When we want to make people in the photo stand out, we can blur the background to create a sense of depth and draw attention to the main subject. As the background becomes softer and less distracting, people in the photo become the focal point. Background blurring is usually a popular technique used by photography expert. While not everyone have the skills to use Photoshop, we now show you simple instructions to blur background of photos on your own.

How to blur background in Windows Photos

Windows Photos is a special program on your computer that helps you organize all your pictures. It’s like a magic box where you can put all your photos and see them whenever you want. You can also do fun things with your pictures, like adding cool filters, do some drawings and adjust the backgrounds.

  • Open the Windows Photos on your computer.
  • Click on the “Import” button located at the top-right corner of the window.

  • Select the source from which you want to import photos, such as a connected camera or an external storage device.
  • Choose the photos you want to insert by selecting them.Click on the “open” button to import the selected photos into Windows Photos.
  • Click on the “Edit & Create” button located at the top of the Photos window.

  • From the drop-down menu, choose the “Edit” option.
  • In the editing toolbar, click on the “Filters” button.
  • Scroll through the available filters and select the “Vignette” filter.

  • When you are done, click on the “Save a copy” button to save the edited photo.

How to blur images on Windows with Paint

Microsoft Paint is part of the Windows operating system, so you can find it on your Windows 10 computer. It has different tools like brushes, shapes, and colors that you can use to create beautiful pictures. WIth MS Paint, you can also blur the background of pictures in two simple ways.

Method1. Blur Images by Resizing Selected Area

  • Open the image you want to blur in Paint. You can do this by right-clicking on the image file and selecting “Open with” > “Paint.”
  • Click on the “Select” tool in the toolbar at the top of the screen.

  • Click and drag the cursor to create the rectangle. Use the rectangle around the area you want to blur.
  • Once you have selected the area, repeat this step until you get a result you are satisfied with.
  • Save the modified image by clicking on the “File” tab in the Paint toolbar and selecting “Save” or “Save As.” Choose a location and a file name for the blurred image, and click on the “Save” button.

Method2. Blur Images by Filling Colors

  • Open the Paint program on your computer.
  • Find the picture you want to blur and open it in Paint.
  • Look at the top of the screen and find the Rectangle tool from the “Shapes” menu.Click and drag your mouse to create a rectangle around the area you want to blur.
  • Once the area is selected, go to the “Home” tab in the Paint toolbar and click on the “Fill” button.

  • In the color palette that appears, choose a color that closely matches the surrounding area of the image.

  • Click on the selected area within the image to fill it with the chosen color. This will effectively blur the selected area.
  • When you are done, click on the “File” menu at the top of the screen and choose “Save As” to give it a name and save it on your computer.

How to blur images on Windows with MS Office

Microsoft Office is a powerful suite of computer programs that helps you create, edit, and manage various types of documents. Among these programs, Microsoft Word/Powerpoint have features like format texting and adding images. So you can also achieve the blurring of pictures’ background in MS Word/Powerpoint.

  • After you imported the picture into the software, create a copy of the image you are working on. Click one of the pictures and go to the “Picture Tool Format” tab, and you will see a section called “Adjust”. Look for the “Artistic Effects” button and click on it.

  • A drop-down menu will appear with different artistic effects.Find the option called “Blur” and click on it.

  • Now your background photo is ready, proceed to remove the background from the other image. Select the photo, and then once again go to the “Picture Tool Format” tab, and click on the “Remove Background” in the “Adjust” group.

  • Cut and paste the image from which you removed the background onto the photo to which you applied the blur effect and adjust the size of the foreground image. Then you will get the blurred image.

FAQ

How to adjust the degree of blurriness?

Option1. Using Microsoft Word

  • Insert the image into your Word document by clicking on the “Insert” tab and selecting “Pictures”
  • Select the image by clicking on it. In the “Picture Format” tab, click on the “Artistic Effects” button in the “Adjust” group.
  • A drop-down menu will appear with various artistic effects. Select the “Blur” option.
  • You can adjust the degree of blurriness by clicking on the “Artistic Effects” button again and selecting “Artistic Effects Options.”
  • In the “Format Picture” pane that appears on the right side of the screen, you can adjust the “radius” slider to increase or decrease the blurriness of the image.

Option2. USing AiPassportPhotos

  • Upload the picture in AiPassportPhotos
  • Once you click “Upload a photo”, it automatically stated the process of blurring your images
  • You can wait for a few seconds and then adjust blur effect. There are 6 different levels of blurring effects available to choose from.
  • Choose the one you need and Save the blurred image

How to blur part of the picture background?

  • Open the image you want to edit in Microsoft Paint.
  • Select the “Free-form selection” tool from the toolbar.
  • Carefully draw around the area of the picture you want to blur. Make sure to include the background area you want to blur.
  • Once the area is selected, click on the “Select” option in the toolbar and choose “Invert selection.” This will select everything except the area you previously selected.
  • Go to the “Effects” tab in the toolbar and select “Blur.” You can choose from different blur options like “Gaussian blur” or “Motion blur.”
  • After applying the blur effect, save the edited image by clicking on “File” and then “Save” or “Save As.”

How to edit background blur in post-processing?

  • Open an editing program on your computer, like Adobe Photoshop or GIMP.
  • Upload the picture you want to edit into the program.
  • Look for a tool called “Blur” or “Blur Background”, which looks like a little droplet or a brush.
  • Click on the tool and then click on the background of the picture.
  • Keep clicking and dragging the tool over the background until it looks as blurry as you want it to be. If you accidentally blur something you didn’t want to, don’t worry! You can use another tool called “Eraser” to remove the blur from that area.
  • Once you’re satisfied with the background blur, save your edited picture.

Conclusion

Blurring the background of a picture can be achieved through various methods and software tools. One popular method is using photo editing software like Adobe Photoshop or GIMP, which offer precise control over the blurring effect. Additionally, there are online tools that allow users to easily blur the background of pictures with just a few clicks. Get the right tools, they will come in handy one day!

By Dolores Xiao

I am a content creator and marketer with over 5 years of professional writing experience. I hold a bachelor's degree in communications and have a natural curiosity about technology, as evidenced by my technology blog. As an avid traveler, I draw upon adventures in over 10 countries to inject unique cultural perspectives into my articles and social media campaigns. I thrive on developing engaging content that informs and inspires audiences.