When you install the CEWE MYPHOTOS Desktop App, an icon will appear on your desktop as well as the start menu, both of which you can use to launch CEWE MYPHOTOS.
The CEWE MYPHOTOS App provides commands that are not required for a single photo.
For example, you can navigate within folders, edit several photos in a row (or at the same time), search for and rate photos, and carry out several other commands that are only useful for working with multiple photos or folders.
However, for the sake of clarity these commands are not displayed when you are only working on a single photo.
CEWE MYPHOTOS is accessible via the drop-down menu if you right-click on an image file while navigating on your OS.
Clicking CEWE MYPHOTOS in the drop-down menu will immediately open the selected image within CEWE MYPHOTOS ready for you to work on.
In the title menu highlighted in red, you have the option to display your photos and videos stored locally on your PC/laptop (local photos) or online at CEWE MYPHOTOS (online photos). You’ll also find settings in the menu as well as the ability to seek help.
Below is the main toolbar with blue icons, which gives you further options for managing and editing your photos.
In the left area of the program window you’ll find the selection area for your folders. If however, you’ve already chosen a photo for editing, the available tools will be clearly displayed in this area, depending on the tool type.
In the middle of the workspace you can see subfolders and/or previews of photos in the active folder.
You can start the CEWE MYPHOTOS app either by double-clicking the icon on your desktop or through the start menu.
Initially you’ll see the Photo Explorer to allow you to select the folders to work in and images to be edited.
If you open CEWE MYPHOTOS directly through the drop-down menu of a photo stored on your computer, the photo will be opened immediately in the editing window.Editing Window.
In Photo Explorer you’ll find the name of the current folder on the left, as well as a tree of available subfolders below it.
On the right, sub-folders will be displayed as folder icons.
For your information, the time period in which your photos were taken is displayed on the left above the folder icons. This information is constantly updated as soon as you switch to a new subfolder.
In the middle of the toolbar directly above the subfolders is the name of the folder that’s currently open, which can be renamed here if you wish.
The number of subfolders and images contained within the currently opened folder is displayed on the right.
In the bar above you’ll find a button on the left-hand side with the name of the folder hierarchically above the currently open folder, as always if you’d like to return to this you can.
Double-clicking the preview of a subfolder will open it.
A double-click on a photo thumbnail opens it for editing within the workspace.
The “Back” button in the top-left will bring you back to the corresponding folder.
This displays the folders and images saved to your computer.
This displays the albums, events and photos that you have created in CEWE MYPHOTOS.
This opens the CEWE MYPHOTOS Help Page (which you're currently reading) in your default browser.
This opens a dialogue window with settings for CEWE MYPHOTOS.
Set the folder in which to save temporary files, EXIF Data, cached files, upload and rendering settings.
Optional Proxy Settings
Legal notices, such as those regarding data protection and tracking, terms and conditions and copyright information.
Contact details for customer service as well as settings for error reports.
Version Information for the CEWE MYPHOTOS Desktop App.
Log into CEWE MYPHOTOS.
The main toolbar changes depending on whether you're navigating through folders in the Photo Explorer or looking at a single photo.
A single photo will be displayed full-screen.
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Attention: The below contains the full list of all icons that may be available in the toolbar at any time.
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Gives you the option to save your edited photo under a new name.
Only active if CEWE MYPHOTOS is your chosen photo source!
CEWE MYPHOTOS is a service that enables you to save your photos online for further use in your own personal Cloud storage space.
You can then access your photos from anywhere, any time and using any device as long as you're using the app and connected to the internet.
Registration and signing in with your account is required.
All photos, or just those with at least a certain rating?
Refers to an event/folder that has already been set up in your CEWE MYPHOTOS.
Here you can create a new folder or event.
The name of your currently selected photo folder will appear by default, but you can also enter another name.
Click the "OK" button to upload your chosen photos into the selected folder. The events/folders you have created will automatically be sorted into "Year Events" at the top, with the year of the oldest photo in the event you have created.
