The 5 Fastest, Easiest Tools to Overlay Pictures—No Download Required

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Learn how to use free photo editing tools to merge and blend photos
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This wikiHow teaches you how to place one image on top of another using free software on your Windows or Mac computer. Overlaying pictures can involve anything from placing one picture on top of another picture to creating a collage of several different images.

Overlay Pictures on Android, iPhone, Mac, PC

PineTools and Canva are free web-based apps that make it easy to overlay and blend multiple photos from any device, including your PC, Mac, Android, and iPhone! GIMP is a free tool that has similar features and controls as Adobe Photoshop, including the ability to combine photos.

Method 1
Method 1 of 4:

Using PineTools

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  1. Go to pinetools.com/overlay-images on your computer's web browser. You can do this on any device, even your Android or iPhone!
    • PineTools is a website that can overlay simple photos without requiring installation or complicated menu options.
  2. Click Choose file under the "MAIN IMAGE" heading, then select the photo you want to use as your main photo and click Open .
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  3. Click Choose file on the right side of the page below the "SECONDARY IMAGE" heading, then select the photo you want to use and click Open . You should see the photo appear on top of the first photo.
  4. You'll find this on the left side of the page, below the "MAIN IMAGE" section.
  5. It's in the "OPTIONS" section. A "Transparency" slider should appear below the checkbox.
  6. This will cause the overlaid photo to appear transparent.
    • You may have to drag the slider over to the 70% mark (or more) to achieve your desired effect.
  7. For example, if you want to center the second image in the middle of the main image, you'd check one or both of the "Center" boxes.
  8. It's a green button at the bottom of the page. Doing so will combine your uploaded pictures with your selected settings.
  9. In the "OUTPUT IMAGE" section on the right side of the page, you should see the image as it appears using your selected options.
    • You can adjust your options and then click PROCESS again to redo the final image.
  10. Click either PNG or JPG in the "OUTPUT IMAGE" section to download your overlayed photo as either a PNG file or a JPG file, respectively.
    • You can also click WEBP to download the file in web publishing format.
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Method 2
Method 2 of 4:

Using Canva

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  1. 1
    Open Canva in a web browser. Go to canva.me/overlay-images and log in to open a new canvas in Canva. You can create a picture overlay using any device, like your PC or Mac computer, tablet, or smartphone.
  2. 2
    Click Upload . You need to upload at least 2 pictures to create an overlay.
    • If you don't see this button, click the Uploads tab on the left side of your browser window.
    • Use the file manager that opens to find your images, then double-click to begin uploading them.
  3. 3
    Create the overlay. Click on a picture from the "Uploads" section on the left side of your screen to add it to the canvas. You need to add at least two (2) images to create an overlay.
  4. 4
    Right-click an image and hover your mouse over Layer . You'll be able to choose more overlay options, like bringing it forward or back. These are useful if you accidentally layered the bottom picture on top.
  5. 5
    Click Transparency and drag the slider to the left. You'll see the "Transparency" option in the toolbar above the canvas between Flip and Animate.
    • It's the icon that looks like a checkerboard that fades to the right.
  6. 6
    Embellish your design with additional Canva tools. You can experiment with the different tools available to you for free from Canva by browsing the menus to the left of the web browser page. You can add text, shapes, colors, and more.
  7. 7
    Click Share . You'll see this button in the top right corner of the browser page.
    • If you want to keep the image on your computer, click Download and select a file type. PNG is recommended.
    • You can also share the link so anyone can see your creation.
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Method 3
Method 3 of 4:

