Save, share, and export

To save an edited photo back to your Photos library or the Files browser, choose Done in the top right corner.

If you're editing one photo after the other using a filmstrip, you can simply move to the next photo in your album or folder and the changes will be saved automatically.

To share your edited photos with others via email, AirDrop, or Messages, you can do so right from the Files or Photos browsers, or at any time you're editing a photo.

To share a photo on an iPhone or iPad:

1. Tap in the toolbar at the top of the screen.
2. Tap Share.
3. Choose how you want to share a photo. If you're sharing from the browser or the filmstrip, you can also touch and hold a photo and choose Share or tap Select at the top of the browser, select a photo, then choose Share at the bottom of the screen.

To share a photo on Mac:

1. Click in the toolbar at the top of the screen.
2. Choose Share and select how you'd like to share a photo. If you're sharing from the browser or the filmstrip, you can also Control-click a photo and choose Share or select a photo and choose File > Share from the File menu at the top of the screen. You can also simply drag and drop the photo you want to any location you want on your Mac, other apps, or the web.

Note: When sharing this way, a JPEG copy of the photo is exported. Any edits in these JPEGs are merged and cannot be reverted.

1. When editing a photo, tap or click in the toolbar at the top of the screen, then choose Export.

2. Choose the file format you want to use.

3. You can choose to export your photo at 50%, or 25% of its original size, or enter a new, custom export size. To export the image in its original size, make sure Original is turned on.

4. Add a watermark. Watermarking your photos is a great way to protect your images and ensure your work is credited. You can choose between text and image watermarks and freely customize them: choose a specific font or color, add a shadow, or adjust its size and opacity. You can position the watermark anywhere on the image and optionally tile it, adjusting the spacing and angle of the tiled watermarks.

5. Tap or click Next, then choose where you want to export your photo.

When preparing photos for export, you can see how the final exported photos will look in the photo preview sidebar.

When exporting photos, there any a few file formats you can choose from, each serving different purposes.

Regular image formats:

• HEIC. HEIC (High Efficiency Image Format) is a lossy file format that compresses images to smaller sizes with minimal quality loss. It is an alternative to JPEG, producing files that are half the size.
• AVIF AVIF (AV1 Image File Format) is a lossy image format that uses advanced compression to produce high-quality images at even smaller sizes than JPEG or HEIC. It maintains excellent image quality while significantly reducing file size.
• JPEG. JPEG is a file format that uses lossy compression, meaning some image data is lost during conversion. Despite this, JPEG files are small, take up less space, and load quickly, making them ideal for web use. Note: In the Export menu, you can additionally control the quality of the HEIC, AVIF, and JPEG files. The lower quality percentage means the image file is more compressed and smaller in size.
• PNG. You can use PNG to export images with lossless compression, because of this, the exported PNG files are usually larger than JPEG or HEIC. PNG is also a file format typically used for saving images with transparency.
• TIFF. TIFF file format produces the largest files but also keeps the highest image quality. Just like PNG, TIFF also supports transparency and is largely used in professional photography and printing.
• Photomator Document Photomator Document is a Photomator file format. This allows you to pick up from where you left off editing your image whenever you reopen it.

HDR image formats:

• HDR JPEG can be used for exporting photos that will be viewed in both Standard Dynamic Range (SDR) and High Dynamic Range (HDR).
• HDR HEIC is used for sharing HDR photos within Apple apps, such as Motion and Final Cut Pro.
• HDR AVIF provides smaller-size HDR photos with advanced compression and high quality.
• HDR PNG is ideal for archiving HDR photos, ensuring lossless quality preservation.

File formats available on Mac:

• OpenEXR is great for exporting HDR photos to other video and image editing apps, offering high dynamic range and extensive color depth.
• HDR Still Image Video lets you upload HDR photos on the web, combining image quality with web-friendly compatibility.

When dragging and dropping images directly from Photomator or sharing them via the Share menu, you can set the default quality that will be used when sharing. In other words, you can determine how compressed the final images will be. If you want to always export at a certain quality, you can save this setting as default. The setting will also apply when automatically saving changes.

1. On iPhone or iPad tap Settings at the top of the screen. On Mac, choose Photomator > Settings and open the General tab.

2. Drag the Image Quality slider to set the desired image quality.

The lower percentage means the image file is more compressed and smaller in size.