Based on meta data (e.g. the date/time your photo was taken) your photo(s) will be automatically organised into existing events.
The names of your photo folders will be used to automatically assign photos to events.
Events that do not exist yet will be created automatically.
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Why "Event" and not "Folder"? In CEWE MYPHOTOS no real folders are created, rather your photos are allocated to a particular event using database links.
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This button is only active when photos are open in full-screen mode in your workspace.
This button opens the editing window wherein the editing tools will be displayed on the left side of your screen. (See "Editing Window".)
With the function "Correct Recording Time" you can change the recording time/date of all photos in a folder or of selected photo(s).
This function is useful to synchronise the recording data of two cameras.
Imagine for example, that you've taken photos at a wedding using two different cameras but one of them had the date and/or time set incorrectly.
Many apps such as CEWE MYPHOTOS sort and group your photos according to the time and date they were taken. Therefore, if chronological data is incorrect it will result in your photos being organised in the wrong order.
The current recording time/date will be displayed on each photo.
If no photo is selected, then all photos within the current folder will be selected automatically.
To synchronise between photos from a pair of cameras more easily you can also filter by the camera model.
Then click on "More".
In the dialogue window all photos will be displayed above, whose recording time/date is to be corrected.
There the old time will be displayed, as well as the new one. If you've changed the time, the new time will be displayed in red text.
1. You correct the chosen photos manually using a set value:
To do this, adjust the time change.
Specify the direction of the change e.g. "In the past" or "In the future".
Select the specific time values to be changed (e.g. Day, Month, Year, Hour...).
The below photos can be ignored.
2. Synchronise the recording times of your two cameras by using a reference photos
The snapshot when the bridge and groom kiss at the altar, or when they cut the wedding cake together – these moments won’t have been missed by any photographer and that’s probably why it was taken with both cameras.
There are definitely many times when one can estimate from the photographs taken by two different cameras that they were very close in time.The photos taken with your previously selected camera will be displayed at the top and all photos from the current folder will be displayed at the bottom.
You can also filter the photos below by camera model!Now look above and below for photos that were probably taken at the same time.
Mark both photos, the one above first.
The time difference between the photos will automatically be entered when the time is changed.
The time change can be corrected manually if there is still a slight difference between the shooting times of the reference photos.
If you then click on "Correct all recording times", the recording time of all photos in the upper scroll bar will be shifted by the specified time difference and you will land back in the Photo Explorer.
Deletes the chosen photos, and puts them in the Recycle Bin.
The "Delete" key does the same thing.
With this you can create a sub-folder within your currently selected folder.
In case you want to change the name of the subfolder, hover your cursor over the folder's name and left-click once.
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Attention:
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Die
Star symbols
allow you to quickly assess the rating/quality of a photo.
Click on your chosen number of stars to rate a photo.
The better you find a photo, the higher you should rate it.
Photos that haven't been rated, or that were deleted without previously being rated have 0 stars.
1 star is for the photos that you've archived but lack any real significance.
5 stars are for your absolute best photos that you love to look at.
Rate your photos according to your own taste.
Sets the viewing mode. This has no effect on the view of your folders, only on the arrangement of the photos.
There are four viewing modes:
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In the experience view, the photos are tiled, i.e. arranged as close as possible to each other. |
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Photos taken on the same occasion are grouped together on line. |
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The photos will be displayed in equal-sized cells in a table. |
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The photos will be grouped together on one line based on the day they were taken. |
Toggles the display of file names in the photo view on or off.
Shrinks and enlarges the photo thumbnails.
There are three ways to sort the view of photos:
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Sort alphabetically by file name. |
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Sorts chronologically based upon the recording time. |
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Photos are organised by their number of stars, highest ratings first. |
Only photos that fulfil conditions of your set filters will be displayed.
Possible filters are activated with a hook:
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Only displays photos that have at least your chosen rating. |
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Only displays photos whose file name contains your entered data. |
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Only displays photos taken by the specified camera model(s). |
Filters can be combined with one another.
