Pixlr: like Photoshop, except FREE

So I really want to learn how to use Photoshop, but as I previously mentioned, I have a very old Macbook with an equally old operating system. I am afraid that putting Photoshop on my computer would send it into a panic and cause it to crash or even worse... be any slower.

But once again, with a little help from my friends, I was able to find an alternative photo editing option called Pixlr. Pixlr is a free online photo editing service that has all of the same basic features as Photoshop.  I had a lot of fun playing around with Pixlr and I am sure that my projects barely scratched the surface of all that Pixlr is capable of, so for this post I decided to focus on using Pixlr's lasso tool to make some funny pictures using my friends as models. My friends Chloe and Taara are obsessed with the Hunger Games, so I made pictures of them as Hunger Games characters.

The step-by-step instructions: 

1. Choose your images (If you're like me and wanted to make something funny involving your friends, I suggest perusing Facebook)

2. Select "Create New Image"

3. Open your image in Pixlr (File --> Open Image)

- You can also use a picture from online by doing File --> Open Image URL. This doesn't work for Facebook pictures, which you need to save on your computer

The Original Photos 

- For my picture of my friends as Katniss and Prim, I saved pictures of my friends from Facebook on my computer and then used the URL of the original picture of Prim and Katniss 

4. Use the lasso tool to select the part of the image that you would like to cut out and move to another image 

- For my picture, I used the lasso tool to select my friends' faces 

- Be careful when using the lasso tool because it will select anything you draw around

The lasso tool is the second tool in the right column. 

5. Using the select tool (right above the lasso) drag selected area from one image to the other 

6. Control T to resize it 

7. After I sized the pictures, I played around with the different tools to see if I could do a better job of blending my friends faces into Katniss and Prim's and as you will see, I was only moderately successful. 

- If you hover the mouse over each tool, Pixlr will tell you what it does

- I recommend the spot heal tool (looks like a band aid) and the sponge tool-- both helped blend things together.

8. When I tried to save my image through Pixlr, my old lady computer couldn't handle it and it froze. I had to start over from scratch, so this time I took a screen shot of my final edited image before saving it again, in case it crashed, which it did. So lesson is, screen shot your masterpiece, just in case! 

NOTE: Like Photoshop, Pixlr puts your edited images in layers. So the original picture of Prim and Katniss is the layer 1, then my friends faces are layers 2 & 3. In order to edit their faces, I had to make sure I selected the right layer. The layer tool box is on the right side of the screen. 

This keeps track of the actions you have taken in each layer. 

The finished product: 

Thank you Chloe and Taara!