• Standard application for viewing photos in Windows 10

    In the operating room Windows system 10, you use the Photos app to view your images rather than Windows Photo Viewer. After clicking on the pictures, photos saved in popular formats will be opened in the Photos application.

    Probably many will use it on their computers this application, others liked the Windows Photo Viewer better. The most interesting thing is that the old Windows photo viewer in Windows 10 has not gone away, it remains in operating system. By default, Windows Photo Viewer in Windows 10 opens files in the "TIF" and "TIFF" formats.

    Therefore, you can restore “Windows Photo Viewer” in the Windows 10 operating system in order to open using this viewer graphic files popular formats. The implementation of getting Windows Photo Viewer back on your computer will differ depending on how your computer got Windows 10: by updating previous version operating system, or with a new “clean” Windows installation 10.

    How to restore Windows Photo Viewing when upgrading to Windows 10

    If your computer has the Windows 10 operating system after upgrading from Windows 7 or Windows 8.1, then there will be no problems using the old photo viewer. In this case, Windows Photo Viewer is present in graphical interface operating system.

    To select the photo viewer as an application to open a file of a supported image format (.bmp, .dib, .jpe, .jpg, .jpeg, .gif, .jfif, .jpeg, .jxr, .png, .wdp), right-click click on the image and then from context menu“Open with”, select the “Select another application” context menu item from the list of available applications.

    After this, the “How do you want to open this file?” window will open. Under Other Options, among the list of apps, you'll see Windows Photo Viewer. Select viewer Windows images, then check the box next to “Always use this application to open (.file extension) files”, and then click on the “OK” button.

    After this, files of this graphic format will be opened by default using the Windows Photo Viewer application.

    How to bring back the photo viewer in Windows 10

    At clean install Windows 10, Windows Photo Viewer will be missing from the operating system's GUI, so it won't be selectable to open certain file types.

    In this case, the problem is with the old remedy Windows Viewer, it will be possible to solve in several ways, in which the ability to select an application for the corresponding file types will be restored. This is done by making changes to Windows registry 10.

    Before making changes to the Windows registry, or before making any other major changes to your computer, be sure to create a system restore point. In this case, if problems arise, you can return Windows 10 to the working state that was on your computer before making changes.

    Download a file to your computer that contains the application of changes to the operating system registry to add missing values.

    restore windows photoviewer reg download

    Then run this file on your computer. To do this, double-click on the registry file (extension .reg) with the left mouse button, or after clicking with the right mouse button, select “Merge” in the context menu.

    After applying the changes to the registry, Windows Photo Viewer will be available on your computer in the Open With context menu to select a program for opening photos saved in a specific format.

    This will open the Select an app window, where you will see Windows Photo Viewer among other apps. Next, click on the application to match it with supported file formats.

    You can do all this yourself manually by adding file type parameters to the registry branch:

    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SOFTWARE/Microsoft/Windows Photo Viewer/Capabilities/FileAssociations

    I will not describe this method, since all this can be easily done using a ready-made registry file.

    Bringing Back the Photo Viewer with Winaero Tweaker

    You can restore Viewing Windows photos in Windows 10 using the free Winaero Tweaker program. The program does not require installation on your computer; the application is launched from a folder.

    Winaero Tweaker download

    After launching Winaero Tweaker on your computer, on the right side of the program window, find the “Activate Windows Photo Viewer” item. First, highlight this item, and then on the left side of the utility window, click on “Activate Windows Photo Viewer” to restore the functions of the Windows Photo Viewer application in Windows 10.

    The "Choose Default Programs" window will then open, in which you will need to highlight "Windows Viewer" and then click on "Set this program as default" to open all supported file types, or "Choose defaults for this program" to open specific file types of your choice.

    After installing the "big" Windows updates 10, the image viewer will disappear from the operating system again. To use the application on your PC again, reinstall Windows Picture Viewer on your computer.

    Conclusions of the article

    You can restore full functionality of the Windows Photo Viewer application on your computer in the Windows 10 operating system, to open supported images with it graphic formats, in the event that you are somehow not satisfied with the standard Photos application.

    Have you opened the images on your PC? For this you need special program viewer. What software should I use to make my work convenient? Is it possible to get by? regular means Windows. Let's look at the best photo viewer for Windows 10.

    It turns out that in the last Windows versions There is a Photos app. It opens photos, creates albums, edits pictures.
    Older versions of the OS used the Image Viewer app. Install it in addition to existing utility"Photos". Let's look at how to activate a classic application.

