A lot of our day is spent staring at screens, so why not make the background something you enjoy! Whether it‘s a computer, phone, or iPad, read along and learn how to create custom backgrounds that will bring a smile to your face every time you click the power button. Also, checkout my free backgrounds if you want to use the backgrounds I made.
Psst... It’s easier than you think!
1. Start a Pinterest Board
Create a board on Pinterest that follows a theme of your liking. Simply search “retro images” or ”peach aesthetic“ and start pinning the ones that catch your eye.
Once you’ve saved a reasonable amount (I usually find 20-25 works best), go ahead and start saving the images to your photos. To add a pin to your photos, simply click the pin, tap the 3 dots in the top right corner, and then click “Download Image.”
2. Open Canva
The easiest way to create a custom background collage is in Canva.
Canva is a completely free graphic design website that has endless possibilities. There is a paid version: Canva Pro. But I’ve been creating graphics through Canva for years and I have never needed the upgrade.
3. Create a New Design
Once you’ve setup your free account with Canva, click the Create a Design button in the top right hand corner.
Then select “Custom Size” and type in the pixel size that you want your screen to be.
Here are the sizes of popular screens for easy access:
iPhones
- iPone 12: 1170 x 2532
- iPhone 11 and iPhone XR: 828 x 1792
- iPhone X: 1125 x 2436
- iPhone 12 Mini: 1080 x 2340
iPads
- iPad Pro 12.9”: 2048 x 2732
- iPad Pro 11”: 2388 x 1668
- iPad Air: 1668 x 2224
- iPad 7: 1620 x 2160
MacBooks
- MacBook, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro 13”: 1280 x 1800
- MacBook Pro 15”: 1440 x 900
-MacBook Pro 17”: 1920 x 1200
- iMac 21.5”: 1920 x 1080
- iMac 27”: 2560 x 1440
4. Uploading your Images in Canva
Once you’ve started a new template with your screen size, you need to upload the pictures from your camera roll into Canva.
Start by clicking the Uploads tab on the left hand side of the screen.
Next click the Upload Media button.
And then, choose Device and Photo Library.
5. Creating Your Custom Backgrounds
Once you add all of your theme photos to Canva from your camera roll, you’ll see them displayed on the left. Simply clicking a picture will add the image to your collage and then you can crop and resize the picture to your liking.
Pro tip: Images inserted to the collage more recently will overlap those that were added first. So, I usually add background images and things that I wont mind being covered a little first. And save my favorites and images will text for last!
Once you’ve adjusted your collage sizes to your liking, you can select an image and adjust its filter to mesh all the pictures’ aesthetics together. Canva has tons of different filters and you can adjust the intensity of each one to create your picture-perfect background.
Once your background is perfect, simply click the Download button in the top right hand corner, and save your collage as a PNG.
A new tab will open up with your image. Click Save Image, and then go check out your new personal custom backgrounds right in your camera roll.
I find myself creating new custom backgrounds all the time now because of how easy Canva is to use. I’ve even start coordinating my phone, iPad and Macbook to all have the same aesthetic!