Photo-Editor

Photo editing is the process of usng a photo editor for changing photographs, such as resizing, cropping, removing "Red Eye". Some people actully change the picture, by removing unwanted objects, or even, putting objects in the picture! Some common (and even free) editors are pic nik, photobucket, Paint, etc.

This section covers photo editing and editing of other graphics. Photo editing normally refers to "removing red eye" from photographs, resizing pictures, lightening and darkening and so on.

Cropping an image

Digital editors are used to crop images. Cropping creates a new image by selecting a desired rectangular portion from the image being cropped. The unwanted part of the image is discarded. Image cropping does not reduce the resolution of the area cropped. Best results are obtained when the original image has a high resolution. A primary reason for cropping is to improve the image composition in the new image.

Removal of unwanted elements

Most image editors can be used to remove unwanted branches, etc, using a "clone" tool. Removing these distracting elements draws focus to the subject, improving overall composition.

see branch in top of picture ................................. branch gone!

Unedited Photo	Brightness, Contrast and Cropping changed

In the above, I changed the brightness and contrast, and also cropped out some of the scene, to get a better view of the brightly colored shop.

For complete definition of Image-Editing from Wikipedia

Free Photo Editors

Paint.NET	GIMP for Windows
Paint.net is between a basic image manipulation applications like Microsoft Paint, and robust big guys like Photoshop. It's not meant to stand in as a free substitute for Photoshop—Gimp aims to fill those shoes. With its layers and magic wand, it could be considered a "Photoshop Lite"—very lite. So if you need an easy-to-use photo editor that Paint.net is a good selection, if you can overlook some of the shortcomings.	GIMP isn't for lightweights. It's designed for those with photo editing experience It is near the level of its target, Adobe Photoshop, in power, but not in terms of interface and convenience. But being free, many users will sacrifice to save $700.
Picnik	Serif PhotoPlus
This is a free Web-based image editor that is easy to use. It can create collages and share pictures on popular social networking destinations—from any Web-connected PC. Picnik make photo editing without thick manuals, Picnik may be more your speed than something likeAdobe Photoshop  .There is a charge for using some of the more advanced features, and you can't open photos directly from the desktop, but Picnik is still a very capable photo editing app.	PhotoPlus Starter Edition is the amazing free digital photo editing software from Serif. This version is 100% free and is yours to keep so download it now and start editing and enhancing your photos.
Windows Live Photo Gallery 2011
A free version of an on-line photo editor, that is free and pretty good. Works with Windows Vist and Windows 7, and not XP. see PC Magazine Review of Windows Live Photo Editor for a full review. Also see Wikipedia on Windows Live Photo Gallery for more info.

Free Photo Editors Review - from About.com

If you are new to photo editing, the above are free to try, and I've used each of these, and I learned from each. And I didn't really feel a strong need to buy an editor, until I took photograhy classes, and also watching my wife creating stuff for her greeting cards, and other things she does!

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Commercially Available Photo Editors

Corel Paintshop Pro X4	Adobe Photoshop Elements	ACDSee Pro V4
Corel has been in the graphics business for a long time, and I've seen them in commercial shops, but usually as "second fiddle" to Adobe Photoshop. But Corel is ,preferred by some photographers, because it is "easier". My guess is, that they may have started with Corel, and feel it is more comfortable.	This is popular, because it is inexpensive, and has many features of its big brother (Adobe Photoshop) and it does a lot, at least for amateur photographers.	A professional quality package that challenges Adobe. Offers some desirable features that others don't.
	PhotoStudio
Serif Photo Plus	Adobe Photoshop CS5 Extended	Adobe Photoshop CS5 Extended Student-Teacher Version
PhotoPlus is a powerful photo editor, at a generally lower price. Very handy tutorials, and a lot of function. Works well with other Serif Products, such as PagePlus CraftArtist.	Adobe Photoshop is the professional's must have editor. It is expensive, and needs very good video card(s), very fast CPU. I call it "the gold standard".	You need to prove that you are a student or teacher, for this version, and it has some limitations

My wife and I have used several of these, and I am currently Testing Serif products. These are good, affordable, and have great tutorials to help to learn the different functions! Norm

Photo Editor Reviews - PC Magazine

This is a comprehensive review, that looks pretty good to me, and includes even more photo editors, that I've never seen!