How do I remove only black from a pictur?

[ByTheRoots]

Well the title basically explains it. I have a pic that I want to have a transparent background but it has a black one and the graphic has something in it which will make it look crap if I try and cut it out. So is there anything I can do or click that will make black dissapear to make it transparent?

[Wolf68k]

There are several different way to do this, with Photoshop. It depends on the image.

All of this is assuming the image you're working with in Photoshop is on it's own layer and not locked.

You could use the magic wand tool to select the color you want, hope it doesn't effect the areas you want left alone, and delete them. But that might not truly get everything so you'll be forces to zoom in and check; making a layer under your image layer using a color other than what you're trying to remove can help, in this case I would use pure blue: HEX code: 0000ff or RGB: 000 000 255

 

If the image is a simple shape then you can use the one of the Lasso tools to select around it. I would use the Pen tool for greater control. If the shape is more complex the lasso can still work but again I'd use the Pen tool for the best control.

[Deuce Deuce]

It depends.

 

I personally use the marquee tool, others might use the pen tool. If it isn't something you can do with a couple of clicks, you'll have to do it manually.

[Benjimino234]

As the others said it depends on the picture.

 

It could be as easy as using the magic wand and deleting to as a complex shape with the lasso/pen/marquee tool.

[Otter]

Post the picture, and we'll have a better idea for you.

[Narcis_speed6]

.I have a pic that I want to have a transparent background but it has a black one and the graphic has something in it

in this case magic wand is not pretty good to use, instead of that you can use 'pen tool' 'or even 'eraser'

[ByTheRoots]

Here it is:

 

 

 

Anyway of removing the black from this, because using the magic wand would make it look quite sucky due to the outer glow.

[Narcis_speed6]

is not possible to cut it perfect, just ask the guy who made it to remove the background

[ByTheRoots]

It's okay guys, I did a new technique from which I can cut the black easily with any bad marks...Thanks anyway guys

[Otter]

I'd simply use an overlay or screen blending mode.

 

However, I'm all of a sudden having trouble getting it to work. Normally, I can use a blending mode overtop of transparency. For instance - if I create a black solid layer, and select Overlay or Screen, I SHOULD be able to see the transparency checkerboard. For some reason it now will not work. Any ideas, fellas?

 

EDIT - honestly, this is driving me f*cking nuts. Anyone?

Edited December 18, 2009 by Otter

[Wolf68k]

I'd simply use an overlay or screen blending mode.

 

However, I'm all of a sudden having trouble getting it to work. Normally, I can use a blending mode overtop of transparency. For instance - if I create a black solid layer, and select Overlay or Screen, I SHOULD be able to see the transparency checkerboard. For some reason it now will not work. Any ideas, fellas?

Overlay, Screen, Multiply and so on are just Layer Blend modes.

The pixels are still there so they aren't really transparent.

 

If you were to let's say take ByTheRoots image and try to make it transparent using those modes nothing would seem to have happened. Even if you create a layer under that image's layer that is empty not mode will make it transparent.

Now taking that empy lower layer and filling it with white and then setting ByTheRoots' image layer to Exclusion now the black from his image disappears from the over all image, but notice that even in the layer preview the black remains.

Fill that lower level with red (ff0000) and set above layer to Darken or Multiply, the black remains but now the text is red. Some of the other modes will get you different effects but none will make the image transparent.

 

I'm not sure what you're doing, or what you thought you were doing, but like I said Blend modes do really remove any of the pixels, which is what you need to make something transparent

 

 

 

BTW there is a way to take that image and make it transparent but it'll lose a bit of it's blur that has spread out, using Channels. I just tried it.

[Otter]

See, the thing is, unless I'm entirely crazy, this has worked for me in the past, that I've been able to 'blend' onto transparency. But I have been known at times to be entirely crazy.

 

But yeah, the alpha channel was my next go-to answer.

 

I don't know why I'm so convinced that blending modes should work. Perhaps it's just that it seems like such an obviously simple calculation. Chalk it up to the eccentricities of age. I'll stick to After Effects for the meanwhile.

 

 

 

[Wolf68k]

Not an alpha channel. What I meant was if you to go to Channels palette and ctrl+shift+click on the preview thumbnail of the Red, Green and Blue channels then go back to the Layers palette hit shift+ctrl+i (Select->Inverse) then hit delete. Most of the color remains while the black is deleted. But like I said some of the blur goes with it, however you'd have to have previously made a copy layer of the image first to flip between to really see it.

[Otter]

Ah. I had luck by adding the entire image as the alpha channel, then tweaking the levels a bit. You still end up with that pre-multiplied look, however.

 

Additionally, a quick and dirty pseudo-luma-key effect could be applied by using Select>Color Range. You've got to tweak the selection a bit, but it is quite nice.

 

It just seems stupid to me that I can't figure out a way to screen out black. Maybe I'll harass the boys in studio about it today. I'll let you know if they think I'm crazy, too, Wolf.

[Wolf68k]

I'll let you know if they think I'm crazy, too, Wolf.

<--- I can tell

[Otter]

Well, they did, indeed, tell me I was crazy. However, they showed me a really simple way to do it using layers masks.

 

 

I copied the entire image, then made a new channel, and pasted the image in there. Then, by cmd+selecting that channel, then clicking on the image layer, the image layer will use that new channel as a layer mask. And viola.

 

Still not perfect, like mentioned earlier, but by tweaking the contrast, the results improve. And then by further tweaking the levels, Bob's yer uncle.

Edited December 18, 2009 by Otter