We often need to crop an image into a perfect circle to use on a presentation or as a thumbnail for a YouTube video. By default, several online tools and editing applications allow only horizontal and vertical cropping of images. In other words, they cannot produce circular crops.
Like other tools, Paint 3D also limits the cropping of an image by horizontal and vertical edges. However, using specific shape features, one can get a perfect circular crop. In this article, you’ll learn how to crop an image into a perfect circle with Paint 3D.
How to Crop an Image Into a Circle in Paint 3D
Paint 3D comes installed on every Windows computer. Follow these steps to start cropping your image:
- Open Paint 3D.
- Click on New to start a new project.
- Go to Canvas.
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On the right-hand side, make sure the Transparent Canvas option is turned Off. If not, turn it off before importing the image.
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Go to Menu on the top left-hand side of the software.
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Click on Insert to open an image from your PC. Choose the image you want to use, and hit Open.
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Once your image is imported, head to 2D Shapes and select the Circle.
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Draw the circle around the object that you want to crop.
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Go to Brushes and select Marker.
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Set the Marker Thickness to 100 percent.
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Color the entire area around the circle Black. Apart from the cropped circle area, everything should be filled in with black. If you accidentally drew inside the cropped section, press Ctrl + Z to undo it.
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Click on Magic Select, and then click Next on the right.
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The circle boundary will be highlighted by default, as shown below.
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Finally, click on Done.
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By doing so, you will be able to separate the image from the cropped section. Click and drag the image off of the canvas.
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Select the black background and press Delete.
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Bring the circular shape back to the canvas.
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Go to Canvas and turn on Transparent Canvas.
Now, you have a perfect circular crop of your image!
Effectively Crop Your Images in Paint 3D
It’s rather simple to make a perfect circular crop of an image using 2D shapes and brushes. Once you’ve cropped the image, you can save it and use it in PowerPoint slides or even as a profile picture on social media.
If you want more professional edits, use a full-featured editing program instead.