I don’t want to pay for anything I can get for free, especially photo editing software which probably has features I don’t need or know how to use. I began looking for a free online photo editor that would help me “clean-up” some of the old family photos my mother had stored.

I found, and fell in love with Picnik. Unfortunately, I came to the Picnik a little too late and our time together was extremely short. I was not aware they had been purchased by Google, who shut them down last month after integrating Picnik’s tools into Google+.

What I loved about Picnik was that it had a lot of options, but was super easy to use. I’ve had just enough experience with Photoshop to be dangerous, and while that background probably gave me some extra *finesse using a photo editor, it wasn’t necessary to use Picnik. I wish we’d had more time together, because I still have a LOT of photos to edit!

I’ve been researching other free options and PicMonkey seems to be the heir apparent. I’m still carrying a torch for Picnik, but I’m warming up to PicMonkey. They have many of the same features, and the feel is the same. The blog Musings from a Stay at Home Mom provides a pretty good overview of PicMonkey. Check it out if you’re trying to replace Picnik!

My photo editing finesse level: 
Novice    Advanced beginner   Competent        Proficient        Expert      

What’s your photo editing finesse level?

*finesse (skill, flair, grace elegance, poise, assurance)