Creating a null background

[JenniferMurphy]

I'm not sure if this is the right place for this. I am pretty much a beginner, but it's really more about digital image processing than photography. If there's a better section or a better forum, please advise.

I would like to convert some jpg images from my digital camera into png files with everything but the central object cropped and with a null background. I've tried doing it with Irfanview, but the results are not great. I also tried GIMP, but got totally lost.

I only need to do this a few times, so buying Photoshop is not attractive. Plus there is a bit of a learning curve there as well.

Is there a simple tool or website that I can use to do this task? Here's one of the images I want to crop.

Thanks for any help or pointers...

 

[480sparky]

What you are looking for is 'transparency'. It takes a little time, but you can 'select' the area you want to make go away.

It can't be shown here as the forum software doesn't display formats that use transparency. But once you get it to this point, then you can put in whatever 'background' you want.

 

[JenniferMurphy]

What you are looking for is 'transparency'. It takes a little time, but you can 'select' the area you want to make go away.

OK, but how do I do that? You apparently did it quite easily. Did you use Photoshop?

Is there a tool that I can learn to use in less than the rest of my life?

 

[480sparky]

I did it in GIMP. Basically, the Fuzzy Select. But I probably did it backwards of what you'd think it's done.

What I did was actually select the subject, using multiple keystrokes and mouse clicks, to select what I want to keep. I then Inverted my selection, which in effect deselects the subject and selects everything I want to go away. I then added Transparency to that selection and Deleted it. Bam. It's gone.

Save as a .BMP or .PNG to preserve the transparency, then I can then layer another image under it as I wish. Save that result as a .JPG.


Another method to select the subject is to use the Lasso tool. But that would take forever with a complex subject like this.

 

[JenniferMurphy]

I did it in GIMP. Basically, the Fuzzy Select. But I probably did it backwards of what you'd think it's done.

What I did was actually select the subject, using multiple keystrokes and mouse clicks, to select what I want to keep. I then Inverted my selection, which in effect deselects the subject and selects everything I want to go away. I then added Transparency to that selection and Deleted it. Bam. It's gone.

So you essentially traced the outline?

It seems to me that I read somewhere that some editing programs have a tool that will take a crack at locating the edges (outline). The edge of this image is almost all the same color (blue) with a little red around the head. The background is textured, but a distinct color from the edge, so it ought to be fairly easy in software to trace the edge -- and more accurate than manually tracing.

 

[john.margetts]

You need the Magic Wand selecting tool. It selects areas of similar colour so clicking on the woven background will select around the subject. Then go to the edit menu and choose cut - the background should disa ppear.

 

[480sparky]

So you essentially traced the outline?

It seems to me that I read somewhere that some editing programs have a tool that will take a crack at locating the edges (outline). The edge of this image is almost all the same color (blue) with a little red around the head. The background is textured, but a distinct color from the edge, so it ought to be fairly easy in software to trace the edge -- and more accurate than manually tracing.

No. I used the Fuzzy Select tool. It does pretty much what you're describing.

The problem with the edge is it isn't a definite edge. If you actually zoomed in and looked at it, there really isn't a discernable edge where the subject is obvious in one row of pixels and is totally missing in the next.

Notice how, at the pixel level, the subject and the background tend to 'blur' together where they meet:

It certainly doesn't look like this, as one might presume:

 

[JenniferMurphy]

You need the Magic Wand selecting tool. It selects areas of similar colour so clicking on the woven background will select around the subject. Then go to the edit menu and choose cut - the background should disappear.

This is in GIMP?

Is there another tool, other than Photoshop, that can do something similar and is more user friendly? Maybe I'm just not very bright, but I found GIMP very difficult to use.

 

[480sparky]

This is in GIMP?

Is there another tool, other than Photoshop, that can do something similar and is more user friendly? Maybe I'm just not very bright, but I found GIMP very difficult to use.

ANY software will be difficult to use if you don't know what the function of the tools are and how they work.

GIMP calls it Fuzzy Select. The icon looks like a magic wand.

 

[JenniferMurphy]

ANY software will be difficult to use if you don't know what the function of the tools are and how they work.

Yes, of course, but that's not what I'm talking about. I'm reasonably competent in some fairly complicated software tools (Word, Excel, Access, Visio, Quickbooks) and several programming languages including VBA. No user interface (UI) is perfect, but some are much better than others. GIMP is one of the worst I have ever used. I even downloaded a trial copy of Photoshop and played with it for awhile. I found the learning curve (and the cost) too much for what I needed, but I did not have a problem with the UI. It's a complicated tool for a complicated job, but it is well designed. GIMP is, in my opinion, both complicated and badly designed.

I may go back and give GIMP a try again, but I want to see if there is anything else to try first. I've already exceeded my quota for self-inflicted pain for this year.

Do you find the GIMP UI intuitive and easy to use?

 

[480sparky]

..........Do you find the GIMP UI intuitive and easy to use?

I have no issues with it. I can't see how selecting a tool and adjusting the parameters for that tool is counter-intuitive. Different than other apps? Yes. But this is merely the same semantics of the issue of how to install a roll of toilet paper in a dispenser.

I think you'll find that there is no 'Easy Button' when it comes to editing at this level.

 

[table1349]

You might look at something like this: PhotoScissors Background Removal Tool - Easily Remove Background from Photos Basically it's $20.00 for the single tool you want.

Never used it as I am a Photoshop guy.

 

[SquarePeg]

If this is a short term need, try the free trial download of Photoshop Elements. I find it very user friendly. You woukd do just as Sparky suggested with the magic wand tool then invert selection then delete selected. There are many good free tutorials on the web on how to use.

 

[JenniferMurphy]

You might look at something like this: PhotoScissors Background Removal Tool - Easily Remove Background from Photos Basically it's $20.00 for the single tool you want.

Never used it as I am a Photoshop guy.

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you. It works perfectly and so easy. I created the attached image in about 30 seconds. You are a genius!!!

 

[JenniferMurphy]

If this is a short term need, try the free trial download of Photoshop Elements. I find it very user friendly. You woukd do just as Sparky suggested with the magic wand tool then invert selection then delete selected. There are many good free tutorials on the web on how to use.

I have actually been meaning to try Lightroom for some time. I understand that in addition to providing a good way to organize my photos, it has most of the most common photo editing tools a non-pro would need. But now that Gryph has helped me find PhotoScissors, I'll be able to procrastinate that longer. ;-)