There’s nothing more frustrating than trying to get a good picture of something or someone, only to discover later that the photo you took is blurry and virtually unusable…. Or so you might think!
A blurry photo might be disappointing, but believe it or not, it might still be recoverable. All you have to do is use one of the several apps on the market designed to help fix blurry & out of focus photos and you’re well on your way to a share-worthy image!
There are dozens of apps around to do this, and it can take hours to find the right one. But instead of driving yourself crazy looking for the best ones, we’ve done the work for you with this list of 8 of our favorite apps, (in no particular order), for fixing blurry photos!
Topaz Studio – Sharpen AI
Available as a stand-alone application or as part of a bundle, the Sharpen AI app from Topaz Labs is boasted as the industry best for improving slightly blurry or out of focus images. It is the only AI-powered image sharpening software currently available, and as they mention themselves, can help create some truly magical rescues of your important images.
What makes this software great is it contains separate modules to address each of the 3 possible issues that cause blurry images; Stabilize for Camera Shake, Focus for better Focus Correction, and Sharpen for General Softness & Input Sharpening. Sharpen AI goes beyond standard image sharpening to rescue previously impossible-to-correct images.
Luminar Neo
In addition to a multitude of other editing features, Luminar Neo has advanced image unblurring features designed to tackle various forms of image blur.
Among its arsenal, the Supersharp AI Extension addresses blurs arising from motion, missed focus, or camera instability. It employs a sophisticated neural network that dives into the photo’s depth, perspective, and environment, coupled with a compression algorithm, to render images with stunning clarity and natural sharpness.
For those dealing with multiple photographs, each capturing different focus points, the Focus Stacking Extension allows for the combination of up to 100 photos, each with its own depth of field, to produce a singular image where every element is in perfect focus. This Extension takes care of alignment, cropping, and balancing automatically, making the process seamless.
Additionally, the Upscale AI Extension offers a solution for enhancing image resolution up to 6 times, ideal for cropping compelling frames from panoramic views, achieving high-quality close-ups of wildlife, refining macro shots, revitalizing old photographs, and more.
Snapseed
The good thing about Snapseed is that it’s free. Unlike other apps that actually offer good-quality editing tools, Snapseed doesn’t charge for their services. Even better, their app is simple to use and has dozens of editing options to choose from.
In order to fix a blurry photo, all you need to do is upload said photo to the app and begin to edit it via the tools option. While there are many filter options to choose from, those who are looking to fix a blurry photo in particular will better off using the Details section which allows the user to adjust things like structure or sharpness.
Adobe Lightroom CC
Lightroom from Adobe is probably the most commonly known app for those who live to edit their photos. The app is simple to use but does require that you create an account. However, you can use your Facebook or Google account to log in, so you won’t have to make an account from scratch to use this app.
What makes Adobe Lightroom great is that you have the option to organize the photos that you’ve edited within the app instead of having to scroll through your photo album in search of them.
Another great thing about Lightroom is that the app is free to use, but you only get the basics with the free trial. If you want a more advanced version of the app, you will have to pay for it by signing up for a creative cloud plan. If you already have an existing Adobe Lightroom account get this app for free, which is a nice added bonus.
[Related Reading: Best Photo Editing Software]
PIXLR
This is one of the more popular free image editing apps out there since it’s easy to use and comes with a lot of options. In order to edit your blurry image, all you have to do is use the sharpen tool to get it to look a bit more clear.
The important thing to take away from this is that you need to be careful as to how much you sharpen your photo. If you sharpen too much, your photo can look obviously edited. Luckily, PIXLR has a way to adjust the sharpening tool, which can be done via the slider.
Sharpen Image
Seeing as how the name says it all, the Sharpen Image app is another great app to use to fix your blurry photos. Unfortunately, most people tend to write it off due to the fact that the app’s interface isn’t the most aesthetically pleasing.
Despite this, the app does offer a great way to sharpen and fix blurred photos.
VSCO
We mentioned VSCO earlier, and that’s because this app is one of the most popular photo editing apps around. You can post your photos to a feed so it feels like you’re a part of a community, not to mention VSCO has some great filters to choose from.
If you’re a fan of old photography and the aesthetics of it, you’ll love VSCO as it incorporates a lot of these types of filters. Unfortunately, if you want to gain complete access to VSCO, you will have to purchase an annual membership.
FOTOR
Like the popular photo editing app VSCO, FOTR offers its users the opportunity to post their photos directly onto a feed. As a result, one can gain followers and share their images with other like-minded folks.
Aside from the community aspect of it, FOTOR also has great photo editing options that don’t require you to create a profile to use them. Using the sharpness tool, all you have to do is upload your photo and adjust it. The best part about this app is that you can adjust the photo in small increments instead of all at once.
[Related Reading: Photography Studio Management Software Guide for 2020 (Updated)]
Afterlight
This app is one of the first photo editing apps around and a favorite for a reason. The sharpening tool can adjust just about any photo and make it much more clear, while keeping it looking as natural as possible.
So what do you think? Is there something we’ve missed that should be added to this list? Let us know your favorites in the comments below.
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