Microsoft Photos is a useful app for organizing and editing images, available free from Microsoft Store.
Automatic Face Retrieval uses facial recognition technology to automatically organize photos and videos by people. Although this feature may raise privacy issues, you have the ability to disable it through Settings.
This software supports various file formats and offers a simple user-friendly interface, providing image editors with tools such as cropping, rotating, filter options and light/color adjustments to enhance image editing capabilities.
Features
Microsoft’s Photos app for Windows 10 is an intuitive media management solution with plenty of features and ease-of-use. It automatically syncs content from PC, OneDrive and any source folder you specify (it supports popular RAW formats such as Canon.CR3 and Nikon.NEF). Furthermore, this tool boasts auto-generated albums and slideshow videos which can be shared using links as well as facial grouping technology for easy search (you can switch this off in Settings).
The interface is user-friendly with a main Collection view that sorts by date, Album viewer views nested within it, Photo viewer views and Folders mode that displays images by their hard drive location. Each mode provides its own search box at the top, along with a bar on the left-hand side displaying contextual items based on what mode you are in. Click “Edit” to open up Image editing tools such as filter applications, lighting adjustments and cropping features.
On the right-hand side of the screen are various controls which you can use to quickly select and act upon multiple files at once, such as copying or deleting them. This batch-selection feature makes working with large groups much simpler. There are also handy sliders which make modifying multiple factors simple such as “Light” and “Color”, which adjust highlights, shadows and saturation (with zero being greyscale and 100 being overly colourful).
Create animations and videos from still photos is another extremely helpful feature, similar to Google Photos; with effects like rain or snow available. Furthermore, this app enables you to draw on photos, doodle around them as well as add 3D effects – great for quick sharing content. This function makes this feature especially handy for casual users looking for quick solutions to turn photos into shareable content quickly.
Importing
Microsoft Photos offers various methods for you to import images from devices or external storage systems into its software, such as Windows File Explorer and OneDrive, but its inbuilt feature may be faster.
To import photos from a camera, USB flash drive, or any other device onto your PC, connect using an appropriate cable and use the search box on the taskbar to type “photos”. Once open, type in “photos” to open up the Photos app; once opened select Import from the App bar; your device should show up under Devices then choose it from Devices then Import before choosing your content and folder to import into. If you would like them deleted from their original device post import simply check “Delete Items After Import”.
If you are using an iPhone to import photos and videos, the Photos app requires access to them in order to do its work. When beginning an import session from an iPhone, the Photos app will ask you for access permission before beginning to import images – failing which, none will be imported! If this occurs and no permissions are granted then none of your pictures will be imported into Photos.
In addition to external devices, Windows 10’s Photos app enables you to import images and videos stored locally. In order to do this, sign into Windows with your Microsoft account and have OneDrive installed on your device; after doing this, OneDrive will synchronize files between both computers allowing for access within either Photos app or File Explorer.
If you’re having difficulties importing photos from an iPhone or other device, reboot both it and the computer first. If this doesn’t help, consider downloading a third-party tool to simplify the process or using an online photo converter that converts HEIC format files onto JPG or PNG files compatible with most Windows software – an especially helpful solution if importing multiple photos at once.
Editing
Though Photos provides some basic editing tools, more experienced users may require a third-party program for more complex photo editing needs. Nevertheless, this program may still prove helpful for certain tasks and boasts several unique touches that will please the eye.
The Edit Image menu offers options to crop and resize images, as well as play all images within a folder as a slideshow – this feature makes working quickly on several images easier!
One useful feature is the one-click fix option, which analyzes and makes some basic adjustments to photos in just a single click. It may help sharpen blurry photos while improving brightness and contrast levels as well.
If you want to add additional details to an image, use the Markup menu item and then either the line (plain line or with an arrow) or highlighter tools from there to draw on it – with colors and sizes of selections set within the menu itself.
This app also offers several other editing features. For instance, its crop and rotate options let you trim away unwanted parts or adjust dimensions as necessary. Furthermore, you can rotate photos left or right by 90 degrees or flip them up or down by an equal amount.
Under the Adjustments menu, you can modify both the light and color of a photo. Light and Color sliders let you control aspects such as contrast, highlights, shadows and saturation – from black-and-white images up to vivid ones with 100 being most vibrant. In addition, clarity settings can be modified and images given vignetting effects.
Microsoft Photos offers several extra features not found elsewhere, including red eye removal by clicking on the eye icon and choosing from available options; angle correction with Straighten; and light video editing–though this might not be suitable if shooting high-quality videos on DSLR cameras.
Sharing
Microsoft Photos is a user-friendly app designed to let you view, organize, edit and share your images and videos easily. Thanks to cloud storage features that let you save files anywhere with Internet connectivity, its advanced editing options cater to novice and expert users alike while its batch select feature enables deletion or duplication in an effortless fashion – not forgetting its Chromecast support as an added perk!
Microsoft has taken great strides in simplifying its app for those newer to photo editing programs, with its UI now more user-friendly and intuitive than ever. Album and Folder modes now make image sorting much simpler; users can even create their own albums to help organize photos further; plus there is now a “Collection” tab which automatically sorts them by date!
One of the key features in this version is its integration between your phone’s camera roll and Microsoft Photos library, so you can see recent images and videos on both platforms simultaneously. It’s a welcome addition to the features set of this app and works smoothly once activated through settings menu.
The app also makes it easy to import photos and videos from a USB drive or other storage locations accessible by Windows. Simply select the Import From USB option in the Photos app’s top-right corner; this will scan for media on the USB drive before listing its content for selection before offering Import Selected as an option.
Users can set Microsoft Photos as their default picture viewer by making it their default in their computer’s settings. This will cause all image files to open within this program if no other app has already been set as such, making this app particularly helpful when working with image files frequently. It can also be opened directly from their taskbar or Windows search box.
