How to mirror photos on Xiaomi: all ways with pictures

Have you taken a great selfie on the Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 or POCO X5 Pro, but noticed that the T-shirt or background text is displayed backwards? Or maybe you need to prepare a photo to print on a mug that requires mirror reflection? In this article, we will examine all possible ways to mirror photos on Xiaomi smartphones, from built-in tools to professional applications.

It's important to understand that mirror reflection and 180° rotation are different operations. When mirroring, the left and right sides of the photos change places (as in the mirror reflection), whereas turning turns the image completely. We'll focus on the first option, because it's in demand for text correction, tattoos or symmetrical compositions. If your Xiaomi model is released after 2019, all the methods described will work - tested on MIUI 12-14.

Some users mistakenly believe that you have to install third-party programs to mirror, and in fact, 80 percent of the time, you just have to know where they're hidden, and if you want batch processing or advanced settings (like mirroring only a portion of a photo), we'll show you the best free apps from Google Play.

Method 1: Mirror through the standard Xiaomi gallery

The fastest method is to use the built-in photo editor in the Gallery app, which is available on all Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones with MIUI 10 and later. Here's how it works:

1. Open the Gallery app and select the photo you want.
2. Slip on the editing icon (pencil in the bottom menu).
3. Go to the Tools tab (or in older versions).
4. Find the Mirror option (sometimes hidden under Turn).
5. Choose the direction of reflection: horizontally (left-right) or vertically (up-bottom).
6. Save the changes by clicking Ready or Save as a copy.

⚠️ Note: In some versions MIUI (Like Redmi. 9A) The mirroring option may not be present in the main editor menu, in which case you should first try to rotate the photo to 90.° Left or right – sometimes this unlocks hidden tools.

Orientation of the photo (album / portrait)

Important signs (they will be reflected!)

Free space on the phone (copy will take place)

File format (JPEG/PNG supported, HEIC — no)-->

If the photo looks blurry after saving, don't be afraid - this is a feature of processing in MIUI. To avoid loss of quality, before mirroring:

• 📸 Make a backup of the original (hold your finger in the photo) → Copy).
• 🔍 zoom in and check details – sometimes artifacts are only visible when approached.
• 📱 Restart your phone if the editor is slow (especially for Redmi) 8/8A).

Method 2: Google Photos – Mirror with cloud backup

Google Photos not only stores your photos, but also offers a powerful editor, which is advantageous because it syncs between devices and can undo changes within 30 days.

1. Open Google Photos and select an image.
2. Tap Edit (an icon with sliders).
3. Go to the Tools tab → Turn.
4. Press the mirror icon (two arrows pointing at each other).
5. Choose Horizontally or Vertically.
6. Save the changes (Save a copy in the upper right corner).

Important: Google Photos saves the mirrored version as a new file without affecting the original. This is convenient if you are afraid of losing the original image. However, when uploading to the cloud, photos are compressed to a resolution of 16 MP (if the option "High quality" is enabled).

💡 Useful tip: If you often mirror photos for social networks, you can create an album with mirrored versions in Google Photos:

1. After editing, click Add to the album.
2. Create a new album (e.g., Mirror Photos for Instagram).
3. Enable the option AutoAddvance by keyword (e.g., "#mirror").

Method 3: Third-party applications for professional mirroring

If the built-in tools are not suitable (for example, you need to mirror only a part of the photo or batch process several images), pay attention to specialized applications. 15 programs and selected the top-3 Xiaomi:

• 🏆 Photo Mirror (free, no ads) Simple interface, format support JPEG, PNG, WEBP. There is a diagonal mirroring option and save in the original resolution. Suitable for the Redmi Note 11 and later.
• 🎨 Snapseed (from Google, free) Professional editor with the tool Transform → Mirror. Allows you to combine mirroring with other effects (for example, add a vignette). Works on all Xiaomi models with Android 8.0+.
• 📦 Batch Photo Editor (for batch processing) You can mirror up to 50 photos at a time. Useful for preparing photos for printing on souvenirs. Requires Android 9.0 and higher.

🔍 How do you choose? If you need to mirror photos regularly and with extra effects, take Snapseed. Photo Mirror is enough for a one-time task. And if you're a photographer and you're processing hundreds of shots, Batch Photo Editor saves hours of time.

⚠️ Note: When installing third-party apps, Xiaomi may block gallery access by default:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Permissions Management → Storage.
2. Find the installed application (such as Snapseed) and enable permission.
3. Restart the app.

Method 4: Mirror through file manager (without installing programs)

Few people know, but MIUI has a hidden mirroring function through the standard File Manager, which works even on older models like the Redmi 5 Plus and doesn't require Internet.

1. Open the File Manager (the folder icon on the desktop).
2. Go to the DCIM → Camera folder (or the one where your photo is stored).
3. Keep your finger on the file. → Choose to Open with Help → gallery.
4. In the opened viewer, tap on the icon Edit (pencil).
5. Choose a Turn. → The mirror is horizontal.

📌 Key takeaway: This is a good option if you don’t have access to Google Photos (for example, on a phone without Google services) or if the standard gallery doesn’t offer a mirroring option. However, please note that there is no preview in the file manager – changes apply immediately after the option is selected.

If you've been mirroring photos, don't panic. They haven't gone away, just:

• 🔄 Update the gallery (pull the screen down).
• 📂 Check the.thumbnails folder in the file manager (hidden files must be enabled in the settings).

Method 5: Mirror through PC (for maximum quality)

If you need to mirror a photo without losing quality (for example, to print on a banner or wallpaper), it is better to do it on a computer. Connect Xiaomi to a PC and use one of these solutions:

• 🖥️ Paint (Windows) Open the photo → Turn. → Reflect horizontally. Save it in format. PNG To maintain transparency, if applicable).
• 🍎 View (Mac) Open the photo → Tools → Reflect horizontally. Supports HEIC (photo-format).
• 🌐 Online services (e.g, Img2Go) Upload the photo. → select the axis of reflection → It is suitable for Xiaomi with limited memory.

⚠️ Note: When transferring photos from Xiaomi to PC via USB-Cable select File Transfer Mode (MTP), It's not charging. It's on some models (POCO F3, Xiaomi 11T) You may need to unlock the screen to access the files.

🔹 How to transfer a mirrored photo back to your phone?

1. Connect Xiaomi to your PC and copy the file to the DCIM → Camera folder.
2. Turn off your phone and update the gallery (pull down).
3. If the photo doesn’t show up, reboot your phone or use the File Manager to search for the file.

Frequent Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Even when you do all the steps, you have problems.-5 errors and ways of solving them:

1. The Mirror option is inactive in the gallery Reason: Photo in HEIF or RAW format (not supported by the standard editor).Solution: Convert your photo to JPEG via Google Photos (export → "Save as JPEG").
2. Mirror applies to the entire gallery Reason:MIUI bug with batch editing Solution: Close the gallery through Recent Apps and reopen.
3. Photo quality deteriorated Cause: Automatic compression while saving. Solution: In the gallery settings (Settings → Lab), disable the option "Photo Optimization".

📢 Useful advice for owners POCO X3/X4: If after mirroring photos turn spontaneously, reset the settings of the gallery:

Settings → Applications → Application Management → Gallery → Storage → Clear data

This will remove the cache, but it will not affect the photos themselves.

FAQ: Answers to popular questions