website that charges fro the editor, it is freeware and is therefore not for sale.
- When editing a photo, create a duplicate if you are prone to saving changes out of habit. Only save changes on the originals that have been edited as desired. If you accidentally saved changes click on [undo] in the [Edit] tab. However if you closed the editor upon saving, then the changes are irreversible.
