# How to Blur and Sharpen a Photo in Photasium

> Blur or sharpen a photo in the browser without uploading or creating an account. Open Blur in Photasium, pick a mode, and paint.

Blur and sharpen

A busy background, a face you would rather soften, or a photo that looks slightly soft can be blurred or sharpened in one place. In Photasium that happens in the tab: the file never goes to a server.

## Soft or sharp on the layer

Blur and Sharpen paint on the active raster layer. Blur softens the pixels under the brush, and Sharpen raises the contrast of nearby pixels so edges read more clearly. Strength mixes that result with the pixels that were already there, and Smudge, on S, drags colour along the stroke.

Image → Blur and Image → Sharpen write across the raster when you click Apply, and a [selection](https://photasium.com/guides/how-to-use-selections.md) keeps them inside that area. [Brush](https://photasium.com/guides/how-to-paint-and-erase-on-a-photo.md) paints a new colour. Blur and Sharpen change the pixels that are already there, only along the stroke.

## A busy background, a face you want softer

A story often has a sharp background that pulls the eye off the person. Blur that area with a large, soft stroke and a low strength, and leave the face alone. Sharpen the eyes or a logo if they look soft next to the rest of the frame.

Duplicate the raster first if you want the original pixels still in the stack. [Layers](https://photasium.com/guides/how-to-use-layers.md) keeps that copy.

A listing shot can keep the product crisp and let the table behind it fall soft. Sharpen the product with a stroke that stays on it, then switch to Blur for the background. A [selection](https://photasium.com/guides/how-to-use-selections.md) around the product keeps either pass from spilling over the edge.

A screenshot can include a name, an email, or a number you do not want to share. Blur that corner with a small stroke so the rest of the window stays readable. Sharpen dim type when the capture is slightly soft and you still need the words.

A scan that is soft on the type can be sharpened there, so the rest of the page keeps its grain. Keep the size close to the letters and the strength modest, so a second pass can go further if the first one is too light.

## Blurring and sharpening in Photasium

1. **Open a photo.** Open the [editor](https://photasium.com/editor), then File → Open, or drop an image on the canvas. Select a raster layer.

2. **Choose Blur.** Click Blur in the toolbar, or press R. Blur and Sharpen are in the options bar. Blur is the one that opens. The toolbar button uses the name of the mode that is selected.

3. **Set the stroke.** Size runs from 1 to 500 and starts at 48. Hardness runs from 0 to 100 and starts at 60. Strength runs from 1 to 100 and starts at 50. Radius runs from 1 to 20 and starts at 6. Press [ or ] to change size while you work. A lower strength mixes in less of the blur or sharpen, and a second stroke goes further. A larger radius softens or sharpens across more of the pixels inside the stroke.

4. **Paint.** Drag on the canvas. Blur softens, and Sharpen raises contrast under the brush. Switch the mode in the options bar when you want the other one.

If a selection is active, the stroke stays inside it. Blur and Sharpen need a raster layer. They paint that layer’s pixels. If the layer mask is what you are editing, the stroke lands on the mask. A text layer asks you to rasterize first. A locked layer will not accept the stroke. A group does not take the stroke, so select a raster inside it. Undo restores the layer to how it looked before the stroke.

Image → Blur and Image → Sharpen do the pass across the raster. Blur’s radius runs from 1 to 40 and starts at 8. Sharpen’s radius runs from 0.5 to 12 and starts at 1, and Amount runs from 10 to 300 and starts at 100. Apply writes it into the layer. Cancel, or a click outside the dialog, leaves the pixels as they were. A selection limits either one to the selected pixels. Both need an unlocked raster layer.

## The focus on the pixels

The stroke sits on the raster you painted, nothing was uploaded, and undo brings the previous pixels back. If the pass is too strong, undo and lower Strength or Radius before you paint again.

Download PNG, JPEG, or WebP if you need a file to send. Come back later and the document is still listed under the editor, until this browser’s storage is cleared. Blur and Sharpen sit with the other [photo editing tools](https://photasium.com/#brush): [paint a colour](https://photasium.com/guides/how-to-paint-and-erase-on-a-photo.md), [keep a stroke inside a selection](https://photasium.com/guides/how-to-use-selections.md), and [export a listing](https://photasium.com/guides/how-to-export-png-jpeg-or-webp.md).

[Open photo editor](https://photasium.com/editor)