What you can do with people in iPhone photos
iPhone lets you add people to photos in two main ways: you can use the built-in editing tools to add text labels identifying who is in the photo, or you can use third-party apps to digitally place a person's image into a photo they weren't in. The built-in method is straightforward and works on any iPhone. The third-party method gives you more creative control but requires downloading an app and learning its specific steps.
Most people use the labeling method when they want to remember who appears in a photo without changing the image itself. You might use the creative method if you're making a poster, a funny composite, or a design project where you want to place someone into a different background or scene.
Key Takeaways
- iPhone's built-in Photos app lets you add text labels to identify people in a photo without editing the image itself.
- To label someone, open the photo, tap Edit, tap the plus icon, choose Text, and type the person's name over their face.
- Third-party apps like Photoshop Express or Pixlr let you cut a person from one photo and paste them into another, but each app has its own steps.
- Labeled photos stay labeled in your library, but the label is part of the edit — if you revert the photo, the label disappears.
- Apps that add people to photos work best when the person you're adding has a clear outline and the background is straightforward.
Labeling people in a photo using the built-in Photos app
Open the Photos app and find the photo where you want to label someone. Tap the photo to open it full-screen, then tap Edit in the top right corner. The editing toolbar appears at the bottom of the screen.
Tap the plus icon (it looks like a circle with a plus sign) in the editing toolbar. A menu appears with options including Magnifier, Text, Shapes, and Signature. Tap Text. A text box appears in the center of the photo with a blinking cursor.
Type the person's name or any label you want. The text appears in white by default. You can now move the text box by dragging it over the person's face or body, and resize it by pinching the corners. When the label is positioned where you want it, tap Done in the top right, then tap Save to keep the edit.
The label is now part of the photo's edit history. If you open the photo again and tap Edit, you can see the text box and move it, change the text, or delete it entirely by tapping the text box and hitting delete.
Changing the text color and style
After you tap Text and the text box appears, you can customize how the label looks. Tap the text itself to select it, then look at the bottom of the screen for color and style options. You'll see a color palette — tap any color to change the text color from white to something that stands out better against the photo's background.
Some photos work better with a different text color. If the person you're labeling is standing in front of a light background, white text may be hard to read — try black or a dark color instead. If they're in front of a dark background, white or yellow usually works best.
You can also adjust the font size by pinching the text box itself — pinch inward to make it smaller, pinch outward to make it larger. There is no separate font menu in the basic Photos app, so your options are limited to size and color.
Adding someone's image to a photo using a third-party app
If you want to place a person's actual image into a photo they weren't in, you'll need an app designed for photo compositing or editing. Photoshop Express (free, with optional paid features) and Pixlr (free) both let you import two photos and combine them. read one of these apps from the App Store.
In Photoshop Express, open the app and tap the plus icon to start a new project. Choose the background photo (the one you want to add someone to). Then tap the layers icon (it looks like two overlapping squares) and choose "Add Photo" to import the photo of the person you want to add. The person's photo appears as a new layer on top of your background.
Use your finger to resize and move the person's image to the position you want. You can pinch to shrink or enlarge them, and drag to move them around. If the person's photo has a background you don't want, you'll need to erase it manually — tap the eraser tool and carefully erase around the person's outline. This step takes patience and works best when the person has a clear, straightforward background in their original photo.
When you're happy with the placement, tap the checkmark or Save button (the exact name varies by app version) to save your composite photo to your camera roll.
Why the person's background matters
The easier your composite will be to create depends entirely on the original photo of the person you're adding. If the person is photographed against a plain white or solid-color background, removing that background takes seconds. If they're photographed against a busy background — trees, a crowd, a patterned wall — you'll spend a long time erasing carefully around their edges.
Before you start a compositing project, take a moment to look at the photo of the person you want to add. If their background is straightforward and their outline is clear, the project will be quick. If the background is complex, you might want to take a new photo of that person against a simpler background first, then use that cleaner version for your composite.
Some paid apps like the full version of Adobe Photoshop or Affinity Photo have automatic background removal tools that do this work for you, but the free versions of most apps require manual erasing.
Saving and sharing your labeled or composite photo
Once you've finished labeling a photo or creating a composite, the photo is automatically saved to your camera roll. You can share it when ready by tapping the share icon (the box with an arrow pointing up) and choosing how you want to send it — Messages, Mail, AirDrop, or social media.
If you used the built-in Photos app to add a label, remember that the label is part of the edit. If someone else opens the photo on their device, they'll see the labeled version. If you later decide you don't want the label, open the photo, tap Edit, and tap Revert to remove all edits including the label.
If you created a composite in a third-party app, the result is a new photo file in your camera roll. The original photos remain unchanged, so you can always go back and create a different version if you want to adjust the placement or try a different background.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I label multiple people in the same photo?
Yes. After you add the first text label, tap Edit again, tap the plus icon, choose Text, and add another label. You can add as many text labels as you want to a single photo, though too many labels can make the photo look cluttered.
What if I want to remove someone from a photo instead of adding them?
The built-in Photos app doesn't have a removal tool. Apps like Photoshop Express or Snapseed have a healing or clone tool that lets you paint over a person to remove them, but it requires practice and works best on straightforward backgrounds. For complex backgrounds, the result often looks unnatural.
Can I add text to a photo and then add a person's image on top of it?
The built-in Photos app doesn't layer edits that way. If you want both text and a composite image, use a third-party app like Photoshop Express, which lets you add both text and images as separate layers, then flatten them into one final photo.
Will the label stay on the photo if I send it to someone else?
Yes, if you've saved the edit. When you share a labeled photo, the other person receives the version with the label included. If you want to share the photo without the label, open it, tap Edit, tap Revert, and then share the unlabeled version.
Do I need to pay for an app to add someone to a photo?
No. Photoshop Express and Pixlr are both free and let you add people to photos without paying. They offer paid features for advanced tools, but the basic compositing features work without a subscription.