Want to learn all about photo editing? This article will walk you through adding, replacing, editing, and removing photos in your Family History Project.
We accept JPG, PNG, and HEIC files. You can upload photos from your device or your Ancestry Tree. For the best-printed results, we recommend file sizes between 2 and 5 MB and a 150 to 300 pixels per inch (PPI) resolution.
Video tutorials are available at the end of the article.
GETTING STARTED
First, create a new project or open the project you'd like to edit.
If you're working on a book or calendar, click on the page you wish to edit to enter edit mode.
The "Edit" tab below the book pages will also take you to the editor.
Click here to learn more about the book editor tabs.
You'll have edit access immediately if you're working on a poster.
Tip: To add an image to a photo placeholder, select the placeholder first and then click on the photo from the Ancestry or Photos gallery. To add a photo anywhere else, simply click on the image.
HOW TO ADD AN IMAGE FROM ANCESTRY TO A PHOTO PLACEHOLDER
Select the placeholder you want to add or replace the image with. A blue box will appear around it.
Select the Ancestry tab in the left toolbar.
Find the photo or record you want to add and click it to insert the image into the selected placeholder.
Tip: You can use the Select Person button to search for an individual's Ancestry records and photos.
HOW TO ADD AN IMAGE FROM THE PHOTOS TAB TO A PHOTO PLACEHOLDER
Select the placeholder you want to add or replace the image with. A blue box will appear around it.
Select the Photos tab in the left toolbar.
Find the photo you want to add and click it to insert the new image into the selected placeholder.
Tip: To import an image from your device or Ancestry, click the Upload Photo button and select "My Device," "Ancestry," or "Mobile Device." as the source. If uploading from a mobile device, scan the QR code with your camera app. Then, choose the image(s) and click "Open" to begin the upload.
Once you've uploaded the photo, select the placeholder you want to add or replace the image with and click the Photos tab in the left toolbar. Then click on the new photo you want to add. It will automatically insert into the selected placeholder.
If you'd like to add a new image for which there is no placeholder, you can find the photo you want to add from the Ancestry or Photos gallery. Click on the image you want to add, which will automatically populate the page. It will settle at a larger size, but you can easily crop, resize, round, and move the image around.
HOW TO CROP A PHOTO
Click on the photo you want to crop. A blue box will appear around the image.
Select the Crop button from the top white toolbar. A crop tool will appear around the photograph, and the rest of the page will be temporarily greyed out.
Position the cursor over the top of one of the white squares until it becomes a double-sided arrow.
Hold the left-click button on your mouse and drag it in to crop the photo.
Select Done from the top white toolbar to save your edits.
HOW TO RESIZE A PHOTO
Click on the photo you want to resize. A blue box will appear around the image.
Position the cursor over the top of one of the white squares until it becomes a double-sided arrow.
Hold the left-click button on your mouse and drag in or out to increase or decrease the photo size.
HOW TO REPOSITION A PHOTO
To reposition or move a photo, click on the image you want to move.
While holding the left-click button on your mouse, drag the photo to move and reposition it. Blue dotted lines appear to help you align with other elements on the page. You can use these as a guide to ensure everything lines up.
If you prefer, you can also move a photo around by selecting it and then using the arrow keys on your keyboard. This is great for smaller movements.
Tip: You can use the grid to align objects further within your project. You can turn the grid on by selecting the "Show Grid" button in the top white toolbar.
HOW TO ROTATE A PHOTO
Click on the photo you want to rotate. A blue box will appear around the image.
Click the Rotate button from the top white toolbar until the image is set to the desired orientation. The image will rotate within its frame.
If you prefer, you can rotate an image by clicking the photo, positioning your cursor over the rotation icon until it becomes a plus sign, holding the left-click button on your mouse, and dragging counterclockwise or clockwise to rotate.
HOW TO REPOSITION AN IMAGE IN THE PHOTO PLACEHOLDER
Click on the photo you want to edit. A blue box will appear around the image.
Select the Crop button from the top white toolbar. A crop tool will appear around the photograph, and the rest of the page will be temporarily greyed out.
Position the cursor over the top of the picture and Hold the left-click button on your mouse. While holding the left-click button, drag the mouse to move and reposition the image.
Select Done from the top white toolbar to save your edits.
HOW TO FLIP A PHOTO
Click on the photo you want to flip. A blue box will appear around the image.
Select the Flip button from the top white toolbar, and flip the image horizontally or vertically.
In this example, I have flipped the image horizontally.