Using GIMP

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  1. This is a free photo-editing software that you can install on Mac or PC. If you don't already have it, download it now.
    • Windows — Go to gimp.org/downloads/ , click Download GIMP directly , double-click the downloaded setup file, and follow the on-screen instructions.
    • Mac — Go to gimp.org/downloads/ in your computer's web browser, click the appropriate link ( Intel or Apple Silicon ), double-click the DMG file, click and drag the GIMP logo onto the "Applications" folder, and follow any additional instructions.
      • On a Mac, you may need to verify the installation before you can install GIMP.
        • Using GIMP is more complicated than using a web-browser photo-editor like PineTools or Canva. You should only use this method if you need more editing capabilities than other services offer.
  2. This should be the photo you plan on overlaying on top of your base photo:
    • Click File.
    • Click Open...
    • Select the photo.
    • Click Open.
  3. This will allow you to save the cropped portion of your photo as clip art rather than as a cropped photo on a white background:
    • Click Layers.
    • Select Transparency.
    • Click Add Alpha Channel.
  4. Either press "M" on your computer's keyboard, or do the following:
    • Click Tools.
    • Select Selection Tools.
    • Click Free Select.
  5. Click and drag your mouse around the section of the photo that you want to add to your base photo.
    • Repeatedly clicking in a line around the selection instead of dragging will help achieve greater accuracy.
    • You'll need to connect the end of the line to the beginning of the line before you can continue.
  6. To highlight everything but the section you want to keep, press M to select the section, then press either Ctrl + I (Windows) or ⌘ Command + I (Mac).
  7. Press Del on a Windows computer, or press ⌘ Command + X on a Mac. You should see everything but the selected portion of the photo disappear, leaving behind a checkerboard background.
  8. Since you want to save this photo as a GIMP file rather than as a JPG or PNG, you'll use the Save As feature:
    • Click File.
    • Click Save As...
    • Enter a filename, then select the same save location as your base photo.
    • Click Save.
  9. Click the X in the top-right corner of the project window (top-left corner on Mac) to do so. The GIMP window should remain open and blank while the photo disappears. At this point, you can proceed with overlaying your pictures.
    • Now that you've cropped the pictures, you can overlay them.
  10. Using the dimensions from the photo that you found earlier, open a new project:
    • Click File.
    • Click New...
    • Adjust the "Width" and "Height" text fields.
    • Click OK.
  11. By opening both photos as layers, you'll be able to align them with each other:
    • Click File.
    • Click Open as Layers…
    • Select your pictures' location on the left side.
    • Hold down Ctrl (Windows) or ⌘ Command (Mac) while clicking photo names.
    • Click Open.
  12. To readjust the cropped layer's position, do the following:
    • Click Tools.
    • Click Transform Tools.
    • Click Move.
    • Click and drag the cropped layer.
  13. If you want to change the size of the cropped photo, do the following:
    • Click Tools.
    • Select Transform Tools.
    • Click Scale.
    • Select your cropped layer.
    • Click and drag the layer to resize it.
    • Click Scale.
  14. If your intention was to create an image in which you place another image to make it seem like the second image was part of the first image, you can proceed with flattening and exporting your project .
    • If you want to create a collage with different transparencies, proceed to the next part.
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Method 4
Method 4 of 4:

Creating a Collage with GIMP

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  1. Press either Ctrl + L (Windows) or ⌘ Command + L (Mac) to do so. The Layers window will pop up in the upper-left side of the screen; you should see both the base photo and the cropped layer appear in the photo.
  2. Click the layer preview that corresponds to your cropped layer.
  3. At the top of the Layers window, click the downward-facing arrow to lower the opacity of the cropped layer.
    • You may have to lower the opacity to 20 (or lower) to achieve your desired effect.
  4. Click the Image tab, then click Flatten Image in the resulting drop-down menu. This will combine all of the photos' layers into one image.
    • This step is necessary before you can export the image to an image file.
  5. This will allow you to save the image as a JPG or PNG file:
    • Click File.
    • Click Export...
    • Enter a filename.
    • Select a save folder.
    • Click Export.
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  • Question
    What software did you use in this article?
    Community Answer
    The steps used are fairly universal to photo editing software, but it appears to be Photoshop.
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      Warnings

      • It's illegal to use copyrighted images that aren't yours and to claim them as your own. Ensure that any overlays comply with legal and ethical standards before using them. [1]
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      References

      1. ↑ https://fastercapital.com/topics/respecting-copyright-and-intellectual-property-rights.html

      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      1. Open GIMP.
      2. Open the photo you want to place on top.
      3. Crop the photo.
      4. Add an alpha channel.
      5. Select the part of the image you want to keep.
      6. Create a new blank canvas the size of the base.
      7. Open the base photo and cropped photo.
      8. Arrange both photos on the blank canvas.

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