    How to enable the standard photo viewer in Windows 10

    This is done in two ways:

    1. Using the "Registry Editor";
    2. Alternative way.

    Method No. 1

    In Windows 10, the standard photo viewer is activated using registry settings. Press “Win ​​+ R”, then enter the command “regedit”.
    Find the _LOCAL-MACHINE branch. Further, as in the screenshot.
    Here are the formats that will open by default. For me it is “TIF” and “TIFF”. How can I add other extensions so that all graphic formats open by default?
    Right click on free space in the right window, create a string parameter.
    Next we write down the name and value. As in the screenshot.

    We perform similar actions for other formats.

    Another way

    If you are not very versed in OS settings, use the WinAero Tweaker application. Download the archive at: https://winaero.com/request.php?1796. Installation is simple and will not cause any difficulties even for novice users.
    After opening, on the left we find the item “Classic Apps”. Select “Photo Viewer”, click “Activate”.
    The result will be the same as in the method discussed above.

    Free photo viewer for Windows 10

    In addition to developments from Microsoft, use third party software. Let's look at the TOP 5 best free applications. Use them as an alternative to the standard viewer. In addition to viewing, they have functions: rotation, red-eye removal, resizing, converting, printing.

    FastStone

    Free program with a clear interface. The developers have added built-in tools that allow you to: remove red eyes, edit size and color, convert files.
    The developers suggest using the regular or portable (no installation required) version. Program characteristics:

    1. View photos;
    2. Digital photo editing;
    3. Batch processing;
    4. Slideshow creation;

    XnView

    Use XnView for free for non-commercial use. Supports 500 formats, allows you to convert files. Allows you to watch videos and listen to music. The interface is simple. There are many built-in tools.
    Peculiarities:

    1. Supports 500 formats;
    2. Built-in editing functions;
    3. Using filters and effects;
    4. Screen capture function;
    5. Convert file to 70 different formats;
    6. Working with plugins.

    IrfanView

    Fast photo viewer for Windows 10. Consumes minimal OS resources. The developers suggest installing the regular or portable version.

    For Russification, install additional languages. Go to: http://www.irfanview.net/lang/irfanview_lang_russian.exe to download the installer. Next, run it and during installation, select the program folder. Then the installer will do everything himself.

    The Russified version will launch.
    What the program can do:

    1. Play video and audio;
    2. Working with text formats;
    3. Batch renaming of files;
    4. Sideshow creation;
    5. Working with plugins to help expand functionality.

    Ashampoo Photo

    This convenient viewer Windows photo 10 allows you to view, edit and convert files.

    IN free version To use the program without restrictions, enter your email address when you first start it. To confirm your registration, follow the link that will be sent to your email.

    Possibilities:

    1. Creation of virtual albums;
    2. Write to disk;
    3. Creation of postcards;
    4. Built-in player.

    Honeyview

    Photo viewer for Windows 10, you can download it for free at: https://www.bandisoft.com/honeyview. Possesses simple interface. His main feature - high speed work.
    Peculiarities:

    1. View photos in archives;
    2. Slideshow mode;
    3. Bookmarks for photos;
    4. GPS support in the photo.

    Conclusion

    The TOP 5 viewers reviewed are the best programs in this class. Which one to work with depends on your personal preferences. Use the software described above if the standard photo viewer in Windows 10 does not suit you.

    Now let's see what to use to view images on a computer, and choose the best photo viewers for Windows. The best photo viewer is a subjective concept, so in this article I will offer several applications that can be used to open popular graphic formats for viewing and processing images.

    Any user, when working on a computer, inevitably encounters pictures, images, photographs. In any case, graphic format files will end up on your computer, so you will need a program to open and view them. Therefore, you need a photo viewer on your computer to convenient viewing digital images.

    Windows 10 has a built-in Photos application, with which you can open a graphic file, create an album, make the necessary changes to a photo, etc. previous versions Windows used the Windows Image Viewer application. The user can install Windows Picture Viewer in Windows 10, in addition to the Photos program.

    Exists free application Photo album (Photo Gallery), included in the main Windows components Live. The photo album supports opening and editing photos. The program must be installed on your computer (it is not included in the OS).

    In addition to applications produced by Microsoft, a large number of third party programs to view and edit images. In this article we will look at the best free image viewer programs that have many additional built-in tools for working with files in graphic formats.

    Third-party photo viewers (viewers) can be used on your computer as an alternative to standard ones Windows tools. For the best free image viewing programs, I recommend checking out the following programs: FastStone Image Viewer, XnView, IrfanView, Ashampoo Photo Commander Free, Honeyview. These programs run in Russian on the Windows operating system.

    These applications, in addition to basic functions, have tools for image editing. For more serious picture editing, you will need another program - an image editor (photo).

