The best way to quickly cut out an object in an image in Photoshop CC is to use the new Select and Mask feature. I’ll explain how you can use this effectively and cut out images as quickly as possible.
If you edit images regularly, you need to know how to effectively cut objects. I use Photoshop a lot for image editing and video thumbnails. I used to use the filter extraction feature in Photoshop, but now it’s removed in Photoshop CC.
How to use selection and mask to cut objects
How to use selection and masking to crop objects
First, open Photoshop and drag the image you want to cut. For this tutorial, I will use a royalty-free image as an example.
I will cut out this person with Select and Mask. You can use the same tool and follow the instructions below to cut out your own object.
- First, select the quick selection tool from the toolbar. You can click the tool as shown in the image above, or press the W key.
- Then click and drag the object with the Quick Selection tool active. The tool will intelligently adhere to the edges of your image, so it becomes very easy to select the entire object. As you drag the mouse, you will see the outline of the selected area.
- If you need to make minor changes, you can release the mouse button and click each area to include it in your quick selection. To make minor deletions, hold Alt and click the areas you want to remove from your selection.
This entire process will take less than a minute, even for complex images with many shapes, colors and limited contrast.
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- If you need to make even more minor changes, hold Ctrl and scroll the mouse wheel up to zoom in. Then adjust the size of the Quick Pick tool brush by clicking the brush icon at the top of the screen, as shown in the image above.
- Then click Select & Mask at the top of the Photoshop window. This will make your choice and allow you to make further changes to it.
On the left you will see a properties tab. You can adjust these sliders to remove the background and enhance the clipped image.
- First, drag the transparency slider to 100% to remove the background completely.
- I personally like to move the anti-aliasing slider around 50 to create a smoother image. Add 5 to 10 px to the Radius slider to add depth to the image. Then you can click OK and your object will be cut.
The cutout will be crisp, the image will stand out from any other background you may add, and if you followed the quick selection process correctly, there will be no missing pixels in your subject.
- In the last step, be sure to press Ctrl + X and Ctrl + C to cut and paste the selected object on a new layer.
At this point, you have several options. You can hide the background layer and save the image as a PNG with transparency. This will allow you to add this object without a background to any photograph or image in the future.
Alternatively, you can create your own background right in the same Photoshop tab you are currently in. Just add new layers and arrange them as you like. I’ve created the image above as an example.
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