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03/18/2008 01:04:50 PM · #1 |
..to select parts of a photograph and remove the background? or how do you do it? I can do most things on photoshop but selecting certain elements takes ages and is sometimes messy.
:) |
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03/18/2008 01:11:57 PM · #2 |
Depends a lot on what you are trying to select. I try to let whatever it is I'm trying to select define how I select it (No that isn't as useless and zen-cryptic as it sounds)
If it is a really defined shape, I'll use the shape selection tools. If it is a strong colour, I'll use the 'select colour range' tools, or generate a mask from a channel as a starting point. The extract filter can also be a good way to go for really complex selections.
Typically some feature of what you are trying to select marks it out from the rest of the scene - colour, texture, shape, light, tone, whatever it is that sets it apart is a good thing to focus on when trying to select it and so use tools that make a mask, based on that feature. |
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03/18/2008 01:14:58 PM · #3 |
and a lot of patience most of the time.. oh and undo! You might also research add and subtract from selection too.
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03/18/2008 01:37:45 PM · #4 |
99 % of the time I do it by hand.
Sometimes the extract tool can be helpful as well. Read up on it if you haven't used it before. |
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03/18/2008 06:03:52 PM · #5 |
I find I very often use the magic wand, with as many shots (clicks?, waves?) as it takes to get the general area I\'m looking to define. (On a PC, you can add the selections together by holding down the shift key while using the wand). Check out the tolerance, which I usually minimise to ten, and feathering which I remove altogether in most cases (i.e. fiddly stuff).
Having done that I then use the lasso tool to expand or contract the selected area. That's with the shift key depressed to add bits and the Alt key depressed to remove bits. If you\'ve selected sky, for example, and there are lots of twinkling bits inside your selection that the wand didn't register, then you can just draw a rough line with the lasso around them (as long as it stays inside the selection) and it will add all those little bits. If the wand has also selected a light area reflected on e.g. your subject, then you can draw around that with the Alt key depressed. The bit where you need to be careful is at the actual edge of the object you want to remove from the selection.
A thing to remember. Repeat after me. (Or whatever you prefer for remembering things). When you have a selection 'active' and you don't want to lose it, always get your finger on either the Alt or the Shift key before you even touch the mouse or touch pad or whatever you're using.
Without showing or illustrating this it may be pretty opaque. Mess around is the way to learn.
If I stick with the sky example, then you may want to reverse the selection after you've got most of the sky selected. Then you have a selection of everything that isn't the sky, which you can copy and paste into a new layer. (Or onto whatever it is with which you wish to replace the sky). Add a layer mask to the new layer and you can brush away the last details.
Yes, patience. |
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03/18/2008 06:09:49 PM · #6 |
FWIW, what Peter describes is how I did selections for the first 10 years or so that I was using photoshop.
It took a while to realise that its much easier to let the thing you want to select drive the selection. That and the realisation that a mask is just an inactive selection which are both just 8-bit greyscale images is a key point.
You can make a selection, convert it to a mask then process it with all the tools Photoshop has to offer, gaussian blur, curves, level adjustments (to adjust feathering, mid and edge points on the selection effectively), paint brushes (at different opacities, hardness etc) and then convert it right back to an active selection or layer mask.
The magic wand and lassos used to be my first go-to tools for selections, now they tend to be the last resort when everything else has failed.
Message edited by author 2008-03-18 19:49:21. |
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03/18/2008 06:25:18 PM · #7 |
New to CS3 is the Quick Selection tool, which really works well, once you learn how to use it properly...
Alternatively, check out this video tutorial on using Photoshop "Paths" for selecting non-linear objects. Be patient with this video.
Finally, sometimes it's easier to create a mask and "paint out" the object. For me, this is the method to which I can relate the most. It is just like doing masking in a traditional darkroom with film negatives.
Message edited by author 2008-03-18 18:26:40.
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03/18/2008 07:24:42 PM · #8 |
Aw shucks - do I have to progress to another level now?
Thank you sensei. |
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03/18/2008 07:31:14 PM · #9 |
Originally posted by raish:
When you have a selection 'active' and you don't want to lose it, always get your finger on either the Alt or the Shift key before you even touch the mouse or touch pad or whatever you're using. |
Although it isn't the end of the world if you DO lose it - just go up to "Select" and choose "reselect"
(shift + ctrl + D) |
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03/18/2008 07:43:29 PM · #10 |
Here's a tip...
Let's say you are selecting something--something very intricate and detailed. Let's say it has taken you an hour to select, then you have to leave (to eat dinner, go to sleep, leave the office to go home, etc). Don't despair, you can preserve your selection by choosing "Select > Save Selection" and give it a name. Later, when you reopen your PSD project, you can "Load Selection" and it will reselect everything up to the point when you saved it.
Message edited by author 2008-03-18 19:51:04.
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03/18/2008 07:55:15 PM · #11 |
Some good video tutorials can be found here at the Layers magazine site. Most notable for CS3 users are the Quick Selection and Refine Edges tutorials. A demonstration of advanced techniques used for dealing with tough selections like hair (not using the quick selection tool)is found here
Edited to clarify
Message edited by author 2008-03-18 21:07:17. |
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