I was recently asked to review FotoJet which is an online application that will allow you to create collages, graphic designs, and enhance photos with a photo editor. It provides many amazing projects such as photo cards, social media graphics, posters, etc. and it allows you to edit your images easily. It is a FREE tool that you can use in your classrooms with students, for branding, ads, posts for business, and for personal usages.
When you login, you will have three options, 'Create a Design', 'Make a Collage', or 'Edit a Photo'. Each option serves a different purpose.
The Create a Design section will allow you to select from many templates. These templates will allow you to create ads, headers, banners, flyers, posters, cards and much more. Many of them can be used for social media and branding. You can even create a custom design using your own page dimensions. There are many templates to choose from and you can even upload your own photos to the designer. Additionally, you have the option to add word art, background, and clip art. Here is a sample design that I created using a template and adding my finishing touches.
The Collage option will allow you to create a photo collage with pictures from your device, or from their library. There are many templates to choose from. One feature I like was the Text option because there was a lot of selection and they reminded me of word art. Additionally, the collage feature will allow you to add clip art, backgrounds, and select from different layouts. The example below displays a blue background, a 5 picture layout for pictures, and text. I found this feature to be very simple to use.
The Photo Editor option will allow you to upload images from your device or find them on Facebook. There are many options available that you can choose from to enhance your image. A screen shot of your options is shown below.
A nice option in the photo editor was that I was able to compare the original picture to the enhanced picture. It was very easy to add effects, frames, and adjustments to the image. Below is an example of what I created.
The image displays a border with enhancements, a vignette enhancement, and text boxes. I was also able to specify certain colors of the text using the hex # of the color from the color wheel. The only thing I could not do was upload an additional picture and layer it on my original.
Classroom Implementation
You can use FotoJet with your students easily by having them access the website and creating a free account. Be sure you check with your organization policies and COPPA for the age restrictions of FotoJet
Some ideas for education:
- allow students to create an advertisement to market a product
- allow students to create a collage of similar objects
- allow students to create a campaign for antibullying or another concept
- allow students to create banners and headers for an assignment
- classroom collage of students working collaborately on an assignment
Conclusion
In conclusion, I would highly recommend FotoJet. I felt the interface was user friendly, quick and easy to navigate, and there were many features available in each project type option. I was able to create my projects without having any prior knowledge of FotoJet very quickly.
Additionally, I like the option of having the social media headers, banners, ads, and posts sizes available for Facebook, Instagram, and Google Plus. I did not have to research the sizes of these objects because they were available in the template gallery.
Furthermore, I was able to save my projects to my local device, share them to social, or print them.
Finally, I felt the application interface was not overwhelming as compared to others, and I felt I was able to create my project quickly, especially without having any prior knowledge of it. I know I will be using this application to create projects and enhance my objects. Give it a try! You will be happy that you did!