Edit photos with Krita
Creative Workshop
Not many people are aware that Krita, the popular open source painting program, is also great for editing photos.
Few photographers are aware that Krita, the popular painting program [1], can also be used to edit photos. Considering that many illustrators and graphic designers use Photoshop or Gimp for digital painting and drawing, this is not surprising.
In fact, Krita's approach is identical to that of classic layer-based image editors in terms of the basic functions. However, it has several pretty significant advantages compared with Gimp. On the one hand, Krita lets you edit photos in large color spaces like Adobe RGB. This is especially important if you want to print a high-quality image with intense colors. On the other hand, Krita has filter masks, a counterpart to Photoshop's adjustment layers. They allow for far more comfortable image editing, because numerous effects can be adjusted retroactively and masks can be edited directly in the layer.
Krita is also one of only a few graphics programs that support 10-bit screen output. In combination with a 10-bit capable monitor, this gives you a far more accurate display of fine color nuances and gradients. In the following, I will use a concrete example to demonstrate how photo retouching with Krita works. (The original image can be found online [2].)
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Digital Autonomy
• The Answer Was Already on the Shelf
• Changing the Chip Industry: How Public Investment Has Grown Open Silicon
• United Nations Open Source Portal Goes Live
• EU Open Source Strategy Plays Key Role in Tech Sovereignty Package
• France Says “Au Revoir” to Microsoft
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Pine64 Halts Production of Linux Devices
With continued DRAM and eMMC shortages, Pine64 has decided to discontinue production of Linux devices.
-
The Bullet-Proof KDE Software Initiative Is Coming
KDE, Techpaladin, and Kubuntu Focus have announced a new initiative that will provide at least three years of support for KDE Plasma 6.6 LTS and related software.
-
Linux Mint Shares a Possible Kernel Cleanup Solution
For those on Linux Mint who like to keep multiple kernels around but don't want them to take up too much space, you might be getting a new automated tool.
-
CachyOS Gets an Update
CachyOS August 2026 release is now available with the latest version of KDE, some new features, and plenty of improvements.
-
The Linux Kernel Dev Staging Area Now Rejects AI-Generated Patches
Unless a kernel patch is a valid security fix, it will be rejected if it was created using AI.
-
Linux Surpasses Double-Digit Market Share
According to two sources, the Linux operating system has hit a major milestone in market share that naysayers thought would never happen.
-
AI Helped Develop a Linux Exploit
A use-after-free race exploit was discovered and exploited on CentOS Stream 9.
-
Yet Another Linux Kernel Vulnerability Discovered
Affecting millions of systems, a kernel flaw discovered by Qualys could allow users to gain root privileges.
-
Ubuntu 26.10 to Include Ubuntu Certified Hardware Check
If you've ever wondered if your laptop or PC is officially certified to run Ubuntu, that curiosity will soon be met.
-
Substantial Update to IPFire Now Available
The lastest version of IPFire features a fundamental change to how the system handles DNS.