How to Crop in Procreate

Creating artwork often requires some thought. A photo may be beautifully taken, but the composition isn’t quite right. To correct this, the image must first be cropped appropriately, and then the new crop must be resized and centered on a new canvas or background. This can be extremely time-consuming if not done as it should.

Let’s explore how to crop in Procreate to make your images stand out. Cropping is a technique that allows you to focus on certain elements of a photo while deeming others unimportant.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to crop in Procreate, starting with how to set up your canvas correctly, accurately edit your photos, and create and export your image at the perfect size without any hassle. This guide also includes some helpful troubleshooting tips so that you don’t encounter any issues while cropping in Procreate. Let’s get started!

Cropping in Procreate

The Procreate app is a digital painting app with some powerful photo editing capabilities. Cropping is a technique that will allow you to select which part of the image you want to be shown and cut off the rest. It’s useful when working on a project as it allows you to focus only on what needs to be done rather than being distracted by the environment or anything else in the picture.

So, let’s go over how you can crop an image using Procreate. We will cover 2 different approaches to this.

SEE: How to Flip a Layer in Photoshop

First Approach: Cropping Over an Entire Image

To get started, we are to open the actions menu, which can be located when the wrench icon is tapped.

From there, tap on “Canvas”

The first item on the menu is the “Crop & Resize” option

Tapping on the option introduces a grid around the image that can be moved around, expanded, or reduced to your desired size.

There’s also a “settings” tab, where the “rotation” option is located. Adjusting the gauge helps you rotate the image before cropping.

Also, the “settings” tab lets you lock the aspect ratio when cropping an image. This way, the image is cropped using the same dimension parameters. You can also use this part to crop your image based on numerical inputs. So assuming you have specific dimensions for your desired output (like a thumbnail), you can do that using this option too.

Upon completion, tap on “Done,” and that’s it.

Second Approach: Cropping an Individual Layer (A workaround)

Unfortunately, there isn’t a feature that enables you to crop individual layers, but the workaround is using clipping masks. So let’s go over how this can be done.

Start by opening the layers menu, then create a duplicate of the layer by swiping left on the layer.

Next, turn off the visibility of the original layer by unchecking the box beside it.

Create a new layer, then close the layers menu.

Next, go to the selection menu in the top left corner of the screen.

Choose the “Rectangle” selection, then drag it across the image. While doing this, ensure not to lift your fingers off the screen until you have gotten the selection you want. Of course, you can always UNDO whenever you make a mistake and start over again.

Next, fill the selected area with color by dragging whatsoever color you have on your pallet and dropping it into the selected area.

After that, tap the selection button to deselect it.

Next, open up the “layers” menu once again, then drag the image layer above the newly-created layer by holding it and dragging it upwards.

After that, tap on the layer you just dragged, and a menu will come up. From the menu, select “Clipping Mask.”

As you can see, that individual layer has been cropped, with the background still intact.

Let’s change the background color to black to show you the exact section that has been cropped.

So that’s it!

Why Should You Crop Your Images?

Cropping is the process of removing portions of an image to resize or otherwise modify its size. Cropping can remove potentially distracting elements from a photograph, such as extraneous objects or people who are not part of the image’s focal point.

Cropping should always be done with care and consideration, as overcropping can create unwanted distortion in your images. When cropping images, it is important to remember that it can drastically change the overall look and feel of the final product. Choosing to crop an image at the wrong ratio may give your finished product a distorted perspective or V-shaped silhouette.

SEE: How to Add Fonts to Procreate

Rounding Up

Cropping is a common technique employed by many artists and photographers to improve their images. For example, when you take a photo, the resolution of your camera sensor limits the amount of space you can fit within your frame. Without editing, this can make your image appear poorly composed and pixelated.

Cropping shortens or expands the amount of space inside a frame while keeping its location and form intact. It’s also a great way to remove distractions, highlight the focus, and create a more impactful image.

A great way to understand how to crop in Procreate is by trying out what you’ve learned here on your artwork or other images.