Six visual tools to help you create stunning images
Visual content is more than forty times more likely to get shared on social media than other types of content. Fact. That’s a statistic which is pretty hard to ignore. So the next time you create a beautifully crafted piece of written content, whether it be a tweet, a blog post or a report, team it with an image and watch the engagement soar.
In this blog post, Rosie and Zoë review six tools that they have used first hand to create all types of different images.
1. Canva
Whether for professional or personal use, Canva is a free design tool that is suitable for both beginners and advanced users alike. Canva boasts design templates and layouts for a vast array of occasions, from posters, invitations, cards, website graphics, or even multiple-page presentations. With free graphics, pictures, backgrounds and icons, as well as the option to upload your own, the site also automatically features the correct image sizes for each social media platform.
Great for saving time as well as encouraging creativity, I love how you can upload your own image and then customise it with the tools and graphics on offer. I’m also surprised by how much on the site is free with no tricks or annoying sign-up windows disturbing your work. Canva has themes and special templates ready made for various occasions too, such as Valentine’s Day, Christmas or Easter which come in handy for something a bit different.
Some of the better images, as you might expect, can be purchased, as well as some of the more visually impressive backgrounds and graphics, usually priced at $1 per use. Whilst it wouldn’t break the bank for the odd use, I feel that with the amount of free options available it seems unnecessary.
Pickle Jar Rating: 9/10
(Zoë)
2. Piktochart
If you have a lot of text to include in your image, then Piktochart is for you. The tool lets you create fancy infographics, posters, presentations and reports with ease, offers at least 10 free themes for each style and has a handy tutorial to start you off.
I love the huge selection of icons available which you can use to really add personality to your data. There is a great search tool so you can find exactly what you want. Most of the components can have their colour changed, meaning you can customise your infographic in your company colours.
On the negative side, I found the graphs and charts quite hard to use. But with a bit of persistence, you can achieve some decent results.
Do bear in mind, unless you have an upgraded account (Lite $15/Pro $29 – both per month), your designs will have a watermark.
Pickle Jar Rating: 8/10
(Rosie)
3. Pablo
For something straightforward, Pablo (by Buffer) may be the right image design tool for your needs. Its clean appearance and use of white space allows for an attractive platform to create simple images. With the ability to upload your own graphics and add typography, it also has the various image sizes necessary for Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter.
My favourite part of this tool is the ability to search for an image on the site rather than having to externally source one to then upload. I also like that it offers random quotes to overlay on the images, although it is difficult to search for specific quotes or themes.
The downside (or upside for some) is that this tool is rather basic in comparison with some of the others such as Canva, for example, and doesn’t give you access to fun graphics or icons to additionally insert onto your image.
The entire tool is free, therefore making it suitable for even the smallest budgets.
Pickle Jar Rating: 7/10
(Zoë)
4. Infogr.am
Don’t let your data, figures and facts get lost in a sea of words. By visualising your content and creating an infographic, the reader can absorb important information much more easily.
Is Infogr.am the tool to do this? I’m not so convinced. Infogr.am is very restrictive in terms of design as elements can only be placed in a single column. They desperately want you to upgrade to a paid account (three levels priced at $19/$67/$350 a month), so they limit you on customising certain characteristics, including font size. The free version makes it very difficult to create something unique to sit with your brand.
On the other hand, a stand-out feature is the interactive map option. If you’re wanting to show off data collected from around the world, you can input your figures and customise your chosen map with colours. This can be a stand-alone graphic or added into an infographic. Additionally, they have an analytics tab where you can see how your infographics are performing which would be useful for those who want to monitor audience reach.
Pickle Jar Rating: 5/10
(Rosie)
5. Pixlr
Not got the budget to buy Photoshop? Pixlr is the perfect alternative. This handy tool can also be used on your mobile and desktop as well as a web browser, meaning designing images on the move has never been easier.
The web browser is my go to option. It’s got an ‘Express’ tool for a quick fix where you can use basic editing tools, overlay text, add filters and much more. Here you can create an image in a matter of minutes. The ‘Photo Editor’ is definitely for the more advanced user. Its interface looks very similar to Photoshop and has comparable features such as being able to layer, superimpose and interpolate images.
I struggle to find any negatives with Pixlr and even if you get stuck, there are loads of useful tutorial out there on the web.
Pickle Jar Rating: 8/10
(Rosie)
6. Snapseed
A great mobile-only photo editing tool that adds extra quality to an image on the go. With an array of tools to boost the overall image such as sharpen, straighten and saturation, Snapseed also boasts the ability to edit selective areas, without compromising other parts of the overall image. It also provides a choice of image filters and at each stage of the editing process, the changes can not only be tracked, but also compared to the original image, and very simply undone.
The touch-based sliding scale which is used to edit images is an excellent feature, as well as the corrective tool allowing for more specific and detailed corrections and edits with saturation, contrast and brightness.
Its downside is that it cannot be used on a desktop, but as its purpose is for more on-the-go editing which it does very well, there aren’t really any other faults I can pick with this app. Snapseed is available on Apple and Android.
Pickle Jar Rating: 9/10
(Zoë)
Which are your favourite tools for creating online images? Share your comments below.
Need to talk to someone about your content marketing? We’re here to help.