How to invert part of an image

Invert only the area you select

1. Open your image

   Choose Choose image, drag a file into the tool, or paste an image from your clipboard. You can also choose Use the sample image to practice. Local files are edited in your browser. Optional phone transfer uses an encrypted temporary relay; see the Privacy Policy.

   JPG, PNG, WebP and supported HEIC/HEIF files can be added to a queue of up to 20 images, with a combined limit of 200 MB. Each image must be no larger than 25 MB, 20 megapixels or 16,384 pixels per side. HEIC/HEIF input uses the static main image; some variants need conversion first.

2. Switch from whole-image inversion

   A new image is inverted in full by default. Keep Invert colors turned on and change Processing area to Invert selected areas. Before you add a selection, the result shows the original colors.

3. Draw a rectangle on the result

   Drag across the part you want to change in the result preview. Use the result on the right on a wide screen, or below the original on a narrow screen. Only the area inside the rectangle is inverted. The original preview stays unchanged for comparison.

   Draw another rectangle in an empty area to include a second part of the image. Overlapping boxes do not invert the same pixels twice.

Original

Selected area inverted

To reproduce this example, download the original sample screenshot, then use the invert image tool. Choose Rectangle, select the notes panel, and use Adjust selected area to set Left 28, Top 159, Width 400 and Height 192. The sample is 800 × 480 pixels.

Choose the right selection tool

Rectangle is useful for text boxes and screenshot panels. Ellipse suits rounded areas. For a silhouette or uneven outline, choose Brush, paint over the area, and reduce Brush size near the edges. Use Selection eraser to subtract from an existing selection. It removes the effect from those pixels, not the pixels themselves. There is no automatic subject or text detection.

Original

Brush selection inverted

Invert a screenshot without changing its photos

A dark screenshot may contain both an interface and a photo. Inverting the whole screenshot makes the interface light, but also changes the photo's colors. To keep the photo looking as it did:

1. Choose Keep selected areas unchanged under Processing area.
2. Draw a rectangle around the photo in the result preview.
3. Adjust the rectangle to match the photo's edges. Add one rectangle for each photo you want to protect.

Everything outside your boxes is inverted. Everything inside them keeps its original colors. This is especially useful when the photo has straight, rectangular edges. If your selection includes a border or caption, those pixels will also stay unchanged, so check the edges before saving.

Original

Illustration protected

For this sample, choose Keep selected areas unchanged and protect the illustration at Left 460, Top 104, Width 280 and Height 240. This can make a dark screenshot easier to read or print while retaining the illustration’s colors. Colored interface elements also invert; it is not an automatic dark-to-light theme converter.

Move, resize or remove a selection

Choose Move, then drag a selection to reposition it. Drag the bottom-right handle of a rectangle or ellipse to resize it. Add area creates the currently chosen rectangle or ellipse; brush strokes are drawn directly on the result.

For precise shape alignment, choose a rectangle or ellipse in the selection list and open Adjust selected area. Left, Top, Width and Height use original-image pixels. Brush and eraser strokes can be moved or deleted, but do not use these shape-size fields.

Undo and Redo restore selection edits, processing modes, the inversion switch and Reset. Use Ctrl/⌘ Z to undo and Ctrl/⌘ Shift Z to redo; Ctrl Y also works. History is limited by memory, so older steps may be removed. Each queued image keeps its own editing history while this page remains open. Removing the image or closing the page loses that session. Delete selected area removes the selected edit; Clear areas removes all selections.

Reset clears your selections and returns to whole-image inversion. It keeps the current image loaded. If you only want to compare with the unedited picture, turn off Invert colors instead; turn it back on to return to your selected effect.

Choose a format and save

Select an output format and choose Download image. The saved image contains the result preview, without selection outlines or handles, at the original pixel dimensions.

• PNG: lossless output that preserves transparency. A useful choice for screenshots, text and line art.
• JPG: lossy output. Transparent areas are filled with white.
• WebP: lossy output that preserves transparency, if your browser supports this encoder.

Copy image copies a PNG when the browser permits clipboard access. If copying is unavailable, download instead. Check that Invert colors is on before saving an inverted result; with it off, the download uses the original colors.

JPG and WebP offer 90%, 70%, 50% and 30% quality settings. PNG is lossless. Original format preserves a supported input format; HEIC/HEIF falls back to PNG. Download all (ZIP) exports ready images using the current format and quality, with each image’s own selections.

How to invert part of an image in Photoshop

In Photoshop on desktop, an Invert adjustment layer with a mask gives you an editable version of the same effect:

1. Open the image and use the Rectangular Marquee or Lasso tool to select the area you want to change.
2. Choose Layer → New Adjustment Layer → Invert. The selection becomes the mask for the adjustment, so the effect is limited to that area.
3. Click the adjustment layer’s mask thumbnail. Paint white on the mask to include more of the image, or black to protect an area. Make sure you are editing the mask, not the image layer.
4. Save a PSD to keep the layers editable, then export a PNG or JPG for sharing. Use PNG if transparency matters.

Select → Inverse only swaps which pixels are selected; it does not reverse their colors. Use it before the adjustment if you want to change everything outside your selection.

For a quick browser edit, the selection tools here avoid a layered document. Photoshop is useful when you also need detailed masks or other layer-based adjustments. See Adobe’s guides to adjustment layers and editing layer masks.

Common questions

Can I invert only the background?

Yes. Choose Keep selected areas unchanged and select the subject you want to protect. Everything outside your selection is inverted. Use a rectangle for a photo panel or a brush for an irregular subject. You define the outline yourself; the tool does not remove backgrounds automatically. A blue background turns yellow, not white, so inversion is not a general background-color replacement.

Can I invert only the text in an image?

You can select the area containing the text, but all pixels in that area are inverted, including its background. A white-on-black text box becomes black-on-white. To change only individual letter shapes, select them manually with a small brush. This is not OCR and does not edit the wording. Check antialiased edges before saving; PNG avoids adding JPG compression artifacts around letters.

Will a transparent PNG background stay transparent?

Yes. Inversion changes red, green and blue values while preserving alpha, the transparency channel. Save as PNG or supported WebP to retain transparent areas. JPG fills them with white. The checkerboard behind the preview is not part of the downloaded image. Black pixels do not become transparent merely because their colors are inverted.

Can I select a circle or an irregular object?

Use Ellipse for a rounded area; equal Width and Height values make a circle. Use Brush for an irregular outline and Selection eraser to refine it. There is no automatic object detection, and older selection edits may be removed from undo history when memory is limited.

Why does my selection appear to do nothing?

Check that Invert colors is on. Invert selected areas needs a shape or brush selection before anything changes. Keep selected areas unchanged does the opposite: selecting the entire image protects all of it. If you erased a selection, add a new brush stroke or undo the eraser step. The selection outlines are editing guides and are not exported.