    The best photo viewers, in addition to the viewing function, have additional features necessary for working with images on a computer. The programs have built-in tools to perform various operations with digital photographs or any other images: rotate, resize, remove red-eye, swatch, color correction, convert to other formats, send for printing, etc.

    The free Picasa program (which would have been included in this review) was left out of the scope of this review due to the fact that Google stopped developing and supporting the application in 2016.

    FastStone Image Viewer

    FastStone Image Viewer is a powerful free program for viewing and processing images with a simple, intuitive interface. Built-in tools will help the user solve certain problems with photography: remove red-eye, change image size, apply color correction, convert files, etc.

    Available for download regular version FastStone Image Viewer or a portable version of the program that does not require installation on a computer.

    Key features of FastStone Image Viewer:

    • Opening graphic files of major formats
    • Editing digital photos and graphic files
    • A large number of built-in tools for working with images
    • Batch file processing
    • Batch conversion to another format
    • Creating a slide show with transitions and effects
    • Preview function

    XnView

    XnView is a free program (for non-commercial use) for viewing images, multimedia files, and converting files to other formats. This quality program to manage photos on your computer. Thanks to the support large quantity formats, in XnView, in addition to working with graphic files, for example, you can watch movies or listen to music.

    The program has a simple interface, a large number of built-in tools, XnView will do an excellent job of processing and editing photos on a computer.

    The user can download the regular or portable version of the application to the computer from the official XnView website.

    Features of the XnView program:

    • Supports more than 500 formats
    • Photo editing
    • Applying filters and effects
    • Screen capture
    • Batch conversion
    • Editing metadata
    • Convert files to 70 file formats
    • Supports viewing video and audio files, archives, documents
    • Creating a Slideshow
    • Plugins are supported to expand the program's capabilities

    IrfanView

    IrfanView is a fast, free image viewer that consumes minimal computer resources. The program is one of the leaders in the number of downloads in the world for programs of this class. This indirect information tells us about the quality of the application, which is rated by users.

    Honeyview - free viewer images with a simple and intuitive interface. The program quickly opens graphic files, the application has tools for photo editing.

    You can download from the official website of the developer in the form installation file or as a portable version.

    Honeyview program features:

    • Supports a large number of graphic formats
    • RAW format support
    • Viewing images in archives
    • View photos in slideshow mode
    • Bookmark for favorite photos
    • Support GPS data on photos

    Conclusion

    The user can choose the best photo viewer running on Windows for their computer. Free programs: FastStone Image Viewer, XnView, IrfanView, Ashampoo Photo Commander Free, Honeyview are among best viewers images, in this class programs.

    Testing new ones Windows features 10, many of the users discovered a small but annoying nuisance. It turns out that viewing popular image formats was only possible in the Photos app, whereas in Windows 8.1 users could choose between Photos and Photo Viewer. It was this second application that seemed much more convenient to many. Windows 10 has it, but it only allows you to open images in TIF and TIFF formats.

    Unfortunately, you cannot install this program as your main tool for viewing images, since it is simply not available in the “Default Applications” subsection. The same applies to the “Open with” context menu dialog. If you open it, you will find only “Photos” and “Paint” there. The standard Program Comparison tool will not help you either, since the Windows Photo Viewer will again only have two formats available: TIF and TIFF.

    But no problem. The situation with the missing function can be fixed quite easily by making small changes to system registry. To do this, open the registry editor and expand the following branch:

    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SOFTWARE/Microsoft/Windows Photo Viewer/Capabilities/FileAssociations

    In the last subsection you will see two parameters with names of exactly the same two formats that were discussed in the previous paragraphs. Create right there new parameter type REG_SZ (regular string) with name.jpg and value PhotoViewer.FileAssoc.Tiff. Create exactly the same parameters for bmp, dib, jpe, gif, jfif, jpeg, jxr and png formats.

    After that, open the Settings app and then go to System -> Default apps -> Set defaults by app.

    In the left column of the window that opens, select the “Windows Photo Viewer” application, click “Select defaults for this program”...

    ...and check the boxes next to the formats you added through the registry.

    Save your changes and check the contents of the Open With menu. If you did everything correctly, the “View Windows Photos” option will appear there for files of added formats. This is all. Now you can easily make the program that appears your default image viewing tool.

    And one more thing. For those who don’t want to bother with the registry, I can recommend free utility WinAero Tweaker, only you will need the most latest version. Launch it, scroll through the list of available tweaks to the very end. At the end of the list you will find an option “Activate Windows Photo Viewer”. Use it, and you will get the same result as manually editing the registry.

    Read more: