How to Edit an Image Inside Google Docs

Editing images directly within Google Docs can save you time and hassle. While the image editing capabilities may not be as advanced as specialized software like Photoshop, you can still make basic adjustments to images in your documents right within Google Docs.

In this article, I’ll walk you through the step-by-step process for editing images in Google Docs. Whether you want to crop, resize, recolor, or make other quick changes to images, this guide has you covered.

Step 1: Insert an Image into your Google Doc

Before you can edit an image, you first need to insert one into your document. Here’s how:

1. Open the Google Docs document where you want to insert the image.
2. Click Insert > Image in the top menu bar.
3. In the dialog box, select Upload from computer to choose an image file from your computer.
4. Navigate to the image you want and select it.
5. Click Select once you’ve chosen your image file.

The image will now be inserted into your document at full size.

Step 2: Click on the Image to Activate Editing Tools

To edit an image, you first need to click on it to activate the editing toolbar.

1. Hover your mouse over the image and click once. You’ll see the image become outlined in blue with resize handles on the corners and sides.
2. In the top menu bar, click Format > Image options to view editing options.

Step 3: Crop the Image

One of the most common image edits is cropping. Here’s how to crop an image in Google Docs:

1. With the image selected, click Crop image in the sidebar menu.
2. Click and drag the handles on the corners and sides of the image to adjust the crop area.
3. Resize and reposition the crop area as needed.
4. Click outside the image or press Enter when finished to apply the crop.

Cropping allows you to cut out unnecessary outer portions of an image to hone in on the most relevant part.

Step 4: Resize the Image

In addition to cropping, you can resize images in Google Docs to make them smaller or larger:

1. With the image selected, click and drag one of the corner handles to resize.
2. Hold the Shift key while resizing to retain proportionate dimensions.
3. Use the size fields in the sidebar to enter an exact width and height in pixels.
4. Click outside the image when finished resizing.

Resizing images helps them better fit your document’s layout and visual hierarchy.

Step 5: Recolor the Image

Google Docs also enables you to alter the colors of an image:

1. With the image selected, go to Recolor in the sidebar menu.
2. Click the color square to open a color picker, then select a new color.
3. Drag the Intensity slider to control the saturation of the new color.
4. Click Apply to preview the recolor effect.

Recoloring in this way adds a color tint over the whole image. Think old-school Instagram filters.

Step 6: Make Adjustments

For more advanced edits, head to the Adjustments section:

• Brightness: Makes the image appear lighter or darker.
• Contrast: Increases or decreases the image’s contrast.
• Transparency: Makes the image more opaque or transparent.
• Reset image: Reverts changes to the original image.

Use small increments when adjusting these settings to avoid overediting.

Step 7: Add Borders

Borders can help images stand out:

1. Click Border color in the sidebar to open the color picker.
2. Choose a border color and width.
3. Select a line dash type like solid, dotted, or dashed.
4. Click outside the image to apply borders.

Experiment with different border styles to complement your images.

Step 8: Save the Edited Image

To save your edited image to your computer:

1. Right click on the image in Google Docs.
2. Choose Save image as from the pop-up menu.
3. Enter a file name and change the folder location if desired.
4. Click Save.

The image will download with all your edits applied.

Conclusion

And there you have it—the essential guide to editing images in Google Docs. With just a few tweaks, you can crop, resize, recolor, and adjust images to take your documents to the next level visually.

The built-in editing tools may be basic, but they allow you to make quick changes without having to export images and open them in another program. Give it a try with your next document!