The short answer
Why use Lighten?
When a photo is simply underexposed, a two-way slider adds a step: finding where neutral is. Here 0 is the original and every move to the right brightens.
Amount runs from 0 to 100. 0 leaves the photo as it is, 50 multiplies every pixel by 1.5, and 100 doubles it. Doubling is the same as one camera stop of extra exposure. Pure black stays black, and transparent areas of a PNG stay transparent.
Pixels that are already brighter than middle gray hit white once the factor is high enough, and a value of 100 turns anything above half brightness pure white. On a photo with a lit window or sky, keep the value low and look at the bright parts before you save.
Darken is the same idea in the other direction. Brightness covers both ways in one slider, and Exposure works in stops up to four times the light. When the shadows are dark but the highlights are fine, Gamma lifts the midtones without clipping the whites.
Where Lighten fits
Night photos
Brighten a phone photo taken at dusk.
Underexposed shots
Rescue a photo where the camera picked too fast a shutter.
Dark logos
Lighten a logo that looks muddy on a dark website.
Start to finish
How to use Lighten
- 01Tap Choose image and pick the dark photo.
- 02Drag Amount to 0 to see the original, then raise it; 50 is 1.5 times and 100 doubles the light.
- 03Tap Apply changes, check windows and skies for white patches, then tap Download result.
What to expect from Lighten
| Check | What it means here |
|---|---|
| Supported input | JPEG, PNG, WebP, GIF, BMP, SVG and browser-supported AVIF images |
| Main controls | Amount, where 0 leaves the image unchanged |
| Output | A PNG image with the adjustment applied |
| Working limit | 50 MB and 50 megapixels per image |
Lighten tips
- The slider opens at 50, already 1.5 times brighter.
- At 100 anything above half brightness turns pure white.
- Transparent areas of a PNG stay transparent.
- Small values like 10 to 20 fix most slightly dark photos.
Lighten FAQ
Something missing? Ask us.
Why is my photo brighter as soon as I open it?
How is Lighten different from Brightness?
Does Lighten upload my file?
Is Lighten free to use?
Why did Lighten fail or look wrong?
Related tools
More in Color & Adjustments.