Deactivate the filterisation again.
Additionally, in the main toolbar you'll find the commands "Undo" and "Redo".
Reverses the previous action (Only active when an action has already been taken)
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"Undo" is the best friend of photo editors: With Undo, you can reverse changes step-by-step that might not have produced the imagined or desired result. |
Reverses the last "Undo" command. (Only active when an action has previously been "undone".)
By default, the selection tools appear in a small tool panel in the top-left corner of the workspace.
The selection tools can be docked by clicking the small arrow symbol to the right of the workspace. Another click on the arrow moves them back again.
An alternative to the scroll bar.
Moves your view in a zoomed photo when you hold down the left mouse button.
Hold down the left mouse button and drag the lasso around an image area that you want to "capture" specifically for editing.
The rectangle is an editing frame that you can draw freely on the photo with the mouse and adjust with handles. "("Rubber band" function.)
If the editing frame is too small for the handles, they are hidden, but the frame can still be adjusted.
Like the square, just an ellipse.
With the right function menu "Range selection" you can refine your selection by selecting:
Drag another selection area without cancelling the previous one.
Drag another selection area within the previous selection (or cut it), this will be removed from the previous selection.
Removes the previous selection.
Selects the inverse of your current selection.
Opens the selection improvement functions.
Can, but doesn't always have to be applied (e.g. Red Eye Correction).
Everything outside of your selection will be hidden and made opaque.
The selected area will be made slightly transparent, but will remain visible for the time being.
Works like a brush to add or remove similarly coloured areas from the selection..
Like a brush or eraser, with which you can change your selection by drawing.
Slider or numeric input to adjust the size of the brush.
To adjust the colour and transparency of the selection.
The default is red, but for easier visibility you can change colour.
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The "Selection Improvement" is explained in more detail using the Crop" section as an example. |
Adjustments are only made to the photo in the selected area. (This is most useful for example for correcting red eyes, but also helps avoid applying effects unnecessarily to other parts of the photograph.)
The bottom toolbar is located directly below the currently open photo.
With the bottom toolbar you can change the view of the selected photo and navigate within the currently selected folder.
It also gives you quick access to some of the features you need now and then.
The Tools:
The magnifying glass icons (with "+" and "-") and the zoom slider are located on the left-hand side of the bottom toolbar. These tools allow you to zoom in or out on the selected photo.
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Tip:
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With help from the rating stars you can quickly and easily add or change ratings to photos.
The better the photo, the more stars it should have.
Give your favourites five stars.
On the other hand, worse photos should get closer to one star, or none at all.
Using the navigation icons, you can display the first photo in the folder (left arrow with a vertical line), the preceding photo (left arrow), the next photo (right arrow) or the final photo in the folder (right arrow with a vertical line) on the workspace.
With this tool you can bookmark the current photo for later use in a photo book or as a photo order. In the photo explorer of the %softwarename% software there's a separate folder "Bookmarked Photos" in which these photos are collected.
Im Fotoexplorer der %softwarename% Software gibt es einen eigenen Ordner "Vorgemerkte Fotos", in dem diese Fotos gesammelt werden.
Click the "Full Screen On/Off" button to toggle full-screen mode.
The image will fill your screen.
Full screen mode can be turned off by clicking the symbol again in the toolbar (move cursor to display toolbar) or by pressing "ESC" on your keyboard.
Use the "Rotate Current Photo 90° Counterclockwise" and "Rotate Current Photo 90° Clockwise" (the rounded arrows) to rotate the selected image right or left.
A click on the "Delete Current Photo from Hard Drive" button (the trash can) to move the currently selected photo into your recycle bin.
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Many tools and/or effects have a menu for settings, the effects of which are immediately displayed in the preview.
However, some tools do not have this menu and do not offer further settings.
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Several editing tools can be applied to the same photo one after the other. |
The displayed tools are divided into groups, which can be opened by clicking on the corresponding button below.
