Upload, crop, and frame your own image in Canva
Make a wide crop and a circular crop of the practice image. Explain which version best communicates your intended message.
This video was made by SkrivSikkert, which also sells its own reading and writing tool. Canva has not made, paid for or approved the video. Canva is a trademark of Canva Pty Ltd.
Written steps
Step 1
Download herbs-practice.png below the lesson. This is an artificially generated course image. Use your own permitted image when practising independently.
Step 2
Start with a 1920 by 1080 practice page and a heading at the top. Open Uploads > Upload files. Select the practice file and open it. Your operating system's file picker may look different; wait for the completed thumbnail in Canva.
Step 3
Click the thumbnail to add the image. Collapse the side panel. With the image selected, open Position. Keep Ratio locked, set Width to 1100, X to 410, and Y to 250. Press Enter after each value. These numbers suit this practice layout, not every page format.
Step 4
Close Position. Choose Crop, use the small right arrow by Aspect ratio, and select 16:9. Check that all three pots remain complete, then click Done. Select the page thumbnail to inspect the whole page.
Step 5
On another blank practice page, open Elements > Frames. Under Basic shapes, choose the plain circular frame. Its initial picture of sky and hills is a placeholder.
Step 6
Open Uploads. Drag herbs-practice.png onto the circle and release when the picture appears inside the frame. A simple click inserts a separate picture. Collapse the panel and inspect the crop.
Step 7
The circle removes parts of the side plants. Use the wide version when the complete subject matters. Check the exported file as well as the editor.
What you need
Prepare an image you own or have permission to use, then open your Canva design. The recording shows the English interface.
Read the video transcript
Your own image can make a design more specific. Here we use an artificially generated practice image of herbs. You can download it below the lesson. We will upload it, adjust its size, and crop it. Then we will try it inside a circular frame. Only use images you have permission to use, and avoid personal information in this exercise. We start on a page with a heading at the top. Click Uploads in the left menu. Click Upload files. Select the practice image on your computer and open it. The file picker may look different on different computers. Wait until the image thumbnail is ready in Canva. Clicking the upload button does not by itself mean the upload is complete. Click the image thumbnail to insert it on the page. Collapse the side panel using the arrow. The image is now a separate element. We will adjust its size and position so the heading has its own area. Keep the image selected as we continue. Click Position. Under Advanced, you can see Width and Height. Check that the Ratio lock is closed. This keeps the height proportional when the width changes. Select Width. Enter eleven hundred and press Enter. Keep the proportions so the subject is not stretched. These values suit this wide practice page. We will place the image below the heading. Select X. Enter four hundred and ten and press Enter. Select Y. Enter two hundred and fifty and press Enter. Close the panel. There is now space between the text and image. On other page formats, adjust the placement to suit the design. Click Crop in the toolbar. Click the small right arrow beside the aspect ratios. Choose sixteen by nine. This gives a wider view and removes part of the image's top and bottom. Check that all three pots are still complete. Click Done. Cropping changes the visible area without stretching the image. Select the page thumbnail and inspect the whole result. On another practice page, we will try a frame. Click Elements. Choose Frames. Select the simple circular frame. It appears with a placeholder showing sky and hills. The frame determines which part of an image will be visible. We will fill it with the same practice image. Click Uploads. Drag the image thumbnail onto the circular frame. Keep it over the frame until the image appears inside the circle, then release it. A normal click would add a separate image instead. Collapse the side panel using the arrow. Check that the image really follows the round shape. The middle plant is clear here, but the circle crops the sides of the image. Choose the wide version if all three plants need to be shown completely. A frame is a choice about what the viewer sees. Try your own practice image. Always check the subject, proportions, and space around the text, including in the exported file.
