How to Make Fisheye Effect in Paint.NET

In this Paint.NET tutorial, I'll show you how to create a fisheye effect using the Ellipse Select Tool and Bulge filter that comes with Paint.NET. 

We'll start by drawing a circle selection, invert the selection, fill the selection with Black, invert the selection again, apply Bulge filter to the selection and Crop the image. Let's get started!

Final result.

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Step 1: Open Image

Go to File>Open... command in the top menu or else just press Ctrl+O to open your image. The Open dialog appears, allowing you to navigate to the file and click on its name. Use the Navigation pane on the left to navigate to a location on your computer where you have your images. Click the image you want to open, then click the Open button. 

The opened image displayed in the Editing Window. For this Paint.NET tutorial, I'll use this image, 21136, downloaded from Pixabay.

Step 2: Draw a Circle Selection

Grab the Ellipse Select Tool from the Tools Window.  

In the Options bar, choose “Replace”. Click, hold and drag your mouse to choose a portion of the document while holding down the Shift key to keep the selection doesn't distort. Just leave the mouse when you are done. You should see a dotted line or marching ants outline the selection. Now, the selected portion of the document, in a circle, has been picked or selected.

If you want to move the selection, grab the Move Selection tool in the Tools window then click anywhere inside the selection and drag to the position you want.

Step 3: Invert Selection

Use Edit>Invert Selection or else just press Ctrl+I to inverts the circle selection in the current layer. Now all of the layer contents which were previously outside of the circle selection are inside it.

Step 4: Fill Selection With Black

Make sure the Primary color in the Colors window is Black. 

Now fill the selection with black by going to Edit>Fill Selection or else just press the Backspace key. Now black color fills the selection.

Step 5: Invert The Selection Again

Choose Edit>Invert Selection or else just press Ctrl+I to invert the selection. Now the circle portion of the document selected.

Step 6: Apply Filter Bulge

Choose Effects>Distort>Bulge. The Bulge dialog window appears. Drag the Bulge slider to the  maximum value or 100. Bulge controls the strength of the effect. Drag the cross-hair in the thumbnail preview, to set the center of the effect. Click OK. 

Choose Edit>Deselect or else just press Ctrl+D to remove the selection.

Step 7: Crop the Image

Grab the Rectangle Select Tool from the Tools Window. 

Click, hold and drag your mouse to choose a portion of the document while holding down the Shift key to keep the selection doesn't distort. Just leave the mouse when you are done. You should see a dotted line or marching ants outline the selection. Now, the selected portion of the document, in a square, has been picked or selected. 

If you want to move the selection, grab the Move Selection tool in the Tools window then click anywhere inside the selection and drag to the position you want. 

Go to Image>Crop to Selection or else just press Ctrl+Shift+X to crop the image. The image gets cropped now.

There you have it! Creating a Fisheye Effect with Paint.NET. 

Step 8: Save Your Document

At last, use File>Save command in the top menu or else just press Ctrl+S to save your project file. The Save As window appears. Navigate to the folder where you want to store your project file. Type a name in the File name text box and leave the default Paint.NET (*.pdn) format. Pdn is Paint.NET's native format and is useful because it stores everything about your image and will allow you to later edit your image in Paint.NET, in case you notice a problem. Click Save to store the project file.

Once you have finished, you will probably also want to export the image in a more widely used format, such as JPEG, PNG, TIFF, etc.

More on Paint.NET Tutorials:

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