Automatic Selection Tools

The Auto mode is ideal for images with a good contrast level and for objects with sharp edges. It can also be used as an initial stage when working with complex objects. It contains the tools that lets you create a selection automatically.

Original Image

• Step 1. Use the following tools to define the areas that must be deleted and the areas that must be kept:

  Keep Area Pencil . Use the blue pencil to draw an outline within the areas that should be kept.

  Drop Area Pencil . Use the red pencil to draw an outline within the parts that should be deleted.

  Eraser . Use the tool to erase drawn strokes.

  The Eraser tool works in 4 modes: all lines, only red lines, only green lines, only blue lines. Depending on the selected option, the tool erases only lines of the specified color.

  
  Red and blue strokes
• Step 2. Start processing the image by clicking on . The image will be processed with the default settings.
  
  Result on a transparent background
• Step 3. You can also use the Transition Area Pencil to draw over the difficult areas. This tool is useful when selecting hair, fluff, fur, branches of the tree, etc.

  Define "transition areas" that contain both the parts that should be kept and the background that should be deleted. The points in these zones have different Transparency values (between 0 and 100%).

  
  Using the green pencil

  The Size of the tools can be adjusted in the Settings Panel or in a pop-up box after right-clicking in the image window.

• Step 4. If you are not satisfied with the result, you can redraw the strokes:
  
  Redraw strokes

  …and adjust the algorithm’s parameters in the Settings Panel:

  Edge Priority. This parameter defines the way the points between the red and blue outlines are treated (undefined areas) and, thus, specifies the edges of the cut-out object. If you increase the value of this parameter, the edges of the cut-out object are defined as the border between the objects marked with different colors. If you reduce the value, the program will give priority to the color range of the undefined areas. By default the value is set to 50 and the program considers both principles equally.

  Find Similar Areas. By default the check-box is disabled. In this case the points of the image are colored in accordance with the strokes drawn in the nearby areas. When the check-box is enabled, the program will compare the color of the undefined points with the color range of the points in the red and blue zones (on the whole image) and mark them accordingly. It is helpful when you need to cut out inscriptions or a lattice.

  Mask Smoothing. This parameter is used to soften the edges of the cutout object. The higher the value, the more smooth and blurry the edges are.

  Sharpen Edges. This parameter changes the hardness of the edges of the cutout image. The higher the value of this parameter, the sharper the edges are.

  Sensitivity. This parameter influences the amount of details revealed in difficult areas. The higher the value of this parameter, the more semi-transparent details are visible.

• Step 5. Click on to re-process the image with the new settings.
  
  Result on a color background

If you wish you can edit the mask in Manual mode.

Note: If you want to work in both modes and with all tools, use the modes sequentially: first Auto, then Manual. If you switch to the automatic mode and run the image processing again, the result of using the smart brushes will be lost.

SmartMask v. 12.0 - Free 10-day Trial