How to remove the background in Photoshop with a magic wand. How to remove the white background from an image

If you need to change or completely remove the background part of a picture, check out our article on how to remove the background in Photoshop.

Removing the background is one of the first difficulties that beginners face when working with the Photoshop editor. Let's look at some of the most popular and simple ways, which will help you remove the background of a photo.

Using the eraser

Photoshop has a number of tools whose task is to independently determine the boundaries of selected objects. One such tool is the Magic Eraser. It is available in all versions of Photoshop.

This method is suitable if you need to remove the white background of an image. The eraser does not accept other background fills:

Open the Magic Eraser options panel. Check the “Adjacent Pixels” (or Contiguous) option. It should be ticked. The presence of this item in the magic eraser settings allows the tool to select and delete only those sets of pixels that touch each other. This way, other elements of the picture will remain intact. To use the tool again, undo the previous result of removing the background and using the new eraser parameters, remove the background;

Adjust the Tolerance option in the eraser settings. The location of this settings item can be seen above in Figure 3. The higher the value of this item, the more likely it is that the eraser will remove more quantity detected background shades. Increase the tolerance parameter and gradually the eraser will stop highlighting the elements of the object in the picture. If for some reason you cannot remove the border using this method, try selecting the “Layer” window in the main menu bar. Then click on “Edge Processing” and select “Remove Border”.

Result of background removal using the described parameters:

Removing the background using the Magic Wand

Another popular background removal tool is the Magic Wand. This element can be found in most graphic editors, including in Photoshop. To remove a won, first open the desired image as a new project in Photoshop. Wait for all toolbar items to load. Now select the quick selection option. In the dropdown list you see two available tools. Click on the “Magic Wand” as shown in Figure 5.

Now all the actions will be the same as if we used the “Magic Eraser”: just move the pointer to the background part of the picture and click on it. Once selected, the background area will have clear boundaries. Click on Backspace button to remove the fragments detected by the wand.

Important! Before you start removing background with the Magic Wand, make sure you have unlocked your background. new layer. This is necessary to “unpin” it from the main picture. If a layer is not unlocked, the wand will not be able to select it correctly. Deleting may leave white areas or erase non-background parts of the photo.

To unlock the background, go to the Layers panel. Click on the lock icon to set it to the “Open” position. Only then use the Magic Wand tool.

If the “Magic Eraser” is often used to remove the white background from images, then the “Magic Wand” is more appropriate to use to remove colored parts of the background.

Removing the background inside the picture

Often users need to remove the background, which not only intersects with the boundaries of the main part of the picture, but is also located inside it. This method of background removal is useful if you work with black and white images or scans of drawings.

Rice. 7 – initial view of the drawing

As a result of removing the background, we should get a completely transparent image, with a clearly defined outline of the car. First you need to create a copy of the blue channel of the image. To do this, click on the hot button combination Ctrl keys– L. The Levels window will appear. Move the sliders until everything is gray colors began to resemble a black shade as much as possible. That is, all those elements of the outline that we want to leave should be painted black, and all parts of the background that will be deleted should become white.

Click on the thumbnail of the channel copy that was created at the very beginning. While clicking, hold down the Ctrl button. As a result, a selected image will appear. Do the inversion by pressing the keyboard shortcut Shift–Ctrl–I. Now press the Backspace button on your keyboard to delete the extra layer. You can create a copy of it by pressing Ctrl–J. After removing the background and adding in its place new texture this is the result:

Adding another background

Typically, users remove the background to add one picture to another or to change the background color/texture of a photo. Let's look at how you can change the background of a picture whose previous back layer has been removed.

This tutorial is designed for beginner Photoshop users. During the lesson we will learn how to delete background from a picture or photograph and replace it with another image.

We will look at one of the most simple examples to remove the background - we will remove a plain background. The color of the background is not important, the main thing is that it is monochromatic. In addition, the edges of foreground objects are smooth, which also simplifies the task. But you have to start small, right?

In this tutorial I will talk about two ways to remove the background - using the Magic Wand Tool and using the Magic Eraser Tool. In this tutorial I will use Photoshop version CC (Creativ Gloud), but the lesson is also suitable for versions lower, up to and including CS4.

I will be working with an image of fruit on a white background.

Here's my original image:

Let's get started.
To begin with, open our image in Photoshop and look at the layers panel (if for some reason you do not have this panel, then its display is turned on/off by pressing the F7 key). We see one layer there, this layer is the background one, Photochop called it “Background” (or in English Background), on the right side of the layer there is a lock icon, meaning that the layer is locked for editing:

Therefore, we need to unlock the background layer, and I'll quickly unlock it by double-clicking on the lock icon. After double-clicking on the lock, a new window will appear where you can simply click on the OK button, as a result the layer will be unlocked and renamed:

Now let's move on to the actual deletion.

