Photo editors these days have advanced to a point where it is now easier than every before to modify the photos you take on your favorite device. What’s more, quite a few of these apps are available across a range of different platforms including the web, with lots of the same functionality.
It used to be the case that you would require a desktop or laptop computer in order to edit photos in a professional manner, or even in any matter since handling large images wasn’t always a possibility. These days however, an iPad can do just about anything though, for the amateur photographer, it’s worth considering downloading a handful of different apps or suites in order to give you all the tools you need when editing your photos.
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What are they best photo editors out there for the iPad, then? More specifically, what are the best photo editors out there right now that have been updated to roll with the current times, offering the kind of features and functionality that the users of 2016 are looking out for?
8. SKRWT ($1.99)
Let’s start by looking at one of the tools I often turn to as an amateur photogapher when modifying photos on my iPad. SKRWT presens a fairly simple premise: that is, to correct lens distortion with a single swipe. The premise is simple and so is the execution, since it takes a matter of seconds in order to fix shots that might not have initially seemed so distorted to you. If you are snapping photos with your iPhone or iPad, then it’s likely you’ll have some distortion. SKRWT is there to fix this, and can be used alongside other photo editors in order to bring you the full package. There are also more precise settings if you want to delve deeper, including things like ratio settings, vignette correction and much more. – Download from iTunes
7. Faded ($0.99)
Faded is another excellent entry in today’s crowded market of enhanced photo editors that bring pro level tools to your smartphone or mobile device. This one gives you a variety of different tools, the main ones of which are manual controls, a variety of different overlays, and full access to your adjustment history. This is particularly useful because it means you can easily undo any mistakes you’ve made, and quickly jump back and forth between changes that have been made to your photos. There are also some great customizable sharing features which makes publishing your content a whole lot easier. – Download from iTunes
6. SKEW ($0.99)
Mentioned previously, SKWRT is a great little tool for making small and simple modifications, in that case fixing the lens distortion on your photos. SKEW is another of these apps, giving you the opportunity to edit things like lens distortion, rotation and perspective and just basically putting things right in the most painless way possible. Apps such as this are simple but I’ve found are absolutely indispensible when it comes to accessing and modifying your photos, whether you are an amateur or pro photographer. Simply open the file in SKEW, edit it without losing quality and then pass it off to another photo editing suite with more capabilities. – Download from iTunes
5. Litely (Free)
We love Litely, which is an app that I’d like to think is named after its lightweight interface and minimalistic UI. I’ve read somewhere that Litely is an app that puts photos before tools, which I think is probably a good summation. There are a lot of great settings to pick from here, but the emphasis is on the photos themselves and how these photos look. This is why the preview function of Litely is so great, since it simply fills the screen with the photo that you’re editing, and then splits the photo in half diagonally to show you what it looks like now, and what it will look like once you’ve made the proposed changes. Still, despite this emphasis on the photos rather than a wealth of settings, there are in fact 75 different filters here to choose from and a range of other great tools. – Download from iTunes
4. Snapseed (Free)
Snapseed is the snappy option, and is overflowing with fantastic tools for when it comes to editing your photos. Many of these tools are indeed presets, such as the range of different filters it offers. We came up with this particular Top 8 list in reference to the modern photo editors you can find out there today on the App Store, and Snapseed is certainly among this pack. The filters in particular, of different varieties such as “Vintage” and “Grainy film”. The interface is fairly simple, with a plus sign that you tap in order to add an edit. If there’s one thing that can become frustrating when you’re using many of these iPad photo editors, it’s that they don’t support non-destructive edits. This means that every change you make is permanent. Snapseed is one of the apps that does support non-destructive edits, meaning that you can make alterations and hit undo if you wish. – Download from iTunes
3. VSCO (Free)
If you’re an amateur photographer seeking inspiration through the photo apps you use for your mobile device, then VSCO Cam is worth checking out. The app has a great network of users, known as the VSCO Grid, upon which you can publish your photos and that can be accessed for curated content from amateur and pro photographers alike. It’s therefore an excellent way to find inspiration through your app, rather than seeking the kind of images that can give you ideas on sites like Pinterest or Tumblr. VSCO is also a very able photo editor, of course, with a range of different filters or presets that can turn the average snap into something a lot more special. – Download from iTunes
2. Pixelmator (Free)
Pixelmator is one of the very best full-featured photo editors for the Mac, and much of these pro tools and this depth of functionality is transferred over to the iOS version on the iPad. The great thing about Pixelmator is that, despite some great tools that are very complicated, it doesn’t really have much in the way of a learning curve. This means that if you’re new to mobile photo editing apps, or indeed new to photography in general and its terminology, it won’t take you long to pick all this stuff up. There’s also Handoff support here, which means that you can start editing on your Mac and then seamlessly pass this editing process of to your iPad so as to continue working. – Download from iTunes
1. Adobe Photoshop Lightroom (Free)
If you’re an Adobe user, either with the Creative Cloud or just through Photoshop on your Mac or Windows PC, Lightroom for the iPad is an excellent option. Yes, it might be a little more complicated than your average iOS photo editor, but it won’t take savvy users much time to pick things up. The only downside is that you need a Creative Cloud subscription in order to se the app, but the benefits of doing so are very much worth the effort and the cost. No matter what device you use to edit your photos, and no matter what Adobe product, they will be constantly updated and accessible from everywhere. – Download from iTunes