Extend crop boundaries beyond photo

[David24583147fm9k]

As I understand it, when I crop a photo, I should be able to extend the boundaries of the cropped image beyond the edges of the photo as long as the Constrain to Image box isn't checked. This has never worked for me. Crop boundaries are always constrained to the image for me.

Is there something I can do to get this to work?

I am currently running Build [202312111226-41a494e8] on Windows 11, though this problem has existed for me for several Lightroom versions.

[dj_paige]

What software are you using?

[David24583147fm9k]

Lightroom Classic.

My images are jpgs, not RAW.

[JohanElzenga]

As I understand it, when I crop a photo, I should be able to extend the boundaries of the cropped image beyond the edges of the photo as long as the Constrain to Image box isn't checked. 

By @David24583147fm9k

I don't think this is true. You can extend the boundaries into an empty area if you used perspective correction and have non vertical edges as a result, but you can't go beyond the original image size.

[Rob_Cullen]

That would be a job for Photoshop.

Extend boundaries with Crop will create a background layer of the set background colour-

[richardplondon · Accepted solution]

The Crop tool / horizon levelling always constrains itself to the original image extent without giving the option. However that original image can receive a transform (that the cropping is applied onto). The transforms do themselves offer a Constrain option that can be unchecked.

Adjustments here include "Scale" - besides Upright and various other controls. So you can shrink down the presentation of your photo, and then the crop (which has not itself taken account of this transform)  will reveal some white areas coming from beyond the boundary of the starting image data. This comes at a quality cost: the Scale transform having effectively reduced the resolution of that starting image data. OR considered in PS terms, the image has been effectively made smaller within a same-sized Canvas, rather than extending that Canvas larger.

[Conrad_C]

…this problem has existed for me for several Lightroom versions.

By @David24583147fm9k

Yes, probably. I think Rob_Cullen has the right answer here in that enlarging the canvas by dragging out the Crop tool has always been a feature in Photoshop, and at the same time, has never been a feature in Lightroom/Lightroom Classic. So you might be remembering that capability that was actually always about the Crop tool in Photoshop.