How to shrink a photo for Instagram
Would you like to publish on Instagram a photo saved in the Gallery of your smartphone but, before proceeding in this sense, would you like to make it smaller, in order to allow an optimal display in your post or in your story? Well, I don’t see what you’re waiting for… go ahead! How do you say? Having never done anything like this, don’t you know how to do it? No problem, if you want I can explain it to you.
In fact, if you dedicate a few minutes of your precious time to me, I can personally illustrate, in a simple way but not for this lack of details, how to shrink a photo for Instagram. I anticipate immediately that this is feasible by using a special feature integrated in the Instagram app for Android and iPhone or, if you prefer, by resorting to the use of third-party solutions for editing images. In all cases, don’t worry, you won’t have to do anything overly complicated.
Then? How about putting the chatter aside and starting to get busy immediately? Yup? Great. Position yourself comfortably, take a few free minutes just for yourself and start focusing on the information below. I am sure that, in the end, you will be able to tell yourself more than satisfied with the results obtained. Let it bet?
Index
- How to shrink a photo on Instagram
- Post
- Stories
- How to shrink a photo for Instagram
- Google Photos (Android / iOS)
- Photos (iOS)
- Other apps to reduce a photo for Instagram
How to shrink a photo on Instagram
If you are interested in understanding how to shrink a photo on Instagram, going to act directly from the official app of the social network for Android (also available on alternative stores ) and iOS, so that you can then publish it in a post or within your stories, the indications you must follow are those you find below. As anticipated at the beginning of the article, you have nothing to worry about, it’s not difficult.
Post
If you want to shrink a photo for Instagram because you want to publish it in a post, open the social network app on your smartphone and, once its main screen is displayed, log in to your account (if necessary), then press the button (+) located at the bottom and select the photo in the Gallery of your smartphone that you want to publish online.
By doing so, at the top of the screen, you will be shown the preview of the chosen photo, automatically resized by Instagram: to make it smaller, you can simply use the pinch to zoom; so, place two fingers on it and then close them, in order to adjust the zoom level of the image according to your needs. If you want to completely reduce the zoom level, you can also tap the button with the two arrows located in the lower-left part of the photo.
Once the changes are complete, click on the Next item located at the top right, apply (if you want) any other changes to the image, setting a filter and making other changes related to brightness, contrast, etc. (using the options you find in the Filter and Edit sections ), and press the Next item again, at the top right.
Once this is done, insert an accompanying caption for the image, in order to describe the content of the post you are publishing; decide whether to tag other Instagram users or add a location, choose whether to publish the photo also on other social networks (Facebook, Twitter or Tumblr) by moving the relative levers from OFF to ON and press the Share item (at the top) to proceed with the publication of the photo in the Instagram feed.
Stories
If, on the other hand, you are interested in shrinking a photo for Instagram because you want to publish it in a story, first of all open the famous app on your device and press the camera icon located at the top left, or on the thumbnail of your avatar with the button (+) next to it that you find on the main application screen.
Next, make sure that in the lower part of the new screen proposed the History option is selected (otherwise you can, by swiping the screen) and press the white circular button in the center, to take a photo at the moment. If, on the other hand, you want to take an image from the Gallery, tap on the preview at the bottom left and select the photo of your interest.
At this point, the chosen image will be automatically resized by Instagram, in order to perfectly fit the story screen: to make it smaller, all you have to do is use the pinch to zoom, so you have to put two fingers on it and then you have to close them, until the zoom of the image is reduced according to your needs.
After reducing the size of the photo, if you want, make further changes to it using the buttons at the top: the icon with the smiley face with the stars allows you to apply filters and effects, the one with the sticker allows you to insert gifs, stickers, music, etc., the one with the stroke allows you to draw, while the Aa icon allows you to insert custom text.
To conclude and, therefore, proceed with the publication from the story, tap the Send to button located at the bottom right and decide whether to share the story on Instagram and possibly also on Facebook or only with close friends, by tapping on the its Share button on the following screen.
