- Basic Cropping
- Auto-Cropping to Standard Sizes
- Cropping to an Exact Custom Size
- Cropping into a Shape
- Fixing Problems with Perspective Crop
- Using the Crop Tool to Add More Canvas Area
- Auto-Cropping Gang-Scanned Photos
- Straightening Photos with the Straighten Tool
- Resizing Photos
- Resizing and How to Reach Those Hidden Free Transform Handles
- Making Your Photos Smaller (Downsizing)
- Automated Saving and Resizing
- Resizing Just Parts of Your Image Using the Recompose Tool
Auto-Cropping to Standard Sizes
If you’re outputting photos for clients, chances are they’re going to want them in standard sizes so they can easily find frames to fit. If that’s the case, here’s how to crop your photos to a predetermined size (like a 5x7″, 8x10″, etc.):
Step One:
Open an image in the Elements Editor that you want to crop to be a perfect 5x7″ for a vertical image, or 7x5″ if your image is horizontal. Press C to get the Crop tool, then go to the Tool Options Bar and click on the words “No Restriction” in the pop-up menu. From the list of preset crop sizes, choose 5x7 in. (Note: To hide the Rule of Thirds overlay grid, click on the None icon on the right side of the Tool Options Bar.)
Step Two:
Now click-and-drag the Crop tool over the portion of the photo that you want to be 7x5″ (if your image is vertical, Elements will automatically adjust your border to 5x7″. I made the rulers visible here by pressing Ctrl-Shift-R [Mac: Command-Shift-R]). While dragging, you can press-and-hold the Spacebar to adjust the position of your border, if needed.
Step Three:
Once it’s set, press the Enter (Mac: Return) key and the area inside your cropping border will become 7x5″ (as shown here).