Edit a photo or video on your Pixel phone or tablet

You can edit or change what a photo looks like on your Pixel device. You can also edit older photos and photos taken on other devices in your Google Photos storage. Learn how to open your Camera app on your Pixel phone.

Edit your photos and videos
Go to this video with audio descriptions: Edit your photos on your Pixel phone

Change your image format (RAW + JPEG)

Your camera saves your image files in JPEG + RAW format when you enable RAW/JPEG in camera settings. You can tell the difference between your RAW and JPEG photos at the top of your photos with the icon for RAW .

To enable RAW + JPEG files:

Open the Camera app .
At the bottom left, tap Settings More settings.
Under "General options," tap Advanced.
Turn on RAW/JPEG control.

Tip: This step isn't required on Pixel 8 Pro.

To turn on RAW:

In photo mode, at the bottom left, tap Settings .
Turn on RAW + JPEG.

To find, view, and edit a RAW file:

Open the Google Photos app .
In the gallery grid, a "RAW" badge indicates that the RAW + JPEG photo pairs were taken with RAW setting on.
To view RAW, tap to view.
- You can see the JPEG image, but you can tap on the second tile to see the RAW image.
To edit RAW, tap Edit.
- When you edit your RAW files in your favorite editor, you can set a Default RAW Editor directly from Google Photos.

Tip: If backup is enabled in Google Photos, your RAW photos are automatically backed up.

To use RAW files:

Take a photo in Night Sight or default mode.
Go to your Home screen.
- Gesture navigation: Swipe up from the bottom of the screen.
- Three-button or two-button navigation: Tap Home.
Open Google Photos.
At the bottom right, tap Library Raw.

Straighten, adjust, or crop a photo

Use gridlines to straighten photos

Open the Camera app .
At the bottom left, tap Settings .
Tap More Settings Grid type.
Select the type of grid you want.

Adjust the photo's ratio

Open the Camera app .
At the bottom left, tap Settings .
Select a ratio option:
- Wide crop (16:9)
- Full image (4:3)

Crop a photo

Open the Google Photos app .
Select the photo you want to edit.
Tap Edit photo Crop .
- Alternatively, you might need to tap Edit photo Tools Crop .
Adjust the borders to your desired size.

Change the light or blur of a photo

Photo unblur

Important: This feature is available on Pixel 4a and later. It requires 4 GB or more.

You can improve your blurry photos with Photo Unblur.

Open the Google Photos app .
Select the photo you want to edit.
Tap Edit photo Actions Unblur.
- Alternatively, you might need to tap Edit photo Tools Actions.

Tip: You can use Photo Unblur on new photos or older photos in your photo library.

Portrait light

Important: Add light and Balance light features are only available on Pixel 6 and later, including Pixel Fold.

You can adjust the lighting in your photos of people. For Portrait light to work best, make sure that faces are clearly displayed and take up most of the Camera view. When faces are centered and look at the camera, Portrait light captures those faces.

Open the Google Photos app .
Tap Edit photo Lighting Portrait light.
- Alternatively, you might need to tap Edit photo Tools Lighting.
- To brighten the photo: Tap Add light.
  - Move the white ring to where you want more light.
- Lower or raise the brightness manually or automatically:
  - To set the brightness yourself, adjust the slider.
  - To let your device set the lighting, tap Auto.
- To soften shadows: Tap Balance Light.

Adjust brightness or shadows

Important: This feature is available on Pixel 4 and later, including Pixel Fold.

Open the Google Photos app .
Select the photo you want to edit.
Tap Edit Lighting Brightness or Shadows .
- Alternatively, you might need to tap Edit photo Tools Brightness or Shadows .
Adjust the slider to lower or raise "Brightness" or "Shadows."

Use Zoom Enhance

Important: This feature is available for Pixel 8 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL, and Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

Zoom in on an existing photo to make the image more crisp and detailed. You can save the enhanced image as a high-resolution file.

On your Pixel device, open the Google Photos app .
Select the photo you want to edit.
Tap Edit Actions Zoom Enhance.
- Alternatively, you might need to tap Edit photo Tools Zoom Enhance.
- You can scroll through the options to find “Zoom Enhance.”
Zoom in on a certain part of the photo that you’d like enhanced. For best results, zoom in closer to your subject.
Tap Crop and enhance.
- For images from Pixel 8 Pro and 9 Pro that were highly zoomed, to apply the effect without cropping your photo first, tap Enhance details.
To keep the enhanced photo, tap Save copy.

