5 best online tools to remove unwanted objects from photos

In recent years there has been an explosion of online tools which can be used to fix details or remove unwanted objects or people from your digital photos.

We went out and tested a bunch of them for you and here we bring you our top five. If we missed out on any, don’t hesitate to leave a message in the comments column.

1. Inpaint

Inpaint can be used as a free online tool directly from your browser. There is also Inpaint App which is available for purchase. We tried it with a couple of photos.

The result was quite good when the objects removed were far in the background. The objects were erased neatly, and the space was filled up with the surrounding pixels, even though the texture of the background varied in different parts.

If you try to replace a larger section of the image, the result is not as good when you use the simplest Erase function. To get considerably better results, we suggest using their step-by-step tutorials. They will show you how to make best use of this tool’s most popular features.

Once you’re happy with your work, you can download the fixed photo in low resolution free of charge. For a high-resolution version, you will need to buy credits.

On this website you can discover other similar tools, which you can use to change the background in your photos, resize them, stitch them together and so on.

• Pros – Fairly good results, detailed tutorials, and other useful photo editing options
• Cons – Free version is limited
• Website – www.theinpaint.com

2. Cutout.pro

This online tool works well for simple tasks like removing a stray finger on the lens, or some random person in the photos from ‘the night before’, or hiding the leash from Little Fido’s collar.

The major setback with this tool is the fact that you cannot control what the cut-out space will be filled with. When dealing with unwanted objects placed against backgrounds with varying colors, you might end up with some quite unrealistic results.

To download a photo, you need to register with a Facebook or Google account.

Cutout.pro has other photo editing options as well, and can be used to erase scratches, tears and spots from old photos, to remove or blur backgrounds, or for color correction.

• Pros: Easy to use and has other photo editing options (like photo colorizer for black and white photos)
• Cons: Cannot control the ‘fill material”
• Website: www.cutout.pro

3. Fotor

Fotor doesn’t have a “remove” function but works with a “Clone” effect instead. With this option you choose the part of the image that you want to use to paint over the unwanted section.

With a bit of trial and error, we were able to get good results for objects placed in the background and for photos without too much detail. However, results were not so good on highly detailed photos because the clone brush is not very precise.

To download the finished photo, you need to log in with a Google, Facebook or Apple account.

This tools also has other features like blemish fix, teeth whitening, background blur, etc….

• Pros: Lets you choose the clone area or ‘fill material’
• Cons: Does not work well on busy photos
• Website: www.fotor.com

4. Luminar

Luminar is not an online tool but a desktop application. We thought it would be interesting to see how it works for removing unwanted object from photos. A free 7-day trial version is available. After which you will need to purchase a pro version.

This tool looks great, and we had high expectations, yet the initial results were a bit disappointing. This was probably more due to my limited skills rather than the tool itself. Luminar does have a bit of a learning curve. Eventually with a delicate combination of the Erase and Clone options, I was able to remove the unwanted shadow (and even a funny hair clip!) from my sunny holiday cliff beach-view photo.

With Luminar you can do lots of other cool stuff like changing the background of your photos, and find many other more professional features for creative digital photo editing. It can also be added as plug-in to programs like Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, and Apple Aperture.

Skylum, the developers of Luminar, offers a photo academy with tips, tutorials and podcasts, and a marketplace of templates for photography professionals.

• Pros: A multitude of creative photo editing options; Skylum Photo Academy and useful resources
• Cons: No online version; Requires training to obtain good results
• Website: www.skylum.com/luminar-ai-b

5. Cleanup.pictures – LIvelyPaint Favourite

With its minimalistic interface, we were not expecting too much from this tool. After using Cleanup.pictures it quickly became our favourite. It is straightforward to use and does what it says on the box with impressive results!

Cleanup Pictures only works with the Remove option, and lets you choose the width of the brush. I used it to remove some high-tension wires from my beach landscape photos. It also worked well on foreground objects, see how I was able to remove tattoos.

Downloading the final photo in low-res was simple and does not require registration or sign-in.

• Pros: Simple to use; great results; no sign-in
• Cons: No other photo editing options: HD file download require an email
• Website: www.cleanup.pictures

BONUS: Just cause they’re so cute, here’s a couple more successfully saved pet portraits 😊

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With LivelyPaint you can turn your favourite photos into a unique piece of artwork. Simply upload your photos on the LivelyPaint website and your hand-painted oil painting will be delivered to your doorstep in less than 3 weeks.

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