PaintStar

Image editing became a common thing now, with the various socializing networks almost begging you to upload as many pictures as possible. However, editing can also be done in order to enhance pictures that need to be used for other kind of visual elements, and one application you can use in this regard is PaintStar.

The visual design of the application aims to allow a bit of flexibility. This is because all tools you get to work with, including the canvas itself, are stored in different windows you’re free to arrange on the desktop as you see fit.

File support is pretty impressive, and you can load some common and even lesser known types, either by relying on the built-in browse dialog, or dragging them over the main window. What’s more, file support doesn’t just limit itself to loading them, but also for export, which means the application can also be used to simply convert pictures to a different type.

The default tool windows that show up already convince you that PaintStar means business. In other words, variety of features lives up to expectations, with a whole lot of different brushes and customization options for size, style, and transparency, not to mention the color palette that’s neatly structured with different groups, or the plain pallet for manually picking the right tone.

You’re encouraged to completely rely on the application even for advanced editing tasks. As such, you get to work with multiple layers that you can later on blend according to different algorithms, or simply toggle visibility to edit some specific elements easier.

Objects can be created using several dedicated tools. Moreover, you can attribute textures to each, and the application contains a decent amount of built-in presets. The result can benefit from effects ranging from simple color manipulation and blur, to morphology, edge detection, artistic, distorts, and more.

All things considered, we come to the conclusion that PaintStart manages to live up to expectations and provides a powerful picture workshop, where you’re free to customize the elements you work with, thoroughly edit pictures, apply effects, or simply convert to different formats. The overall design is intuitive, letting anyone accommodate, regardless of experience.