How to Rotate an Image in Photoshop?

how to rotate an image in photoshop

If you’re using a new image for a blog post and it comes in a crooked shape, the best thing to do is rotate the image. Rotate will straighten the image without distorting the photo. You can also use the transform tool, but this tool makes your images jagged and pixelated. The rotate tool pulls out just the rotational part of any graphic, leaving the rest intact and easy to work. Photoshop provides numerous rotation options.

Why Do We Need To Rotate An Image?

The main reason is that resizing an image will distort the proportions, which can cause various problems later on when you print your image or when you use it for some other purpose. Our heads are round, so everything has a specific size. But if we shrink or enlarge something by 50%, everything looks weird and unnatural.

In the case of photo editing software like Photoshop, it will give you different options for resizing your images – “Fit Width,” “Fit Height,” and “Scale Image.” In addition, two more options are available – “Rotate 90° Left” or “Rotate 90° Right”. These options will rotate your image at 90° degrees so that the proportions of your image remain intact. Create your first gif in Photoshop with this guide.

Is there a rotate tool in Photoshop?

Photoshop is an amazing piece of software; its tools are as easy to use as they could be. One of the most valuable tools that most people don’t know about is the rotate tool, which is found in the image-editing menu and allows you to rotate images around for precise positioning.

For example, it can put text into a specific position or make particular objects appear in a certain way. Although it can’t be used as quickly as other options, it’s still a handy tool that any Photoshop user should master.

3 Steps on how to rotate an image in photoshop

If you want to rotate an image in Adobe Photoshop, follow the below steps,

Step 1

The first step in rotating an image is to select the image using the Selection Tool (V), also called the quick selection tool.

 how to rotate an image in photoshop without rotating the canvas
 how to manually rotate an image in photoshop

Step 2

In the second step, click on the rotate button on the toolbar and choose “Free Rotate Layer” or press Ctrl + T.

 how to rotate an image in photoshop cs6
 how to rotate and resize an image in photoshop

Step 3

The third step is to drag the bounding box’s corners that appear around your image. You can either move it clockwise or counterclockwise. You can also use your arrow keys to nudge the corners of the selection. Look for something in the image that should be straight vertically or horizontally as you rotate it, and try to align it with the grid lines. Also, check out the guide about how to resize a layer in Photoshop.

 how to rotate an image in adobe photoshop
 custom angle background layer and entire canvas

Rotate your image by 90 degrees

Image rotation in photoshop depends on whether you’re looking to rotate an entire image or a layer within your image. You can use the layers panel for image rotation to select the layers you have created previously so that you can make changes in those layers individually. Find the perfect guide for how to resize image in Photoshop.

 rotate view tool rotate individual layers press enter

If you want to rotate your image by 90 degrees, you should press the “Ctrl + T” again and then choose “Rotate 90 degrees CCW”.

You can also Select Image in the top menu bar. where you can see the options like :

  • Select Image Rotation.
  • Select 180 Degrees,
  • 90 Degrees Clockwise or 90 Degrees Counter Clockwise for a quick rotation.

Finally, you have to use the save as a command to save your rotated image. So, again, make sure to keep your image before closing Photoshop.

How to rotate images in photoshop with the Crop Tool?

We’ll learn image rotation by using the crop tool by following these steps.

  • Select the image layer you want to rotate from the “Layers” list.
  • Click on the “Crop Tool.”
 how to resize and rotate an image in photoshop
  • Drag a corner handle outwards to expand the cropping area, revealing a dotted line around the perimeter.
  • Click and hold down on the dotted line and drag it around your image to rotate it. The area outside the dotted line will not be visible in your final image; only what’s inside the dotted line will remain after you crop.
  • Release your left mouse button when you’ve rotated your image as desired.

How to rotate images in photoshop by using the Free Transform tool?

There are many ways to rotate an image in Photoshop. One of the easiest ways to rotate an image is using the Free Transform tool. You can follow these steps to do so:

  • Select the image layer that you would like to rotate.
  • Then select Layer> Free Transform or press CTRL+T on your keyboard. This will bring up the Free Transform box or a bounding box around the image.
  • Once the Free Transform box is up around your image, click and drag any corner of the bounding box until your image is rotated to the desired angle.
 how to rotate an image layer in photoshop

How rotating an image is different from flipping?

If you’re trying to create a 3D look for your images, you can use several different methods, including the flipping images method. For example, you can flip a photo in half along a horizontal or vertical line and attain an interesting mirror result.

When you rotate an image, it’s not just up and down or side-to-side like flipping it. Instead, rotating is more like turning your head on your shoulders—you can turn it far enough that what was once behind you becomes in front of you.

The main difference between rotating and flipping is that flipping the image completely changes the perspective—the subject will appear either right side up or upside down, no matter how far or close it is from the camera or the viewer. With rotating, though, what’s closer to you depends on how far away the subject is from where your camera was when you took the photo—if someone is standing in front of you.

You take a picture looking straight ahead at them, then take another picture with your camera rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise from where it was before (so your view would now be sideways). Check out the finest guide for how to remove background in Photoshop.

How do Rotation and Flip work together?

You can use both of these tools in conjunction to achieve the desired effect.

For example, if you have a rectangular shape on the background and want to rotate it to stand up instead of lying on its side, you can do this by using both of these tools. First, rotate it with the Rotation tool until it is standing up as much as you want on its side—for example, if you want it standing straight up, don’t rotate it. Then flip it with the Flip tool so that it is horizontal again. Voila! The result should look like your original background with a nicely rotated rectangle on top. Find how to add external fonts to Photoshop in a simple way.

FAQ

Q: How do we rotate an image in photoshop?

A: There are several ways to rotate an image in photoshop, but the easiest way is by going to Image>Rotate Canvas. Click on “90 degrees CW,” and your Image will be rotated.

Q: How to rotate an image to 180 degrees?

A: The answer is simple: Select the Layer you want to rotate, and then press Ctrl+T. Then, Click “Flip Vertical.”

Q: Isn’t rotating an image the same as flipping a photograph horizontally or vertically?

A: If you rotate a photo, it turns it upside down. That’s not going to do anything to your graphics. However, if you make it larger or smaller than its original size, that can change the Image’s aspect ratio. Find the difference between Affinity Photo and Photoshop.

Q: Rotating an image can affect my image graphics?

A: Yes, indeed it can! If we rotate an image with a transparent background, the color used for the transparency could shift in hue and intensity. In addition, if you rotate an image with a text box on it, the text could become unreadable. Finally, if you rotate an image with a drop shadow applied to it, the shadow will look different when you rotate the Image. The lesson here is: If you intend to have a transparent background or text on the image, don’t rotate it! However, rotating an image is typically a minimal change that may not be perceptible to your image’s viewers. And if you want to go back to the unrotated image, click on the Reset View button at the top. That will reset all of your rotation changes, and your unrotated image will appear. Flipping an image in Photoshop is simple, check out the guide how to flip an image in Photoshop.


May 26, 2022
10 min read
18 reads

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