Tip: To compare the enhanced and original images, tap and hold the photo.

Use Magic Eraser to erase or minimize distractions

Important: This feature is available on Pixel 4a and later.

Open the Google Photos app .
Select the photo you want to edit.
Tap Edit Actions Magic Eraser.
- Alternatively, you might need to tap Edit photo Tools Actions.
Tap a suggestion. You can also use the circle or brush to erase more distractions from the photo.
- To make objects blend in with the photo, tap Camouflage and use the brush.
To finish, tap Done.

Use Audio Magic Eraser to reduce unwanted sounds

Important: This feature isn't available on tablets. It's only available on Pixel 8 and later.

To reduce unwanted sounds or to turn up sounds from videos, you can use Audio Magic Eraser on your Pixel phone.

On your Pixel phone, open the Google Photos app .
Tap on the video you want to edit.
At the bottom, tap Edit.
Under "Video," tap Audio eraser.
- To have your phone automatically adjust the video for you, tap Auto.
- To manually adjust sounds, tap on a sound and adjust the slider.
- To adjust the volume of different speakers, adjust the slider for each speaker.
At the bottom right, tap Save copy.

Take Portrait-style photos

Open your Camera app . Learn how.
Tap Portrait Shutter .
- To view the enhanced version, in the bottom right corner, tap the photo.

Tip:

To add a blurred background after you take a photo, tap Edit photo Tools Blur . Then, move the Blur slider.
On the Pixel Tablet, portrait mode is supported only on the front camera.

Use Best Take to improve group photos

Important: This feature is available on Pixel 8 and later.

If someone blinks or looks away in your group photos, Best Take combines similar photos into one photo where everyone looks their best. You can choose your favorite facial expressions for everyone and create your own Best Take.

To edit a photo with Best Take:

Open the Google Photos app .
Open a photo from a sequence of similar photos that includes one or more people.
At the bottom, tap Edit Actions Best Take.
- Alternatively, you might need to tap Edit photo Tools Actions.
- You can scroll through the categories at the bottom to find “Best Take.“
Tap on a face bubble to choose a different expression.
When you’re satisfied, tap Done.

Make edits just by asking in Google Photos

Before you start

Important: This feature isn't available in all regions at this time.

Before you can ask Photos to edit your pictures for you, you must:

Have Face Groups turned on.
In "Preferences" in Google Photos Settings, under "Gemini features in Photos," opt in to:
- Use Gemini in Photos
- Ask Photos
Have your Google Account language set to English (United States).
Be an eligible user in the United States.
Have location estimates enabled. Learn how to manage your photos’ location.

Opt in or out of Ask Photos

Important: If you opt out of Ask Photos, you can no longer ask Google Photos to edit your pictures for you.

On your Android device, open the Google Photos app .
At the top, tap your Profile picture or Initial.
Tap Photos settings Preferences Gemini features in Photos.
Turn Ask Photos on or off.

Tips:

When you opt in to Ask Photos, you may be asked to provide information about people in your photos. Learn how to confirm your face group and label others.
If you can't opt in to Ask Photos with the instructions above, you may not yet be eligible to use this feature. Learn more about Ask Photos eligibility.

Type, say, or describe the edits you want

Important:

This feature uses the images within Face Groups to improve the quality when you edit pictures of your friends and family. Review how Photos uses Gemini models.
This feature is still experimental, so it may provide unexpected or inaccurate results. You can help improve this feature by giving feedback on your results.
The use of this feature is subject to the Google Terms of Service and the Generative AI Prohibited Use Policy.

On your Android device, open the Google Photos app .
Open the photo you want to edit.
Tap Edit Help me edit .
- If you’ve already opted in to Ask Photos: Tap Continue.
- If you haven’t opted in to Ask Photos:
  1. Tap Continue.
  2. Follow the on-screen instructions.
In the text box, type a description of how you want to edit the photo.
- Alternatively, you can tap the Microphone and speak.
Press the Enter button.
Tap Save .