Removing a background using the Magic Wand Tool

On the toolbar located vertically on the left, select the Magic Wand Tool:

And click on the white area in the image, in the example I clicked on the right top corner, as a result of which a selected area appeared in the document, marked by a moving dotted line, this line indicating the border of the selected area is colloquially called “marching ants”:

Now we can edit only that part of the image that is in the selected area. Everything that is outside the selection is not available for any editing (deleting, drawing, color correction etc.).
But, there are times when it is not entirely clear which part of the image is a selection and which is not.
To determine which pixels in the image are available for editing, you need to turn on the Quick Mask highlight by pressing the Q key. This is what the document now looks like:

The area of the image that is outside the selection zone is marked in red, i.e. not editable. To turn off the backlight, i.e. quick mask, press the Q key again.

Deleting the entire selected area is very simple - you just need to press the Delete key. Let's do this, and for best viewing, remove the selection. by pressing the combination Ctrl+D. This is what happened, with a gray and white checkerboard background representing a transparent area:

So, the background around the basket is removed, but the task is not completed. because fragments of the background remained inside the basket.

These areas have not been removed. because were not initially included in the selection, but this happened due to incorrect setting"Magic Wand" tool.

Let's go back and restore the original state of the document by pressing the F12 button.

Let's set up the Magic Wand. On at the moment We are only interested in one option of this tool - “Contiguous Pixels”, which is turned on by default in Photoshop. When this option is active, the “Magic Wand” selects only adjacent ones, i.e. pixels of similar colors touching each other, and, in our case, the white pixels inside the basket handle are separated from the outside by brown pixels of this very handle. Therefore, uncheck the “Adjacent pixels” option:

And click the “Magic Wand” in the same place where you clicked the first time, the result:

Press the Q key to turn on the quick mask so that the selected area is clearer:

Now the area under the handle is available for editing and deleting, but at the same time, some pixels on the area of the basket itself are also available for deletion, but we don’t need this.

To correct this shortcoming, we will use the currently active quick mask(Quick Mask).

Let's take the Brush Tool:

Press the D key so that the main color in the color palette becomes black, make the diameter of the brush approximately equal to the diameter of the white spots, set the hardness to 100%, and paint over the spots; in the process of painting, the spots should disappear under the pink highlight:

After the spots are painted over, press the Q key again and then Delete. Result:

Note. If, before creating a selection with the Magic Wand, you set the Tolerance parameter to zero (this parameter is located at the top of the Photoshop window slightly to the left of the “Adjacent Pixels” option, now it is equal to 32, see the figure above), then the selection will not include areas on the basket itself, and you won’t need to do dances with a quick mask and brush.

Actually, the task is completed, the background under the fruit is removed. Now I can drag the layer onto another image using the Move Tool, or create a new layer with some image under the basket layer.

In the example, I created a layer with an orange-red gradient under the basket layer:

Removing the background from a photo using the Magic Eraser Tool

The operation of this tool is similar in principle to the “Magic Wand”, the difference is that it is more automated and specialized.
Like everyone else specialized tools, working with the “Magic Eraser” is easier and faster, but it is not suitable for performing all such removal tasks.

But, for our case, this tool is ideal, so let's get started.

The Magic Eraser is located in the stack under the Eraser tool:

To use the Magic Eraser you do not need to unlock the background layer; the tool does this automatically the first time you click on the layer.

To remove the white background from my photo, all I need to do before using the tool is set the tolerance value to zero and disable the adjacent pixels option:

Now click on any part of the white background and it will be instantly deleted, without creating a selected area:

Actually, that’s it, the task is completed. you will agree, much faster than the “Magic Wand”.

Additionally, if you set the Opacity to less than 100%, the Magic Eraser will not completely remove the background, but will make it semi-transparent.

It follows from this that the Magic Eraser tool is ideal for removing a plain background. But the range of applications of this tool is much narrower. than a "magic wand".

Hello, dear readers!

Photoshop is an interesting thing that everyone should be able to use! I won't explain here what it is and how, I'll just give useful lessons in understandable language.

As many people say, I will write for dummies!

For some, Photoshop is a hobby, for others it is a way to make money, or just entertainment... But for me, Photoshop is another indispensable tool, without which there is no way for me and my blog!

He helps me make cool unique pictures(I’ll write about this later - I have my own tricks there, I advise you to subscribe to my blog. Otherwise, suddenly the article will be published, and you won’t know about it...)

