Editing images and organising the Media Library

The Media Library has an image editor built in. You can resize, crop, rotate and adjust a picture without leaving your Orbit dashboard, then save it as a new file or replace the one you started with. The same screen has search, filters and sort for finding a file in a big library.

Considerations

• The editor opens images only. Videos, audio files and documents have no Edit image button.
• Nothing is saved until you click Save as copy or Replace original.
• Replace original overwrites the file itself, so everything that already shows it shows your edit.
• Replace original is turned off if you change the file type in the Export panel.

Open the image editor

1. From your Orbit dashboard, go to Media Library, then open the Media tab.
2. Hover over an image and click the pencil icon, Edit image. In list view the same icon sits with the other actions on the right of the row.
3. The Edit Image window opens, with the file name under the title.

You can also click the file to open its details, then click Edit image below the preview.

The editor panels

The panels run down the right side of the window. One opens at a time, and Resize opens first. The picture on the left updates as you work.

• Resize: set Width and Height in pixels, or pick a Scale of 25%, 50%, 75% or 100%. The lock button between the two boxes keeps the shape of the picture. The original size is shown underneath.
• Crop: pick an Aspect ratio of Free, 1:1, 4:3, 3:2, 16:9 or 3:4, then drag the handles on the image to set the crop area. Clear crop removes it.
• Rotate & flip: turn the picture a quarter turn with Left or Right, mirror it with Horizontal or Vertical, and use the Straighten slider for anything from -45 to 45 degrees.
• Adjust: sliders for Brightness, Contrast, Saturation, Hue, Grayscale, Sepia and Blur. Reset adjustments puts all seven back to normal.
• Export: choose a File type of PNG, JPG or WebP. JPG and WebP add a Quality slider. The box below shows the Output size in pixels and an Estimated size for the finished file.

Tip: Reset all, at the bottom left, drops every change from every panel and takes you back to the picture you opened.

Save a copy or replace the original

Three buttons sit at the bottom right of the editor.

• Cancel: close the editor and keep nothing.
• Save as copy: add the edited picture to the library as a new file. Orbit adds "-edited" to the file name and keeps the alt text and caption. The original does not change.
• Replace original: overwrite the file you opened. The button tells you what it does: "Overwrite the original everywhere it is used".

The library reloads after either save, so a copy shows up in the list straight away.

Warning: Replace original changes the file itself. Every product, page and blog post that uses that image shows the edited version from then on. Use Save as copy if you might want the old picture back.

If you pick a different File type in Export, Replace original is turned off and Orbit asks you to save a copy instead. Set the file type back to the one you started with to turn the button on again.

Search, filter and sort your files

1. Type in the search box, marked Search files..., and press Enter.
2. Click Filters for more ways to narrow the list. A blue dot on the button means a filter is on.
3. Click Sort to change the order of the files.

The Filters panel holds three groups.

• Media Type: All Types, Images, Videos, Audio and Documents. You can pick more than one type.
• Used in: Products, Product variants, Blog posts and Not used. Picking Not used clears the other three. It is a quick way to find files nothing uses.
• File size: a Min box and a Max box, both in MB.

Sort offers Date added (newest first), Date added (oldest first), File name (A-Z), File name (Z-A), File size (smallest first) and File size (largest first).

The two icon buttons to the right of Sort switch between grid and list. The list shows the file type, the dimensions and the date added beside each name.

Work with several files at once

1. Click Select all in the toolbar above the files, or tick the ones you want.
2. Check the count beside the button. It reads "3 selected", and so on.
3. Click the download icon, Download selected, to save them.
4. Click the bin icon, Delete selected, to remove them. Orbit asks you to confirm first.

Deselect all clears your choice. The same toolbar has Refresh to reload the list and Upload to add more files.

Related guides

• Using the Media Library
• Editing products
• Adding an image