HOW TO DUPLICATE A PHOTO
Duplicating a photo is great if you want to copy a style and swap the image. To duplicate, select the image you want to copy. Then, select the "Duplicate Elements" icon on the top white toolbar.
Once you select the duplicate elements button, a copy of the image will be created. You can swap, resize, edit, and move the photo.
Tip: The Position tool in the top white toolbar lets you change the layering and position of the page's photos, text, and embellishments.
HOW TO DELETE A PHOTO
Click on the photo you want to delete. A blue box will appear around the image.
Click the trash can icon in the top white toolbar or hit the delete button on your keyboard.
Tip: If you accidentally delete something, you may use the Undo button in the top white toolbar immediately after deleting it. The undo feature will bring the element back to your project. Please be sure to undo it instantly, as once you've moved on to something else - you won't be able to undo it anymore.
HOW TO CHANGE THE TRANSPARENCY
Click on the photo, text, or embellishment you want to edit.
Click the "Transparency" icon in the upper right side of the white toolbar.
Use the sliding scale to increase or decrease the transparency.
CUSTOMIZING THE PAGE BACKGROUND WITH A PHOTO
While in the page editor, hover over the photo you want to set as the background. You'll see a grid of dots in the upper right corner of the image. Click on those dots to fix it as the background.
You can also add the photo as the background by selecting the Fit to Page button in the top toolbar.
To position the image as the background layer, click the Position button in the top toolbar and select "To bottom":
We recommend locking the layer to prevent accidentally moving the background image while editing the page. To do so, click on the page to highlight it in blue and click the lock icon in the top toolbar.
Tip: If you want to return to the default design, it is the first background in the backgrounds category.
Please see The Favorite Feature to learn how to favorite photos, embellishments, and backgrounds for easier access while customizing your project.
PHOTO EFFECTS
Here's a step-by-step guide on customizing the border, brightness, shaping, blurring, and shadow.
Click on the photo or embellishment you want to edit so it's highlighted in blue.
Select the Effects button from the top white toolbar.
ADDING BRIGHTNESS TO THE PHOTO OR EMBELLISHMENT
Toggle on the "Brightness" option.
Slide the brightness scale to the left to darken the image or to the right to lighten the image.
CHANGING THE PHOTO OR EMBELLISHMENT TO SEPIA
Toggle on the "Sepia" option (you can use the brightness scale to darken or lighten the image in sepia).
CHANGING THE PHOTO OR EMBELLISHMENT TO GRAYSCALE
Toggle on the "Grayscale" option (you can use the brightness scale to darken or lighten the grayscale image).
ADDING A BORDER TO THE PHOTO OR EMBELLISHMENT
Toggle on the "Border" option.
Click the number box arrow keys or enter a number in the box to increase or decrease the border thickness.
Click the color box to change the border color.
SHAPING THE PHOTO OR EMBELLISHMENT
Toggle on the "Corner Radius" option.
Use the Corner Radius sliding scale to change the image to the desired shape.
Here are a few examples where the shape of an image was changed using the corner radius.
Tip: For a more circular photo or embellishment, you must first crop the image square before rounding it. Click here for our step-by-step guide on adding, replacing, cropping, repositioning, resizing, and rotating photos.
ADDING A SHADOW TO THE PHOTO OR EMBELLISHMENT
Toggle on the "Shadow" option.
BLURRING THE SHADOW ADDED TO THE PHOTO OR EMBELLISHMENT
Use the Blur sliding scale to increase or decrease the shadow blur thickness.
Use the Offset X sliding scale to move the shadow to the left or right of the image.
Use the Offset Y sliding scale to move the shadow above or below the image.
Use the Opacity sliding scale to increase or decrease the shadow opaqueness.
Click the color box to change the shadow color.
Click here for a step-by-step guide on customizing text stroke, background, and shadow.
PAGE MARGINS
When editing your Family History Book, you'll see a pink border around each page. This is the page's margins/bleed zone. If you hover your mouse over the border, you'll see the message, "Items in the shaded area may be cut off."
We've added a bleed zone area to guide you in designing your pages. You're welcome to add photos or text to the edges of the page, but please note that anything in the shaded area may get cut off in production or fall into the bookbinding.
If you do have text placed within the bleed zone, you'll receive a warning before adding your project to your cart:
We print ordered projects as you've created them, so please check for typos, correctness, and layout.
Here's more information on the bleed zone.
Videos:
Photo Editing: Replace or Add a Photo to a Family History Project
Photo Editing: Resize, Crop, Edit, or Delete Photos in a Family History Project
Check out these articles next: