How to Remove Backgrounds in Adobe Photoshop — A Complete Tutorial

Everyone needs to have photos with fantastic backgrounds. However, some images in your gallery might have backgrounds that you might not like. If you’re planning to print stickers or labels, you might want a transparent background to send to your printing company. You can easily remove the background using Adobe Photoshop using the steps outlined below.

First though, I have to point out that we will be using a lot of terms unique to Adobe Photoshop below! If you’re new to this software, it may be helpful to reference their visual dictionary for a better understanding of the Photoshop interface.

Step 1: Open and Run Adobe Photoshop

You will begin the process by opening the Adobe Photoshop on your computer. To remove the image background, select the “Quick Selection Tool” from the tools panel. This tool is regarded as the most effective tool for removing backgrounds.

After opening the Quick Selection Tool, you will see a context-sensitive menu at your workspace. From the menu, select “Add Selection,” followed by “Brush Picker,” which is essential for reducing and increasing the brush size depending on the size of the photo.

Step 2: Using Selection to Remove Background Imagery

With the tool running, click and drag the mouse on the background you want to remove. A selection and grow will appear as you drag the mouse. Carefully work around the subject, adding to selection as you continue.

In case you select areas on the background that you do not want to be removed, you will need to press “Alt” to use the subtraction option and then click and drag your mouse on the background you want to remove. You will also need to zoom-in for the effective selection of the background.

Step 3: Refine the Edges

Once you complete making the selection, right-click on the marching ants and then select “ Refine Edge” from the menu that pops-up. Refining aims at helping you to fine-tune your selection for the best results. You will need to choose the view mode to “ On White” for sharp contrasts. You can increase the Smooth value slider, which appears below Adjust Edge. Once you finish adjusting and refining the edges, clear stickers, and then click “OK.”

NOTE: It’s absolutely critical to the quality of your project that you do not skip step 3! Many custom printers like Label Llama use a laser cutting process that looks best with clearly defined edges.

Step 4: View Selection on a New Layer

You will need to toggle off the visibility of your initial background layer to view your new selection that completed against the original photo. Once the new view meets your needs and expectations, click OK, then save the new image in the folder of your choice. You can use adobe printing to print the image in case you need it in hard copy form.

The first step for composing success is by removing the background of your image. Once the background is removed, you can easily create a new one four your image through creativity.