How to hide faces and plates in a photo

More gets into the frame than you think

A photo taken for a marketplace listing captures more than the item. The view out of the window gives away the neighbourhood, and the shipping label on the box still carries a name and an address.

Everyday photos are the same: a bystander's face, the plate of a parked car, an email address left in a screenshot. Most of it is easy to spot if you look once before posting.

Mosaic or blur — what is the difference?

A mosaic breaks the area into large blocks. It is obvious that something was hidden, which is what you want when the point is to show it was deliberate.

A blur blends into the picture more naturally. But a weak blur can leave the shape of letters readable. For plates or account numbers, use a mosaic and raise the strength.

Two things to know before you start

First, hidden areas cannot be brought back. The saved file keeps only the flattened pixels, so keep the original if you might need it.

Second, the more sensitive the photo, the less it should be uploaded. Sending a photo to somebody else's server in order to protect what is in it makes little sense. The mosaic and blur tool on Image Converter NOW draws inside your browser, so the photo never leaves your device.

When this comes in handy

• •Marketplace listings — home address, shipping labels, licence plates in product photos
• •Social media and blogs — faces of bystanders and children
• •Document uploads — account numbers and ID digits that nobody needs to see
• •Work material — names, emails and customer data left in screenshots