Fix closed eyes in a Thanksgiving photo

Blinked in the one good photo from Thanksgiving dinner? Check for another frame first, or open your eyes in the photo you have. The table, the candles and your smile stay the same.

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Before: A Thanksgiving dinner photo caught mid-blink, then opened with the Eyes dial. The smile, the freckles and the table behind her stay the same; the skin comes out a little softer. The person is AI-generated. — A Thanksgiving dinner photo caught mid-blink, then opened with the Eyes dial. The smile, the freckles and the table behind her stay the same; the skin comes out a little softer. The person is AI-generated.

After: A Thanksgiving dinner photo caught mid-blink, then opened with the Eyes dial. The smile, the freckles and the table behind her stay the same; the skin comes out a little softer. The person is AI-generated. — A Thanksgiving dinner photo caught mid-blink, then opened with the Eyes dial. The smile, the freckles and the table behind her stay the same; the skin comes out a little softer. The person is AI-generated.

Thanksgiving photos are easy to ruin with a blink. The light is warm and low, so the phone takes longer to shoot, someone is holding the camera with one hand and a plate with the other, and there's only one round of photos before everyone sits down. Here's how to save the one you got.

1. Look for another frame (free)

Your phone may have kept a few moments around the shot.

iPhone: if the photo says Live, tap Edit, then the Live Photo button, and slide to a frame where your eyes are open. Tap Make Key Photo. Our guide on choosing a Live Photo key photo has the details.
Android: with Motion Photo on, open the photo in Google Photos, swipe up, tap View all under the shots in this photo and save a better frame. The Android guide covers Samsung too.

2. Ask around the table (free)

Someone else probably took photos too. Ask in the family group chat before you edit; a cousin's phone may have the same moment with your eyes open.

3. Open your eyes with Glowly

If every frame has the blink, retouch the photo you like.

Open app.glow.ly on your phone or computer and choose the photo. Nothing to install.
Auto runs first. If your eyes are still closed, tap Eyes and turn the dial toward Open.
Press and hold the photo to compare with the original, then save.

Only your eyes and the skin around them change. The food, the candles and everyone else stay as they were. In a group photo around the table, you choose your own face and the rest stay untouched.

Avoid the blink next year

Turn on more light near the table for the photo, even for a moment; dim light makes the shutter slower.
Take three or four shots in a row instead of one.
Close your eyes and open them on "three".

More tips in how to stop blinking in photos.

Can I fix closed eyes in a Thanksgiving photo for free?

Yes, if your phone saved more than one frame (a Live Photo on iPhone or a motion photo on Android), or if someone else took a photo at the same moment. If every frame has the blink, you need a retouch.

Will the rest of the photo change?

No. Only your eyes and the skin around them change. The table, the food and the people next to you stay as they were.

How much does it cost?

Previews in the web editor cost nothing. 3 full-size saves cost $1.99. In the iPhone app your first 2 saves are free.

What happens to my photo?

Your original is never changed. Originals and unsaved edits are deleted from our servers after 7 days. See the privacy policy.

How to stop blinking in photosWhy you always seem to blink in photos, what photographers do about it, and how to fix a blink in a photo you already have.
How to fix closed eyes in a photoSomeone blinked in the one photo where everything else is right. Here are the ways to fix closed eyes on iPhone, from Live Photos to AI retouching, and what to avoid.
How to pick a different frame from a Live Photo on iPhoneBlinked or looked away in a Live Photo? Choose a better frame as the key photo in a few taps, and know when that trick isn't enough.

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