All You Need to Know About Editing Photo Background

All You Need to Know About Editing Photo Background

Sometimes the background of your photos may present a big problem. That is especially the case if you want to publish the photo on a website, and need to make sure it matches its web design.

Similarly at times the subject of your photo may look amazing, but the background may be too crowded or unappealing in other ways.

Suffice to say, being proficient and able to edit the photo background can be a big help. It will let you not only change the background of your photos, but also allow you to make them transparent.

In fact you can learn how to make an image background transparent using three easy methods right here and now – or click on the link for more options.

Use the Built-in Microsoft Paint

Every Windows PC has Microsoft Paint installed, which makes it a relatively convenient option to use. If you want to make the background of your photo transparent, all you need to do is:

  1. Open the Select tool’s menu and place a tick on the Transparent Selection option.
  2. Click on the Free-Form Selection tool in the Select menu.
  3. Click and drag the mouse cursor to trace the subject using the Free-Form Selection tool.
  4. Click on the Cut button to cut out the subject from the photo.
  5. Create a new transparent canvas or open a new image and click the Paste button to paste the subject on it.

Make no mistake, despite how easy it may sound – this method is actually quite challenging. In particular it is extremely difficult to accurately trace the subject in Paint, and if your hand isn’t steady will take a lot of time and many failed attempts.

Try the Intuitive PhotoWorks Editor

One of the easier options to edit a photo’s background is to use the intuitive PhotoWorks editor. It is truly user-friendly, and its Change Background tool should take care of all your needs.

If you want to use it, all you need to do is:

  1. Select the Change Background option under the Tools tab.
  2. Select the Object brush and use it to draw near the edges of the object.
  3. Select the Background brush and use it to denote the background, after which it will be automatically removed.
  4. Use the Object and Background brushes to correct the selection if necessary.
  5. Click on the Next button.
  6. Click on the Select Background Image button to add a new background or click on the Save with Transparent Background button to save it as it currently is.

Unlike other options you don’t need to be as precise when selecting the object and background, and can easily correct the selection as well. That is what makes it a whole lot easier to edit the background of a photo using PhotoWorks.

Give PhotoShop a Go

If you have a Photoshop subscription and are familiar with it, you may prefer to use it to edit the background of your photo. It is certainly capable, and you just need to:

  1. Select the Quick Selection tool from the toolbar and adjust its size.
  2. Click on the subject that you want to keep.
  3. Use the Subtract from Selection tool to correct the selection if required.
  4. Right-click the area and choose the Select Inverse option.
  5. Press the Delete key on your keyboard to remove the background.

The steps above should help you to make the background transparent. If you want to replace the background with a new one instead, you can skip step 4 and 5 and cut out the object instead – then paste it on a new image.

Final Words

Although all these options will let you edit the background of your photos, at the end of the day it boils down to a question of preference. It will help to try editing the background a couple of times regardless of the option that you choose, so that it is easier for you to make the right selection.

In any case you shouldn’t have any issue editing the backgrounds of photos that you want to publish on your website, or fixing backgrounds that have issues.