Photoshop Quick Selection Tool

One of the easiest ways select objects with complex shapes, especially in a high-contrast photograph, is to use the Quick Selection Tool. It provides a simple “brush to select” technique, with several options for tweaking and refining the initial selection, including direct access to the Refine Edge command.

The video below demonstrates how easily the Quick Selection tool can find the exact boundaries of a complex shape (based on contrast with the background), using just a few brush strokes and simple settings. You’ll also see how simple it is to add to selections, and remove lower contrast areas that are selected unintentionally.

In an upcoming tutorial we’ll take a look at the Refine Edge option, to see how it can be used to further perfect the selection and preview selections intended to be used as layer masks or alpha channels.