How To Fix a Pixelated Image In Photoshop
Getting a high-quality image has become a challenge because of all the online image sharing platform or the different camera we use. Noisy and grainy images can ruin the pleasant viewing experience of the audience.
Not everyone gets the chance or requires capturing themselves with professional photographers with professional set up like celebrities. But that doesn’t mean that you will work with any low-resolution photo of yours, right?
Other than not capturing images with a professional camera, you may also get low-resolution or Pixelated photos by resizing them for different social media platforms. Images are a combination of small pixels.
Because of that, when we need to zoom and resize them to use on multiple social platforms. In this process, the pixels get stretched, and the image gets blurry. In this article, we will learn how to fix a Pixelated image in photoshop.
Using Adobe Photoshop, you can fix a Pixelated image in two ways. In this article, I will show you both ways so you can learn both and use them according to your requirements. In the first method, we will work with sharpness and blurriness. So with no delay let’s get started,
Method 1: Using The Sharpness Tool
Adobe Photoshop is the uncontroversial ruler of photos editing, but it requires a great deal of money to purchase. This program may therefore do so much for your images, that the cost would seem less to you. It takes only a second to repair Pixelated images, despite a relatively steep gradient for several Photoshop features.
Step 1: Insert your Pixelated image in photoshop.
Step 2: Now change the image size by Image→ Image Size or you can hold and press Ctrl+Alt+I. As the Pixelated images are low resolution to edit them we need to increase the image size.
Increasing the image size may cause a blurry effect. We will work on that later.
Step 3: So after selecting the image size, a window will pop up like the image below. Change the size according to your image requirement.
Step 4: Then we need to create a duplicate layer. To do that, go to Layer→ Duplicate Layer or you can hold and press Ctrl+J.
The reason we create a duplicate layer is if we messed up in between our editing, our original file remains intact, and we can start again.
Step 5: Now select the duplicate layer we have just created and go to Filter→ Blur→ Surface Blur. A window will appear and there adjust the blur of your image by changing the value of Radius and Threshold.
Step 6: After adjusting the blur now, we will adjust the sharpness. Go to Filter→ Sharpen→ Smart Sharpen. Adjust the sharpness of your image using the sliding bars.
Step 7: In the second step, we increase the image size, which creates a blurry effect. In this step, we will reduce that, and do that we need to add a layer mask to it like below.
Add a layer mask, invert it, and use the brush tool to reduce the blurriness.
Step 8: Now it’s time to fix the color balance. If your image has the exact color you want, then you can skip this step. To fix the color balance got to Adjustment Layer→ Color Balance and a window will appear.
Play with the settings until you found the color you want. After getting your preferred color balance, we are done with fixing our Pixelated image.
Step 9: It’s time to save it and to do that, go to File→ Save As. Give the file an appropriate name and save it wherever you want.
Method 2: Using The Noise Reduction Tool
It is almost similar to the first one except in the first method we used the sharpen tool and in this method, we will use the noise reduction tool instead of the sharpen tool and “Gaussian Blur” instead of “Surface Blur”.
Follow the steps of the previous method until Step 4. After doing all of that, see the below steps to move further.
Step 5: If you finish step 4 of the previous method, then you will get a duplicate layer of your image. Now got to Filter→ Blurr→ Gaussian Blurr. See the image below to get an obvious idea.
Step 6: Then again, go to Filter→ Noise→ Despeckle and play with the settings until you get the best result for your image.
Photoshop Sharpen Tool vs Noise Reduction Tool
So we have seen two methods of fixing a Pixelated image in photoshop, but which one is better? Well, it depends on your personal interest as people will use different images and few images will look better-using method one and few will look good with method 2.
But as a professional image editing expert, I would suggest you go for method one, as most of the images will look better using it.
Free Photoshop Action To Fix The Pixelated Image
We have created a photoshop action based on the first method, and we are happy to say that we will give you that for free. But first Let me give you an idea of photoshop actions. Photoshop actions are a combination or a set of photoshop editing process that helps you to achieve the desired result with just one click.
All you need to install the photoshop action in your Adobe Photoshop CC, click on the play button, and BOOM! Your image is ready. Download the Photoshop action and start fixing your Pixelated images with just one click. If you don’t know how to install a Photoshop action, then see our YouTube video tutorial below.
The settings we used are compatible with our image, and it may not suit yours properly. In that case, play with the settings and find the sweet spot for your image.
Final Verdict
Pixelated images can ruin your amazingly captured images. Hopefully, after reading this article, you learn how to fix a Pixelated image in photoshop. Use our Photoshop actions to fix your low-resolution images with one click.
Bordie Capron
Author
“Bordie Capron is a Sr. Content Maker who is working in The Clipping Path Service an US-based image and video post-production company for over 7+ years. She completed her degree in graphic designing and worked as a graphic designing expert for several years. She always loved writing”
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