edge

Photoshop Top 40, Feature #35: Refine Edge

Submitted by deke on 18 August 2009 - 12:15am.
Feature #35: Refine Edge

Over the years, Photoshop has attempted several means for automatically distinguishing one portion of an image (say, a person) from the rest (its background). All have seemed promising at first. And yes, whether it's due to the allure of the tools or our faith in miracles, I do mean all. Yet as we grow wiser, they grow ever more unacceptable. Classic cases in point: The entirely unmagical magic wand. The sluggish and sloppy quick selection tool. And who can forget the ultimate and absolute disappointment of Extract?

But at least two commands have proven that selection automation is possible. Happily, one of them is today's Top 40 Feature: Refine Edge. Read more » 

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Photoshop CS3 Mask box art
Amazon.com

Photoshop CS3 Channels & Masks

Essentially a collection of luminance data that controls the transparency of an image, the modest alpha channel informs just about everything you do in Photoshop. and coming to terms with alpha channels (a.k.a. masks) is the most sure-fire way to boost the quality of your work in Photoshop. But masking isn’t easy. In fact, the elusive alpha channel has been described as the least understood feature in Photoshop’s enormous arsenal. Until now, that is. In Photoshop CS3 Channels and Masks, expert Deke McClelland blows the lid off the topic. Read more » 

List price: $149.95USD
Photoshop CS2 Mask box art
Amazon.com

Photoshop CS2 Channels and Masks

The elusive alpha channel remains one of the most misunderstood yet powerful tools in Photoshop. Alpha channels are collections of luminance data that control the transparency of an image, and they inform just about every aspect of Photoshop. Selections, layer boundaries, masks, the Quick Mask mode, layer masks, knockouts, and masking with the Channels palette all rely on alpha channels. In Photoshop CS2 Channels and Masks, award-winning author and Photoshop expert Deke McClelland teaches channels and masks comprehensively. Read more » 

List price: $149.95USD