Magic Wand Tool - SBB Digital Scrapbooking Forums | Scrapbook-Bytes

tingens4 · #1 (**permalink**) 11-25-2007

Hi Everyone!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday! It is cold and cloudy here in Va... it looks like and feels like snow but I KNOW that ain't gonna happen

Got some pictures from my cousin and one was a great family picture that I wanted to do digi for her. However, I am having a fit with the magic wand.

It has been awhile since I played with PSP so I guess that old saying is true, "don't use it you lose it"

I need to "crop" something out and put somewhere else. I was thinking I could do that with the magic wand but when I try I only get a very small part highlighted. Do I have to do it freehand with the selection tool? Or am I way off and there is a simpler way

thanks!!!!

______________
Ann T.

Tracey R (Haley64) · #2 (**permalink**) 11-25-2007

Hi Ann, to select the item you wish to move using the free hand selection tool would probably be your best bet.
The magic wand could possibly work but it would depend on what your are trying to select and how well it stands out against your background pixels.
Could the clone tool do the job for you?
Really hard to guess at the best method since I don't have an example to go by.

rde · #3 (**permalink**) 11-25-2007

Maybe using the lasso tool and choosing the edge seeker mode? Could try increasing the tolerance of the magic wand so it would select a wider range of colors. Haley64's idea of using the clone tool sounds pretty slick- Hadn't ever thought of that!

cassel · #4 (**permalink**) 11-25-2007

Edge seeker is not doing a good job usually. The magic wand either, unless you have a definite contrast between the element you want to select and the background. The best tool, i find, is using the lasso set to Point-to-point and zooming greatly to see as well as you can. Then, once you have erased the background, you can select the empty area and feather a bit by one or 2 pixels (depending on the size of the project), and delete it.

I find it is the best way to do so.

tingens4 · #5 (**permalink**) 11-25-2007

I had not thought of the clone tool. I honestly do not use that very much except to "cover up" some things from time to time.

I have had a couple situations come up with needing to remove an item. Sometimes I don't need it but other times I have needed to take it from one place and put another...

Now that I read that it doesn't make sense....

What I think I am trying to say is ... for example: I had a picture of the school I work for. I was using that picture for our website but it had a red car sitting in front that I did not want. I tried the magic wand to select it to remove it but that didn't work. I used the freehand and took it out but then I was left with that "huge" hole. I cloned in the rest of the driveway and it looks okay.

Just wondering how I could have done it better. Like I said I have been so tied up in my html class that I haven't touched PSP other than every day stuff that I didn't need to think about

Thanks all!

tingens4 · #6 (**permalink**) 11-25-2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by cassel

Edge seeker is not doing a good job usually. The magic wand either, unless you have a definite contrast between the element you want to select and the background. The best tool, i find, is using the lasso set to Point-to-point and zooming greatly to see as well as you can. Then, once you have erased the background, you can select the empty area and feather a bit by one or 2 pixels (depending on the size of the project), and delete it.

I find it is the best way to do so.

Is lasso the same thing as "freehand selection" I just looked back at my picture and I am calling it "freehand selection" but noticed it has a lasso...is that what you are refering to?

Tracey R (Haley64) · #7 (**permalink**) 11-26-2007

Quote:

Originally Posted by tingens4

I had not thought of the clone tool. I honestly do not use that very much except to "cover up" some things from time to time.

I have had a couple situations come up with needing to remove an item. Sometimes I don't need it but other times I have needed to take it from one place and put another...

Now that I read that it doesn't make sense....

What I think I am trying to say is ... for example: I had a picture of the school I work for. I was using that picture for our website but it had a red car sitting in front that I did not want. I tried the magic wand to select it to remove it but that didn't work. I used the freehand and took it out but then I was left with that "huge" hole. I cloned in the rest of the driveway and it looks okay.

Just wondering how I could have done it better. Like I said I have been so tied up in my html class that I haven't touched PSP other than every day stuff that I didn't need to think about

Thanks all!

Yes the Lasso tool is the same as the freehand selection tool. The Lasso is more just the icon so you can tell which tool it is.
When you have this tool selected you can also select the mode in which you wish to use it: Freehand, point to point, edge seeker and smart edge.

By reading what type of image it is that you are working with and how your are trying to achieve your results (removing the red car from in front of the sign) yes that will be hard because there really isn't any part of the sign behind the car's shape so you would have to figure out how to get that part of the sign in there. Sometime's cloning works, sometimes making a selection of the top of the sign and flipping it upside down and tweaking it can work also.
But just by moving the car or removing the car yes you will have that empty area. So basically you don't even need to move or remove the car, you just need to cover it up!

tingens4 · #8 (**permalink**) 12-01-2007

The red car is actually sitting in front of the school. I removed the car. I used the clone tool to run the side walk up and kinda widen it. The car was sitting in front of the entrance so I actually was able to wide the sidewalk so it is really not that noticeable...

I guess I used the right tool....the clone one...but anyway it worked and a lot of people have asked how did I get the car out and keep the side walk so I guess it is not very noticeable hahaah

Thanks! I only have 3 more weeks of class this semester so hopefully I will get some scrappin done and post to gallery soon!