---
title: "AI photo editor guide: inpaint, fix and upscale your images — Sozee"
description: "Use Sozee's AI photo editor to fix images instead of starting over: inpaint one area, change an expression or color, and upscale to 4K."
url: https://www.sozee.ai/guides/editing-tools
category: "Edit"
updated: 2026-11-11
---

# Editing tools: fix your images in post

> Your first generation is a starting point, not the finish line. The editing tools fix small issues and turn a good image into a great one without starting again.

Edit · 5 min read · Updated 2026-11-11

![One photo edited three ways in Sozee: the original, a new expression and a new top colour.](https://www.sozee.ai/assets/edits/color.webp)

## What you'll learn

- Why editing beats regenerating
- How to use In-paint to fix one area
- The key technique: paint around the area, not just the problem
- Tips for getting the best results from edits

## The 80/20 mindset

Most creators learn this after a while: you'll rarely get a finished image from the first generation, but you'll often get one that's 80-90% of the way there. The pose is right, the lighting works and the outfit looks good, but a hand looks a little off or there's a small artefact in the background.

That's what the editing tools are for. Instead of regenerating again and again, you take the nearly finished image and fix the parts that need it. It's faster, more predictable and gives you more control over the result.

> **Think like a photographer**
>
> Professional photographers rarely get the final shot straight from the camera. They shoot, then retouch. Work the same way: generate, then edit. The editing tool is your post-production studio.


## The photo tools

Open any photo from the **Create** page or your **Vault** and you'll see the tool rail beside it.

- **Comment Edits.** Pin notes on the spots you want changed and send them together. See the [Comment Edits guide](/guides/comment-edits).
- **In-paint.** Paint over an area and describe what should be there. The rest of the image stays as it is. This guide covers it in detail.
- **Re-imagine.** Change the entire composition of the photo.
- **Expression.** Change your character's expression.
- **Crop** and **Filters.** Reframe the photo and adjust its look.
- **Upscale.** Make a larger, sharper version at 2K or 4K.

*Made in Sozee:*

**Original:** ![The original photo, with a calm expression.](https://www.sozee.ai/assets/edits/base.webp)

**New expression:** ![The same photo with a laughing expression.](https://www.sozee.ai/assets/edits/expression.webp)

*Expression: the same photo, now laughing. Drag to compare.*

### What In-paint fixes best

- **Hands and fingers.** The most common issue in generated images. Extra fingers, awkward poses or merged fingers are quick to fix.
- **Facial details.** Fix slight eye asymmetry, soften an odd expression or correct small artefacts on the face without touching the rest of the image.
- **Background issues.** Remove distracting artefacts, fix strange objects in the background or clean up areas that came out wrong.
- **Clothing and accessories.** Fix warped jewellery, correct clothing details or clean up fabric textures.


## How to use In-paint

1. **Open the image you want to edit** From the **Create** page or your **Vault**, click the image to open it, then choose **In-paint** from the tool rail.

   *In the app:* ![An open photo with the tool rail on the left and In-paint highlighted.](https://www.sozee.ai/assets/guides/editing-tools/app-1-tool-rail.webp) ***In-paint** in the tool rail beside the photo.*

2. **Set your brush** Choose a brush size that suits the area you want to fix. You can change the size as you go.

   *In the app:* ![In-paint open on a photo: the brush panel with size control, and the box to describe the change.](https://www.sozee.ai/assets/guides/editing-tools/app-2-inpaint-open.webp) *The brush and its size (1), and the box where you describe the change (2).*

3. **Paint over the area you want to change** This is the most important step. See the next section for how to paint well.
4. **Describe what you want** Tell Sozee what should appear in the painted area. Be specific, for example “a natural-looking right hand with five fingers resting on the table.”
5. **Generate and review** Sozee regenerates only the painted area and keeps everything else as it was. Your edit arrives as a new version, and the original stays untouched. If it isn't right, try again.

*Made in Sozee:*

- **Painted area:** ![The photo with the neck area painted over.](https://www.sozee.ai/assets/edits/brushed.png)
- **Reference:** ![A gold pendant necklace.](https://www.sozee.ai/assets/edits/necklace.png)

**Result:** ![The photo with the gold necklace added.](https://www.sozee.ai/assets/edits/object.webp)

*Paint where the change goes. Here a necklace is added from a reference picture, and the rest of the photo stays as it was.*

> **Cost and plans**
>
> An edit costs 1 credit. In-paint and Re-imagine are part of the paid plans, including Pay As You Go.


