Tomorrow is a sad day for a lot of photo-editing fans. Tomorrow is the very last day that Google's Picnik site will be up and running. I've been using Picnik for several years now, and was very sad to hear that they were closing. I've been trying out a few different alternatives to Picnik, and I've found ways to do pretty much everything I need to do, so I want to share these with you.
First, a little note: If you have used Picnik, be sure to log in today and use their free service, "Picnik Take-Out" to download a zip file of all of your images before they are gone forever. Personally, mine are already backed up on my computer and Carbonite, but some people may want to save the zip file anyway.
Now, on with my findings...
Google + is a close alternative to Picnik, since it's a Google service as well. While maintaining a good portion of the effects from Picnik, Google + is great for people who need basic editing of their photos. You also have the ability to create albums, share photos online, and sync to Picasa.
Picasa is another Google product. Easily install the Picasa software on your computer, then sync with your computer's files to easily store and backup your photos online. If you use Blogger, like I do, this is especially helpful. You simply sync each album in Picasa, then pull them up in Blogger to insert images in your blog posts. Picasa offers a wide variety of photo-editing options, including creating collages and slide shows.
Aviary offers apps for both web-based editing and mobile phone editing. You can send your images directly to Facebook as well, which is a nice feature. You do have to install this app, just like Picasa, rather than using it online only. There are quite a few good photo-editing effects, but I haven't seen if there is a way to create collages or anything like that.
PicMonkey is my new favorite photo-editing site now. I spent some time playing with it lately and really love the ease of use and the beauty of the site itself. You can really do a lot to your images here. I love the multitude of options that are so reminiscent of Picnik, like teeth whitening, blemish removal, etc. There are even several effects that were not available on Picnik. However, at this time, they do not offer the ability to do collages, but according to their site, this is coming soon.
Somewhat Simple recently raved about Ipiccy.com, but I have yet to check it out. You can read her review here.
If you know of other free photo-editing sites, please share in the comments below. I'd love to check them out. I hope this little list will get you started now that we all have to move on from Picnik....
Take care,
I'm really liking the additions to Picassa. There are a lot more filters and settings and you can make collages. I used it to make the Basketball and Ninjago cover picture. I thought it was kinda cool. I've used ipiccy as well, but am for familiar with Picassa. I've also been downloading free fonts that get added to Picassa. Have a great day!
ReplyDeleteYou are so sweet for doing this! Thanks! I am trying not to freak out about loosing my bud, Picnik! Ipiccy seems to have pretty much all that Picnik does... but it ran super slow, for some reason? Have a great day!!
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