Cut out images

To cut out an image area
To set tool options in the Cutout Lab
To view an image in the Cutout Lab

The Cutout Lab lets you cut out image areas from the surrounding background. This feature allows you to isolate image areas and preserve edge detail, such as hair or blurred edges.

To cut out an image area, you draw a highlight over its edges and then apply a fill to define the inside of the area. To evaluate the results, you can preview the cutout with the background removed or against a background of gray, white, or black. You can also preview the cutout with the original image showing underneath and with the highlight and fill displayed. If necessary, you can touch up the cutout by adding or removing detail along its edges.

If you make a mistake, you can erase and redo sections of the highlighted and filled area, undo or redo an action, or revert to the original image.

By default, the cutout is placed as an object in the image window and the original image is removed. You can also choose to keep both the cutout and the original image, or create a clip mask from the cutout.

Cutout Lab workflow: (1) Highlight the edges of the image area; (2) Add a fill to the inside. (3) Preview the cutout and touch it up if needed. (4) Bring the cutout into the image window. (5 — optional) Place the cutout against a background image.

You can set options for some of the tools in the Cutout Lab. For example, you can customize the thickness of the highlight by changing the nib size of the Highlighter tool. If an image area has hard edges, you can use a thinner line to define its edges more precisely. Conversely, if an image area has blurred or wispy edges that are hard to define, you can use a thicker line. Also, you can change the highlight and the fill color to make them more visible.

You can also zoom in to get a closer look at image detail or zoom out to view a larger area of the image. You can pan to view image areas that fall outside the preview window.

To cut out an image area

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1 Click Image Cutout Lab.
2 Click the Highlighter tool .
3 In the preview window, draw a line along the edges of the image area that you want to cut out.
The line should slightly overlap the surrounding background.
4 Click the Inside fill tool , and click inside the area you want to cut out.
5 Click Preview.
If you want to touch up the cutout, click the Add detail or Remove detail tool, and drag over an edge.
6 From the Cutout results area, choose any of the following options:
• Cutout — creates an object from the cutout and discards the original image
• Cutout and original image — creates an object from the cutout and preserves the original image
• Cutout as clip mask — creates a clip mask from the cutout and attaches the clip mask to the original image. A clip mask is a mask that is attached to an object and lets you change the transparency of an object without permanently affecting it. If you created a cutout from a background image, the background is converted to an object.

 

You can also
 
Erase the highlight and fill
Click the Eraser tool , and drag over the highlight and fill that you want to delete. The Eraser tool is available before you click Preview.
Undo or redo an action
Click the Undo or Redo button.
Revert to the original image
Click Reset.
Set preview options
In the Preview settings area, enable any of the following check boxes:
• Show highlight — displays the highlight around the cutout
• Show fill — displays the fill inside the cutout
• Show original image — displays the original image underneath the cutout
From the Background list box, choose any of the following options:
• None — displays the cutout against a black-and-white checkered pattern. If the Show original image check box is enabled, the removed areas appear under a semitransparent black-and-white checkered pattern.
• Grayscale — displays the cutout against a gray background. If the Show original image check box is enabled, the removed areas are tinted gray.
• Black matte — displays the cutout against a black background. If the Show original image check box is enabled, the removed areas are tinted black.
• White matte — displays the cutout against a white background. If the Show original image check box is enabled, the removed areas are tinted white.

*

The Cutout Lab supports RGB, CMYK, grayscale, paletted, and Lab images. When brought into the Cutout Lab, grayscale, paletted, and Lab images are automatically converted to RGB or CMYK images, which may result in a slight color shift. The original image colors are restored after you apply or cancel the Cutout Lab command.

To set tool options in the Cutout Lab

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1 Click Image Cutout Lab.
2 Perform a task from the following table.

 

To
Do the following
Set the nib size of the Highlighter, Eraser, Add detail, and Remove detail tools
Choose a nib size from the Nib size list box.
Change the highlight color
Choose a highlight color from the Highlight color picker.
Change the fill color
Choose a fill color from the Fill color picker.

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You can change the nib size of the Highlighter, Eraser, Add detail, and Remove detail tools interactively by holding down Shift while dragging a tool.

To view an image in the Cutout Lab

Back to Top
1 Click Image Cutout Lab.
2 Perform a task from the following table.

 

To
Do the following
Zoom in and out
Using the Zoom in or Zoom out tool , click in the preview window.
Display an image at its actual size
Click the 100% button.
Fit an image in the preview window
Click the Zoom to fit button.
Pan to another area of an image
Using the Pan tool , drag the image until the area you want to see is visible.

 

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