How to shrink a photo for Instagram
As I told you at the beginning of the guide, if you prefer, you can reduce a photo for Instagram also by using third-party applications. If this interests you, below you will find some of the main solutions suitable for the purpose you can rely on.
Google Photos (Android / iOS)
Google Photos is the free app of the homonymous service of the Internet search giant, thanks to which it is possible to create an automatic online backup of the images (and videos) present in the Gallery and which also acts as a photo viewer and editor.
It is pre-installed on most of the recently produced Android terminals (and otherwise it can be taken from the relevant section of the Play Store ), while on the iPhone it must always be downloaded from the App Store, by pressing the Get button, then the Install and authorizing the download using Face ID, Touch ID or Apple ID password.
Once the Google Photos app is launched, select the image you want to work on from the Photos section (if you don’t see it, you can search for it in the albums by accessing the Collection section or you can search by keywords, places, activities etc. by accessing the Research section ).
At this point, tap the button with the cursors at the bottom and, if you are using Android, press the Crop option at the bottom of the screen and touch the icon with the rectangle and the corners with the edges at the bottom; if you are using iOS, on the other hand, tap on the cutter icon and then on the one with the dotted rectangle inside.
Then, choose the resizing option you prefer from the menu that appears. Alternatively, you can resize the photo yourself by moving the selection rectangle visible on the image. Eventually, you can also decrease the zoom of the photo inside the selection area, using the pinch to zoom, i.e. placing two fingers on the image and then closing them.
When the changes are completed, tap on the End and/or Save item and decide whether to save the changes on the current image or whether to create a new copy of the same and that’s it. Afterwards, proceed with the publication of the photo on Instagram, implementing the instructions I have given you previously.
Photos (iOS)
If you’re using an iPhone, you can also shrink a photo for Instagram using the Photos app, which is the default iOS app for viewing, managing, and editing photos on your device. The application, in fact, also integrates editing tools through which it is possible to reduce the size of the images, rotate them etc.
To be able to use it for your purpose, select the Photo app icon (the one with the multicolored flower on a white background ) that you find on the home screen and/or in the iOS App Library and tap on the photo you want to post on Instagram, that you find in the Library section. If by doing so you cannot find the photo you are interested in, you can search for it within a specific album in the Album section or you can try to find it based on keywords, categories, etc. by accessing the Search section.
Once you have opened the photo of your interest, then tap on the Edit item at the top right, then on the button with the cutter that appears at the bottom. Then press on the button with the rectangles located at the top right and choose one of the presets available at the bottom to resize the image. Alternatively, freely resize the photo by moving the selection rectangle visible on the screen.
If you deem it necessary, you can also zoom out of the photo within the selection area by using pinch to zoom, then placing two fingers on the image and then closing them.
When the changes are complete, tap on the End item, at the bottom right, to save the changes, then proceed with the publication of the photo on Instagram, putting into practice the instructions I gave you at the beginning of the guide.
Other apps to reduce a photo for Instagram
The apps to zoom out photos that I have already reported have not convinced you in a particular way and would you therefore like me to suggest alternative solutions? I’ll settle you immediately.
- Snapseed( Android / iOS ) – app distributed totally free by Google that offers the possibility to edit and embellish photos using a wide range of tools and filters. Thanks to it, therefore, it is possible to cut the photos and reduce them to publish them on Instagram, but also to modify their colors, brightness, apply frames etc. More info here.
- Pixlr( Android / iOS ) – another photo editing app that provides its users with all the tools necessary to crop and rotate images, shrink them, correct red-eyes, insert writings and much more. It’s free, but offers in-app purchases (at a base cost of € 1.09) to unlock extra features.
- Fotor( Android / iOS ) – another image editing app that can be handy for shrinking a photo for Instagram. In fact, it allows you to edit photos in various ways, by applying effects, stickers, making structural changes, etc. It’s free, but offers in-app purchases (at a base cost of € 1.09) to unlock additional content.
For more details about the applications I just told you about and to find out what other solutions of this type you can possibly use, I recommend reading my guide on apps to edit photos for free.