A Guide to Photo Upscaling Using AI-Powered Tools
Photo upscaling is a quick and easy way to automatically boost the quality of your visuals and benefit your brand designs. You can use it to adjust all blog images to one size, make a photo more distinct, and, therefore, more suitable for social media. Or you can prepare pictures for further usage in your branding, especially if it requires large images to use as a billboard poster or as a print on a vehicle.
There are two approaches to upscaling photos: basic and AI. They differ in time, money, and effort spent on the process. Read further to learn which method better suits your personal and professional needs, and discover the best tools to enhance your photos online.
How can free photo upscalers improve image quality?
Free online photo upscalers simplify the content creation and publishing processes for beginners and experts in visuals. They can enhance pictures for branding and improve images that could serve as a background for a website or a landing page. When you find just the right photo to illustrate a particular social media campaign, but its quality is bad, just use a special automated tool to increase its resolution.
All raster images consist of pixels—colored squares positioned in a certain way to create a whole picture. Unlike vectors that are based on mathematical formulas that preserve their color and shape data, each pixel only contains information about itself. When you upscale a raster photo, you are either enlarging the pixels or trying to increase their number. Smart image-enhancing tools use the second approach, but basic and AI-powered upscaling nuances differ. Check them out!
What is basic photo upscaling?
Basic photo upscaling is the simplest option to make an image larger, involving a possible partial quality loss. The process entails increasing picture size and stretching out its pixels; all without multiplying their amount to compensate for the increased digital space.
Tools that use basic upscaling algorithms can apply filters to make your image smoother and soften all jagged edges that could appear. The result generally looks good, but not perfect. For instance, an image like this could work well for social media, but will look blurry when you try to put it on a 4K display.
What is AI photo upscaling?
AI-powered photo enlargers use artificial intelligence to enhance image quality. Instead of mechanically replicating pixels, this technology tries to predict how the picture would look after upscaling and recreates pixels according to that prediction.
Does it work more accurately? Yes. Such neural network models pass training on a massive number of images to be able to upscale pictures in great detail and with impressive sharpness. If you’re looking for an upscaling solution that delivers high-quality results, opt for AI-powered enhancing tools rather than those operating on basic technology.
Top 3 tools to upscale your photos and enhance their resolution
AI-powered tools that upscale photos have several perks you should know about. First, they are intuitive and quick to master, so you won’t need to acquire prior editing skills or learn how to handle the software. Second, they deliver HD results in seconds and often allow you to preview the upscaled version before downloading it. Even if you aren’t familiar with graphic design or image manipulation procedures, you will be able to master such tools with ease.
The online upscaling process is simple:
- Pick a tool you like.
- Upload a picture corresponding to the tool’s file requirements, like maximum image resolution and file size.
- Preview the result.
- Download the upscaled, enhanced picture.
When picking a suitable upscaler for your needs, check its pricing. Some tools are free, while others require paying a fee or purchasing a subscription. Also, pay attention to the system limits. Some platforms can make big images (4000x4000px) even larger, while others work only with small photos (up to 750x750px). And lastly, check if the upscaler offers preview and scalability options. Some tools enlarge images twice their original size, while others can enlarge them up to four, six, or even eight times.
- Depositphotos Image Upscaler
Depositphotos Image Upscaler is an excellent option for creators looking for a simple and free tool that delivers automated results, and is available at https://depositphotos.com. Running on AI-based technology, it is a sharp program that works with JPG and JPEG images of any resolution, as long as their file size doesn’t exceed 15 MB. There are no processing limits, so you can upscale as many pictures as you need without paying extra fees. During the upscaling process, the tool also eliminates blur, reduces noise, and sharpens your visual while you only click once. To download the high-quality results, you must register on the platform. The system automatically deletes all processed images after three hours.
- Zyro Image Upscaler
Zyro Image Upscaler doesn’t require registration to use the program or download processed files. It supports PNG, JPG, and JPEG files with a resolution of no more than 750x750px and a file size that doesn’t exceed 5 MB. Although the supported resolution is quite small, it is still a great upscaling option to improve visuals for social media. Zyro doesn’t charge any fees for picture enhancement and doesn’t set any limits on the number of images you can upload. Moreover, it polishes the overall image look and reduces noise.
- Upscale.media
Upscale.media is a registration-free tool that supports JPG, JPEG, PNG, and WEBP formats, though the file resolution shouldn’t exceed 1500x1500px. It offers two options to process your images. The basic upscaling can enlarge photos up to four times without enhancing their quality. And the AI upscaling automatically boosts the overall image and has an additional option to enhance its quality. However, if you work with grainy visuals, the Enhance Quality feature will ruin the effect. In any case, you can download results for free and process a limitless number of images.
To sum up
Upscaling a photo online is a quick and easy way to improve its quality for further usage in digital content or on printed goods. The process doesn’t require a lot of time, effort, or money if you use AI-powered tools like the ones listed in this article. Check out the presented upscalers and choose the preferred option to enlarge and enhance your visuals.