Inside Photoshop® CS

Getting the Best Selections (in the Least Amount of Time)

Whether doing art layout for work or for community projects (read: free), I have spent the past 10 years making selections. In that time, I have come up with a short list of Do's and Don'ts that I will share with you so you can benefit from my experience.

Make a First Rough Cut Selection

If the object you want to select is large and has a lot of meandering edges, make a ballpark selection first. You can take two routes with this possible solution:

• You can make a general selection just outside the object (precision is not necessary at this point). Then put the selection on a separate layer and use a layer mask to paint away what you don't need. Layer masks are very forgiving. What I mean ...