Vi beskjærer bildet før vi roterer det.

Bildet is the definite form of bilde, which means image/picture.

• et bilde = an image / a picture
• bildet = the image / the picture

The -et ending shows that the noun is definite singular. This happens because bilde is a neuter noun in Norwegian.

Because bilde is a neuter noun, the pronoun that refers back to it is det.

So:

• et bilde → det
• en bil → den

In this sentence, det refers back to bildet:

• Vi beskjærer bildet før vi roterer det.
• We crop the image before we rotate it.

Beskjærer is the present tense of å beskjære.

In general, å beskjære can mean to prune, to trim, or to crop, depending on context.
Here, because the sentence is about an image, it means to crop.

So:

• å beskjære et bilde = to crop an image

Norwegian often uses the present tense in the same kinds of situations where English might also use the present:

• for general procedures
• for instructions
• for things that regularly happen
• sometimes for near-future actions

So Vi beskjærer bildet før vi roterer det can sound like:

• We crop the image before we rotate it
• or in an instructional context, We crop the image before rotating it

The present tense is completely natural here.

Because før vi roterer det is a full clause, and full clauses in Norwegian normally need their own subject.

So the structure is:

• Vi beskjærer bildet = main clause
• før vi roterer det = subordinate clause

Even though English sometimes feels similar, learners may expect Norwegian to skip the second we, but it does not. You need vi again because roterer needs a subject.

Usually, yes. In this sentence, før means before and introduces a subordinate clause:

• før vi roterer det = before we rotate it

It can also be used in other expressions involving time, but here the meaning is straightforward: one action happens earlier than the other.

This is normal Norwegian subordinate clause word order.

In the clause:

• før vi roterer det

you get:

1. subordinating conjunction: før
2. subject: vi
3. verb: roterer
4. object: det

That is the standard pattern here.

Also, because there is no adverb like ikke in this clause, you do not see one of the word-order differences learners often notice in subordinate clauses.

Yes. That is also correct.

Both mean the same thing:

• Vi beskjærer bildet før vi roterer det.
• Før vi roterer det, beskjærer vi bildet.

The difference is mainly emphasis and sentence structure.

Notice something important in the second version: when the før-clause comes first, the main clause changes word order:

• beskjærer vi bildet
• not vi beskjærer bildet

This is because Norwegian follows the verb-second rule in main clauses.

There is a difference in both meaning and form.

• bilde = image/picture in an indefinite sense
• bildet = the image/picture, definite singular

In writing, the extra -t shows definiteness. In speech, that ending is also pronounced, so it is not just a spelling change.

In this sentence, the most natural interpretation is that det refers to bildet, because that is the nearest suitable noun and it makes perfect sense semantically:

• first you crop the image
• then you rotate it

So although pronouns can sometimes be ambiguous in other sentences, here the reference is very clear.