Make various 3D boxes and covers, inscriptions, etc.

Therefore, I gradually began to master this knowledge, and I want to start teaching you too! These won’t be just another dull and abstruse lesson for professionals - everything will be for dummies in an interesting format (friends, no offense here).

On this occasion, I am creating another section on the blog called “Photoshop Lessons”!

Yes, I have a lot of sections, and there’s even one empty one - but don’t look at it! Soon I will correct myself and fill everything with useful articles...

You just need to subscribe to my blog and wait for them to appear on your email! And your subscriptions are like a lighthouse in the wilderness, they will motivate me and show me the right path, and then there will be no room for laziness!

Well, let’s finish with such a fabulous introduction and it’s time to start the topic of the post...

In this short article we will reveal this little secret: “How to remove the background from a picture in Photoshop?”

Recently, I myself asked myself such a question and was in search of an answer to it... But now, I do all this in a matter of seconds and even fellow bloggers ask me for help (I didn’t tell them the secret and said that I’d better write an article about this - they'll be happy)

How to remove the background from a picture in Photoshop!

But first we need program called Photoshop ( more precisely like this - Adobe Photoshop )…

It doesn’t matter what version, but the main thing is that it is there! Or you can use online Photoshop, finding it through any search engine - its capabilities are not particularly inferior to those of the installation program!

Let's open our Photoshop...

Now we need to add our image to remove the background: File - Open... (I think there is no need for a screenshot here)

I will use this picture as an example ( I’ll also take the blog libraries so as not to load too much):

P.S. Here's a small note: the image must be in the format JPG, with formats PNG And GIF such a trick will not work... But if your picture is not in the format JPG, then this is not a reason for frustration - we just need to change the picture format!

How to change the picture format?

Everything is simple here! You can use, for example, the program Paint(this is a standard program that is on every computer - or at least it should be)

We open the picture and simply save it in the format we already need ( Jpg) without any changes!

This trick doesn’t work with Photoshop: it doesn’t want images in the format PNG And GIF save in Jpg …

By the way, I use Adobe Photoshop CS6 Portable... (p.s. I really good version gotcha)

After adding an image, in the “ Layers"Double-click and in the window that opens, click " OK» ( this way we can create a new, unlocked layer and subsequently make changes):

Now we need to select in the left panel the tool called “ Wand"(works more accurately than " Quick selection ") and use it to click on those areas of the picture that we want to delete... (click with the left mouse button, thereby highlighting the area and click Delete):

After removing the background, you need to save ( File - Save As...). The image must be saved only in the format PNG, only then the background will remain transparent!

In general, here is my result:

I may have some errors, but I was just in a hurry - all this can be corrected by paying more attention! But the main thing is that you get the essence...

Now such a picture can easily be placed on any background!

Photoshop lessons - how to remove the background... Second option!

Here's the second option! To be honest, I don't like him!

Everything remains the same, only we use a different tool, namely the “Pen”. In general, look at the picture:

I hope the essence of the picture is clear! We need to select the object with dots until the outline is closed... If you set the dot incorrectly, don’t worry - you can cancel it (in the tab: Window - History, or by right-clicking on it - Delete anchor point)

To easily place points, you can use image magnification.

When you have placed all the points and the contour is closed, right-click - Create a selection area, well, then look at the picture:

After all these steps, the background will become transparent, all that remains is to save the image in the format PNG.

Why don't I like this option?

very long (especially if the picture is not a circle or a square =)
the outline of the picture sometimes changes its appearance

And since I don’t like the second option, I decided to record a short video lesson only on the first... In general, let’s look:

Well, yes, I couldn’t resist and wrote down about two methods =)

The cursor is not visible in the video while working in the program - something has frozen... But I think the point is clear! I also haven’t added any captions, but there’s a great article written above, and I’m also waiting for you with your questions in the comments!

That's all! Bye everyone!

Any designer, regardless of his qualifications, is faced with a situation where he needs to remove the background from an image, leaving the desired object untouched. And if with simple objects everything works out more or less successfully, then complex ones pose a real problem for the designer.

But before I show a few great ways, how to remove the background in Photoshop, it’s probably worth clarifying some points. For example, what is a complex object? For me, everything that is difficult to cut out with a pen is difficult ( Pen Tool). This category includes: hair, wool, grass, leaves, clouds and so on. It is precisely for extracting such objects that today’s lesson was created.

Method one: Using Channels

Removing the background using channels is perhaps one of the most effective, fastest and most popular methods IF the background is homogeneous. For example white.

Go to the Channels tab (you can add it through the Window menu) and select the channel that makes the object the most contrasting in relation to the background. IN in this case it's blue.

