The EASY Background Remover Hidden in Photoshop!

Introduction

Removing backgrounds in Photoshop can often feel daunting, but there's an incredibly efficient tool you may not have heard much about — the Background Eraser Tool. Unlike traditional methods that rely on selections or masks, this tool offers a powerful, customizable, and user-friendly way to erase backgrounds. In this article, we’ll explore how this tool works, its settings, and how to make your editing process non-destructive, ensuring your edits are safe and flexible.

Getting Started with the Background Eraser Tool

To use the Background Eraser Tool in Photoshop, locate it by clicking and holding the Eraser tool in the toolbar. You'll find the Background Eraser Tool in the dropdown menu. To begin, follow these steps:

1. Create a Backup: Select your background layer and make a duplicate by pressing Ctrl (or Cmd on Mac) + J. This duplicates your layer as a backup.

2. Add a Solid Color Adjustment Layer: Click the adjustment layer icon and choose Solid Color, then select a color (e.g., black) and move this layer below your background layer. The black will serve as a contrast color against the object you’re isolating.

3. Select the Background Eraser Tool: Make sure you select your duplicated layer and start painting over the background. The tool will remove the background as you paint, using the color beneath the brush to identify what to erase.

Understanding the Tool’s Functionality

How It Works

The Background Eraser Tool determines what to remove based on the color you paint over. It samples the color under the crosshair and removes it from the area you're brushing over.

Major Drawback

One significant drawback is that this method is destructive — once you erase, you cannot retrieve that section unless you revert to the backup layer or create a mask (which brings us to the next section).

Settings Overview

At the top of the screen, you will find several settings:

1. Sampling:

   • Continuous Sampling: The tool continuously samples and removes the color directly under the brush. However, it can inadvertently erase parts of the subject, especially in detailed areas like hair.
   • One-Time Sampling: This samples the color only once, which can be useful to avoid erasing unwanted areas.
   • Background Sampling: This option removes only the color in the background swatch.

2. Limits:

   • Discontiguous: This mode allows removal across non-adjacent areas, which is useful for intricate designs.
   • Contiguous: Limits the erasure to connected pixels.
   • Find Edges: This helps keep edges sharp, but might not always work efficiently.

3. Tolerance:

   • This setting determines how many colors are included in the removal process. Higher tolerance means a wider range of colors will be affected. It’s best to start low and gradually adjust up to maintain accuracy.

Making It Non-Destructive

To ensure your edits remain non-destructive, follow these steps:

1. Duplicate your subject layer again by pressing Ctrl + J.
2. Hold Ctrl (or Cmd on Mac) and click the thumbnail of the newly created layer to select the subject.
3. With the selection active, click the mask button to create a mask. This allows you to revert any changes by painting with white (to recover) or black (to conceal).

Conclusion

The Background Eraser Tool is an underutilized gem in Photoshop that can speed up your background removal process significantly while allowing for customization. By understanding its sampling options, limits, and tolerance settings, alongside implementing non-destructive editing techniques, you can enhance your workflow and ensure your projects remain flexible for future adjustments.

Keywords

• Background Eraser Tool
• Non-destructive Editing
• Sampling Options
• Tolerance Settings
• Photoshop Background Removal

FAQ

Q: What is the Background Eraser Tool?
A: The Background Eraser Tool is a Photoshop feature that allows users to selectively erase background elements based on color sampling.

Q: Is the Background Eraser Tool non-destructive?
A: By default, the Background Eraser Tool is destructive. However, you can make edits non-destructive by using layers and masks.

Q: How does sampling work with the Background Eraser Tool?
A: The sampling feature lets you control how and from where the tool samples color to decide what to erase; options include continuous, one-time, and background sampling.

Q: What’s the difference between contiguous and discontiguous limits?
A: Contiguous limits restrict the erasure to pixels directly connected to the sampled area, while discontiguous allows for erasure across non-adjacent regions.

Q: How do I create a mask in Photoshop?
A: To create a mask, use the selection tool to select the area of the image you want to keep, then click the mask button in the layers panel to isolate your selection.