Paint.NET 5.1 Alpha adds color management support, new effects, and canvas customization

Paint.NET, a popular free image editor for Windows, is getting a big feature update. Its first alpha version (5.1) is now available for download with a few notable changes, such as full color profile management, new effects, canvas customization, and more. You can get Paint.NET 5.1 Alpha from the project's official forums or GitHub.

Welcome to the first alpha release for the upcoming 5.1 update! This new version adds color management support, some new and updated effects, it completes the migration of all Effects and Adjustments to run on the GPU (which can all be used by plugins, btw!), and adds some canvas customization settings.

Here is what is new in Paint.NET 5.1 Alpha:

• Color management: Like other image editors, especially premium ones, Paint.NET now lets you manage your color profile, which ensures a specific image looks the way it is supposed to. The new Image > Color Profile in version 5.1 replaces the old "Apply Embedded Color Profile" feature introduced in version 5.0 as a temporary solution. Now, with version 5.1, users can select one of several built-in color profiles or import their own using icc or icm files. You can see how using a proper color profile affects the image you get in the app:

   

  

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• Effect updates: Paint.NET 5.1 introduces two new blur effects: Sketch Blur and Square Blur. Also worth noting is that several effects are now running on the GPU. They include Auto-Level, Curves, Levels, Opil Painting, Reduce Noise, Surface Blur, and Outline.
• Canvas customization: You can now toggle canvas drop shadow and its border color (the background behind the canvas). The logic behind it is to provide better accessibility for people with high-contrast themes and prevent incorrect image size perception or color bleed. Finally, the developer says extra customization is good for just having some fun.

If you want to try Paint.NET 5.1 Alpha, head to its GitHub repository and download the installer. Alternatively, users can opt-in for pre-release updates and get the latest version using the built-in updater. The complete list of changes made since version 5.0.13 is available on the official Piant.NET forums.

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