Cloning image areas

You can sample an area of an image and reuse it in the same document or in a different document. Sampling (also referred to as "offset sampling" or "point-to-point cloning") is a useful technique for retouching photographs. For example, you can copy pixels from one image area to another in order to cover damaged or unwanted elements in an image. You can also clone image elements you like and apply them to another image area or a second image.

To clone an image area, you must set a sampling reference point and then set destination reference points. Sampling reference points specify the area of the document that you want to reuse, or clone. Destination reference points determine the area where you want the sampled image to appear. To identify which area of the source document you are sampling, a crosshair cursor appears.

The green dot (left) represents the sampling reference point. The red dot (right) represents the destination point.

It is important to note that the sampling reference point, also known as the source, is not treated as a clone source. The sampled area does not appear in the Clone Source panel.

To perform offset sampling in a document

1 .	Click the Rubber Stamp tool in the toolbox.

You can disable offset sampling by clicking the Clone Color button in the Color panel or by choosing a non-Cloner brush variant in the Brush Selector.

You can also enable offset sampling by clicking the Cloner tool in the toolbox.

You can set the destination area before painting by clicking while holding down Option + Shift (macOS) or Alt + Shift (Windows). A red marker indicates the destination area.

To perform offset sampling between documents

2 .	With the source image selected, click the Cloner tool in the toolbox.

You can disable offset sampling by clicking the Clone Color button in the Color panel or by choosing a non-Cloner brush variant in the Brush Selector.

You can also
Adjust the size of the brushstroke	Type a value in the Size box, or move the slider on the property bar.
Adjust the clone color opacity	On the property bar, type a percentage in the Opacity box, or move the slider.
Control the amount of color that is replenished in a stroke	On the property bar, type a percentage in the Resat box, or move the slider.
Control how much the brush colors smear underlying colors, including the paper color	On the property bar, type a percentage in the Bleed box, or move the slider.
Adjust bristle separation	On the property bar, type a value in the Feature box, or move the slider. The higher the setting, the farther apart the bristle hairs will appear.
Scale the brushstroke proportionally with the brush size	Click the Scale Feature With Brush Size button on the property bar.

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