A gradient lets you fade gradually from one colour to another or from colour into transparency. In Photo Studio, a Linear gradient follows a straight direction. A Radial gradient spreads outward from a centre point. You can add either for free and keep it on an editable layer above the photo.
Use a linear fade behind a caption, where one edge needs to be darker for lettering. Use a radial fade when you want colour concentrated around a particular area, such as a corner of a collage. The size of the drag determines how far the transition extends. The end opacity and overall layer opacity determine how much of the photo shows through.
Step 1. Open the website and upload the photo
Visit the Free Photo Editing Software homepage. Choose Photo Editor in the navigation or Open Photo Editor in the header. In Photo Studio, select Open a photo and upload a JPEG, PNG or WebP. If you already have an image in the workspace, use Open photo in the top bar to choose another. Click Fit to see where the lightest and darkest areas fall.
Decide what job the gradient should do. To make a caption readable near the bottom, focus on the strip behind the words. If you are applying a colour treatment, identify a part of the photo whose original colours you want to keep clear. Those choices help you decide where to start and end the drag.
Step 2. Open Gradient and choose the colours
Select Gradient in the toolbar, or press D. Choose Linear from Type for a directional fade. Set the Start and End colour swatches. Try dark blue at the start and dark blue at the end for a subtle shadow behind a light caption. Set End opacity to zero so the colour fades away at the end.
Layer opacity controls the strength of the entire gradient. A lower value lets the photo show through even where the gradient is strongest. Begin at a modest level for a photographic fade, then check the result against the actual image. If you want the gradient to echo a colour already in the image, use Pick color first. The sampled foreground shade becomes the gradient's start colour.
Step 3. Draw a linear fade across the photo
For a bottom caption, begin your drag near the lower edge and move upward toward the part of the photo you want clear. Release at the point where the transition should reach the end colour or become transparent. The direction of the drag sets the direction of the fade. A short drag changes colour over a short distance, while a longer drag spreads the same change over a wider area.
Photo Studio adds the gradient as a separate layer immediately above the layer you had selected. If the fade covers a caption you meant to leave untouched, open Layers and move the gradient below the caption. Inspect the layer order when a fade is hard to see. An opaque layer above it may cover the area you just edited.
Step 4. Try a radial gradient for a local accent
Select the layer above which you want to place the next gradient. Choose Gradient again and set Type to Radial. Set the start colour to the shade you want near the centre. For a gentle highlight, choose a soft colour and set the end opacity to zero. Click and drag from the point where you want the strongest colour out to the edge of the fade.
The distance you drag sets the radius. A small radius concentrates colour around the starting point. A larger radius makes the change gentler across a wider area. If you want to compare the two results, turn off the visibility of your linear gradient before judging the radial one. Two overlapping fades can make a modest setting look stronger than either layer does on its own.
Step 5. Limit the gradient to a selected area
To confine the effect to a particular region, make a pixel selection first. For example, use Polygonal Lasso to outline a rectangular sign or a section of a collage. Finish the outline, then switch to Gradient and drag where you want the fade to begin and end. The editor clips the new gradient to that selection.
After adding it, choose Select → Deselect pixels to view the boundary without the outline. If the fade changes abruptly at the selection edge, decide whether you want a different selection or a gentler fade. On a sign, a sharp edge may fit the design. On a natural surface, a visible seam may call for a wider area or lower opacity.
Step 6. Refine the layer in the composition
Open Layers and select the Linear gradient or Radial gradient layer. Under Gradient stops, change the type, colours or end opacity. You can also change the layer opacity and experiment with the Blend mode. Adjust one setting at a time so you can tell what changed. When the main purpose is to support a caption, start by adjusting opacity.
Check at the size people will see. Make sure the fade covers the background behind the whole line of text, including the last word. Toggle the gradient layer off and on to compare. If the placement or angle is wrong, redraw the fade from a better starting point. An accurately placed gradient with low opacity often does more for readability than a strong fade that reaches too far.
Give each gradient a layer name that describes its purpose. If you have one fade behind the caption and another across the opposite corner, name them by location so you can adjust the right one. Compare them one at a time by toggling their visibility. If both compete for attention, keep the caption fade strong enough for the words to read and reduce the other until the original light in the photo comes through.
Step 7. Download the image and keep your layers
Choose Download image for a PNG. Use Download options when you need another format or size. Inspect the exported file for visible bands in a smooth fade, especially after compression. Recheck any text where the gradient becomes transparent.
Keep an editable copy using File → Download project if you expect to change the stops, layer order or opacity. The project is useful when you need several versions of the same image with different captions.