The individual groups are as follows:
Here are all the tools that have to do with adjustments to the photo or in the photo.
"Red eyes" often occur when you use a harsh flash in low-light. The flash illuminates the blood-drenched pupils of the subject's eye, which looks off-putting. With this function, you can automatically retouch red eyes quickly and easily in almost all cases.
Especially if there are several faces with red eyes in the photo, it is advisable to retouch each pair of eyes (or individual eye) individually by first drawing up a selection of them. This avoids the problem that other red image areas (e.g. the mouth) are also changed.
First select the desired area of the photo and click "Crop".
Anything outside of the selection marquee will be removed. (Only possible to use a rectangular selection marquee, inside and outside without fading possible.)
"Free Crop" is a function for semi-automatic free cropping and serves to remove the background and unimportant parts of the image around the subject to be cropped.
Common and recommended procedure:
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It is particularly easy to crop photos in which the motif stands out as clearly as possible from the background.
On the left, a sample photo opened in the CEWE MYPHOTOS Desktop app. |
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You should perform other functions in the CEWE MYPHOTOS Desktop app before clipping. Here, for example, the shadows were lightened a little. |
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Click on the "Crop" tool and make a rough preselection with the lasso selection tool (but rectangle or ellipse also work). Hold down the left mouse button and move the lasso around the areas to be cut out.
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Then click on the "Crop" button on the left-hand side.
This is called "Masking" and the coloured areas are called "Masks". Usually the mask is red, but for better visibility you can set other colours, e.g. if the photo already contains a lot of red. Since no automatic system ever works perfectly every time, in this case the sky flashes through in some places, especially between arm and leg, at the hollow of the knee and the shoes.
Therefore, one can still rework and correct with the "selection improvement". |
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There are two correction methods in the Selection Enhancement: Edit Surfaces and Edit Details, each with Add and Remove buttons. |
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You should keep in mind that the masked areas are not part of the selection and that adding and removing them refers to the selection.
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Edit surfacesAutomatically selects areas with the same or similar colour. The mouse cursor works like a brush, the size of the brush can be reduced or enlarged based on your requirements. Often you can work better with a smaller, more accurate brush, because adjacent surfaces are selected at the same time. By combining "Add" and "Remove" you can achieve a good result. |
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Sometimes the areas are too fine or not defined enough to be detected automatically.
Edit DetailsWhen editing details, the mouse cursor actually works like a paintbrush when removing and like an eraser when adding.
A good mouse and a steady hand will help. |
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When you have finished cropping, no background flashes through and there are no more unwanted gaps in the subject to be cropped, you apply the cropping. Accept the clipping with a click on "Apply" on the left side. |
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This is the result of the crop in the CEWE MYPHOTOS Desktop app. |
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And this is how the cropped photo would look on a CEWE Photo Product with an added background of a stadium photo. A slight shadow has been added to make the cropped image stand out better. |
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An even greater challenge is when one has to crop out hair, tree branches or other similarly fine details.
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Mirrors the photo or the selected area of the photo around the horizontal or vertical axis.
Straighten the photo using a slider.
The edges of the image are adjusted and trimmed so that no white parts of the image remain.
Adjust brightness and contrast using sliders to correct slight overexposures or underexposures
Automatically applies the blur to the photo with preset values.
Specially designed to use the photo as a page background in a photo product.
Has several settings sliders:
Controls the degree of blur (softness).
A negative value bleaches the photo, a positive value increases the colour saturation.
Put a white veil over the photo, looks like fog.
Lightens the darker areas of the photo.
Reduces image noise, which often occurs in low-light conditions.
Caution: Also affects the contrast of the photo.
Increases contrast and reduces shadows around eyes (with automatic face detection).
Automatically retouches wrinkles, lightens shadows and provides a healthy face colour (with automatic face recognition).
Optimizes the photo in terms of contrast, brightness, colour, etc...