Let's duplicate it. CTRL+J does not work, so right-click and select duplicate channel. We turn off all channels except the duplicated one. Next, press the CTRL+L key combination and adjust the sliders so that there is maximum contrast between the background and the edges of the object.

Great. Now select the brush tool and paint the object with black. Something like this:

The simplest thing remains. Hold CTRL and click on the duplicated channel icon in the channels panel to create a selection. Then we turn on all previously turned off channels and delete the duplicated one. It is very important that in the end the RGB channel remains selected. Without removing the selection, go to the layers tab and press Delete. That's all.

If the background is not uniform, you will have to tinker a lot. Let's look at the next method.

Method two: Using Refine Edge

This function appeared in Photoshop quite a long time ago. If translated into Russian, the function is called Exact edge. It allows you to delete complex background at complex object as high quality as it can be done automatically. I suggest you practice on cats, in the literal sense of the word.

Using any tool convenient for you, let’s create a rough selection like this...

... and go to Select - Refine Edge.

There are no exact settings. It all depends solely on your image. Through trial and error I came up with something like this:

Of course, the result is not ideal, and cannot be so. You'll have to do a little magic with a brush. But it will take much less time than carving a lion by hand. Others, more effective ways There is no such thing as removing a complex background. That's probably all.

In conclusion

I hope you find this tutorial useful. In any case, I use the methods discussed today all the time when I make banners or collages. Maybe you know other ways to get rid of the background?

Hello, dear readers!

Photoshop is an interesting thing that everyone should be able to use! I will not explain here what it is and how, I will just give useful lessons in understandable language.

As many people say, I will write for dummies!

For some, Photoshop is a hobby, for others it is a way to make money, or just entertainment... But for me, Photoshop is another indispensable tool, without which there is no way for me and my blog!

He helps me make cool, unique pictures (I’ll write about this later - I have my own tricks there, I advise you to subscribe to my blog. Otherwise, the article will come out and you won’t know about it...)

Make various 3D boxes and covers, inscriptions, etc.

On this occasion, I am creating another section on the blog called “Photoshop Lessons”!

Yes, I have a lot of sections, and there’s even one empty one - but don’t look at it! Soon I will correct myself and fill everything with useful articles...

All you have to do is subscribe to my blog and wait for them to appear in your email! And your subscriptions are like a lighthouse in the wilderness, they will motivate me and show me the right path, and then there will be no room for laziness!

Well, let’s finish with such a fabulous introduction and it’s time to start the topic of the post...

In this short article we will reveal this little secret: “How to remove the background from a picture in Photoshop?”

How to remove the background from a picture in Photoshop!

But first we need program called Photoshop ( more precisely like this - Adobe Photoshop)…

Let's open our Photoshop...

Now we need to add our image to remove the background: File - Open... (I think there is no need for a screenshot here)

I will use this picture as an example ( I’ll also take the blog libraries so as not to load too much):

How to change the picture format?

Everything is simple here! You can use, for example, the program Paint(this is a standard program that is on every computer - or at least it should be)

We open the picture and simply save it in the format we already need ( Jpg) without any changes!

This trick doesn’t work with Photoshop: it doesn’t want images in the format PNG And GIF save in Jpg …

By the way, I use Adobe Photoshop CS6 Portable... (p.s. I came across a very good version)

After adding an image, in the “ Layers"Double-click and in the window that opens, click " OK» ( this way we can create a new, unlocked layer and subsequently make changes):

Now we need to select in the left panel the tool called “ Wand"(works more accurately than " Quick selection") and use it to click on those areas of the picture that we want to delete... (click with the left mouse button, thereby highlighting the area and click Delete):

After removing the background, you need to save ( File - Save As...). The image must be saved only in the format PNG, only then the background will remain transparent!

In general, here is my result:

I may have some errors, but I was just in a hurry - all this can be corrected by paying more attention! But the main thing is that you get the essence...

Now such a picture can easily be placed on any background!

Photoshop lessons - how to remove the background... Second option!

Here's the second option! To be honest, I don't like him!

Everything remains the same, only we use a different tool, namely the “Pen”. In general, look at the picture:

To easily place points, you can use image magnification.

When you have placed all the points and the contour is closed, right-click - Create a selection area, well, then look at the picture:

After all these steps, the background will become transparent, all that remains is to save the image in the format PNG.

Why don't I like this option?

very long (especially if the picture is not a circle or a square =)
the outline of the picture sometimes changes its appearance

And since I don’t like the second option, I decided to record a short video lesson only on the first... In general, let’s look:

Well, yes, I couldn’t resist and wrote down about two methods =)

That's all! Bye everyone!