## The golden rule: paint around the problem.

> **The most important tip for good edits**
>
> Don't paint only the small part that's wrong. Paint a generous area **around** the problem. That gives Sozee more context, and the result looks more natural.

To blend new content in, Sozee needs to understand what surrounds the area it's regenerating. If you paint only the exact pixels that are wrong, it has little context and the result can look unnatural or out of place.

Take an example: you want to remove some buttons from a coat. You might paint a small circle around each button. The better approach is to paint the whole chest of the coat, all the buttons and the fabric between them. Sozee then has enough context to understand the coat's texture and folds, and the result is clean and seamless.

- **Don't do this** ![Inpainting example where only individual buttons are painted with small, tight masks](https://www.sozee.ai/assets/guides/editing-tools/inpainting-wrong.png) Tiny areas around each button give Sozee almost no context. It can't see the coat fabric, the button spacing or how they connect, so the result looks patchy and inconsistent.
- **Do this instead** ![Inpainting example where the entire button area and surrounding coat fabric is painted](https://www.sozee.ai/assets/guides/editing-tools/inpainting-right.png) Painting the whole area, every button and the fabric around them, gives Sozee full context: the coat's texture, the button pattern and the folds. The new buttons blend in cleanly.

### More examples

- **Fixing an eye?** Paint both eyes and the area between them. That keeps them symmetrical and the lighting consistent. Painting one eye risks a mismatch.
- **Fixing a piece of jewellery?** Paint the jewellery and the skin or clothing around it. Sozee needs to see what it rests against to make it look natural.
- **Fixing a background artefact?** Paint a wide area around it, with enough background for Sozee to understand the setting and blend it in.

> **Why this works**
>
> Sozee regenerates everything inside the painted area. A larger selection gives it more context about the surrounding image, such as lighting, skin tone, perspective and pose, so the result blends in. Everything outside the painted area stays untouched, so you won't change the face, the likeness or anything else you're happy with.


## Tips for the best results

> **What helps**
>
> - **Be specific in your edit prompt.** Don't just say “fix this”. Describe what you want to see. “A relaxed open hand with five fingers” works much better than “fix the hand.”
>
> - **Edit in stages if you need to.** You can run several edits on one image. Fix the hand first, then the background. Each edit keeps everything outside the painted area.
>
> - **Don't paint too much.** Painting around the problem matters, but you don't want to paint half the image. Cover the affected area and its immediate surroundings, and stop there.
>
> - **Edits are predictable.** A few edits on a strong base image usually get you to the finished picture faster than generating from scratch again and again, and each edit costs 1 credit.
>
> - **Adjust your brush size.** Use a larger brush for broad areas and a smaller one for detailed edges. Getting the mask right is half the work.


## The ideal workflow

1. **Generate your image** Use your character with a prompt or a reference photo to make the base image.
2. **Review what you got** Is 80% or more of this image what you want? If so, don't regenerate. Edit instead.
3. **Open In-paint and paint generously** Select the area to fix. Paint around the problem, not just on it.
4. **Describe what you want** Write a clear edit prompt for the painted area.
5. **Repeat if you need to** Run more edits on other areas until the image is what you want.

*Made in Sozee:*

**Before:** ![The photo with a white top.](https://www.sozee.ai/assets/edits/object.webp)

**Recoloured:** ![The same photo with the top changed to red.](https://www.sozee.ai/assets/edits/color.webp)

*A colour change: the top goes from white to red, and everything else stays.*

Next time an image is nearly there, don't throw it away. Open it and finish it. [Open your Vault](https://app.sozee.ai/vault)

## Related guides

- [Comment Edits: point at it, say what changes](https://www.sozee.ai/guides/comment-edits): Comment Edits lets you pin notes on an AI photo and send every change at once. How to place comments, add a reference picture and word them well.
- [Edit moments: video editing inside Sozee](https://www.sozee.ai/guides/edit-moments): Edit video with AI in Sozee: mark a moment in a clip, describe the change, and keep the rest of the video as it was. Steps, tips and limits.
- [How to write prompts in Sozee](https://www.sozee.ai/guides/prompting): How to write AI image prompts that work: copy-ready AI photo prompts, the structure of a strong prompt, and examples for selfies, outfits and settings.

All guides: https://www.sozee.ai/guides