Here you can find all the tools that have to do with colour adjustments of or in the whole photo.
The sepia effect gives your photo the look of an old yellowed photo.
The strength of the yellowing is adjusted by a slider.
Discards the colour information of the photo and turns it into a black-and-white image.
To enhance certain colour tones.
The strength of the hue and the hue are adjustable.
With gamma correction, the calculated curve of the mean colour brightness is shifted.
The advantage is that the darkest and brightest pixels are not changed. Only the brightness values in between shift towards lighter or darker.
This does not take place linearly, but proportionally in a curve flattening to both ends of the brightness scale, i.e. the brightness values in the middle of the brightness scale are shifted more strongly than the values closer to the ends of the brightness scale.
This allows you to brighten or darken an image without too much loss of quality becoming visible in the image. One should not overdo this however.
Adjusts the gamma value for only one specific colour channel at a time.
Inverts the colours of the photo to create a so-called negative.
Each colour channel (red, blue, green) can be inverted individually and independently from the others as well as the brightness.
Reduces the opacity of the photo or image area.
Here you will find all the tools you need to artistically edit your photos.
These effects search your photo for contrast edges that appear as contours.
The photo then looks like a line drawing with a thicker (strong) or thinner (weak) pencil.
This will give your photo the look of an oil painting.
By adjusting the thickness of the brush, the painting becomes more or less abstract.
This is what your photo looks like when an artist draws it with charcoal.
The strength controls the width of the strokes, or the blurring of the charcoal on the drawing sheet.
This effect projects your photo onto a tiled wall.
The size of the tiles (grid size) and the depth of the joints (line depth) between the tiles can be adjusted.
Pixelates your photo into plain square blocks.
The greater the strength, the more abstract the result.
In combination with a selection area, it is suitable, for example, to make a license plate or face unrecognisable in a photo for data protection reasons.
Splits the photo into rows and columns. The single cells can be rotated to each other by a random generator.
The number of columns and rows, as well as the size, rotation angle and colour of cell edges can be set.
The initial value for the random generator influences the random distribution of the cells if the rotation angle is not 0.
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Tip: You will get a very special and appealing result if you set the maximum rotation angle to 0 and also set the alpha channel to 0 for the colour of the edges.
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This effect reduces the colours of the photo into contrasting areas, making it very striking.
This effect is also called "posterisation" in professional image processing.
Simulates ripples, like throwing a stone into the water.
The frequency (wavelength) and the amplitude (wave height) can be adjusted.
That makes the photo look like it was sprayed with paint.
The density of the spray points can be adjusted.
Simulates a prism filter (effect lens for photo cameras).
The number of repetitions or prisms can be set.
Displays and edits the Exif data.
The Exchangeable Image File Format (Exif) is an international standard for storing metadata in digital photos.
The digital camera creates a part of the metadata immediately during the recording (camera brand, camera model, recording date, resolution, focal length, exposure time, aperture, etc.).
The most important of these data are displayed under "Camera data".
By the way, the evaluation also belongs to the metadata.
Additional metadata can be used to manage the photos:
The recording date is displayed, but can also be edited.
Here you can insert or change a short title for your photo.
In the field "Description" you can briefly describe the image content.
Keywords are used to search for a specific photo or several photos later on.
A keyword should be a short descriptive term. You can assign several keywords separated by a semicolon.
Example: "Holidays; Mediterranean Sea; Mallorca; Beach" or "Family; Birthday; Gift"..
The copyright can be registered with someone who owns the rights of use and reproduction of the photo.
This is usually the photographer himself, but can also be, for example, a company that commissioned the photo or bought the reproduction rights.
As an author, you usually specify the photographer or the author of this photo. This allows you to keep photos from several photographers apart.
Personal or technical remarks about the photo or occasion on which the photo was taken.
Displays all other metadata stored in the photo file as entered by the camera or by an image editing program.
This metadata cannot be edited, depends on the camera software used and can often only be understood by photo experts.