You know what ane of my biggest design pet peeves is? When I'yard designing something, simply there's an unwanted groundwork on the image I'k editing.

In this article, you'll acquire how to remove a photograph background birthday, or make it transparent and then the paradigm assumes the look of whatsoever other background you put behind it.

Consider the above characteristic epitome. The image to the left would be so much more than useful to my call-to-action, SlideShare presentation, blog mail, or ebook if I could just remove that pesky background so information technology looked similar the epitome on the right. Download Now: The Marketer's Guide to Photoshop

Or maybe you've downloaded another one of our collections of free stock photos that could also utilize a transparent background.

Luckily, there is something you tin can do about information technology. Using either Photoshop or PowerPoint, you can easily remove the background of your photo or image in no time. And I'yard going to show you exactly how to exercise it.

First, grab an paradigm to do with. Y'all tin can download one from our latest collection of royalty-free stock photo here ... Got an prototype whose background you want to remove? Keen -- let's get started.

Considering some of you may non have Photoshop at your disposal, let's kickoff with instructions for PowerPoint. You tin besides jump downwards to the instructions for Photoshop here.

How to Remove a Photo Background in PowerPoint

Go along in mind that you'll need to be using Office 2010 or later, and because PowerPoint isn't as sophisticated as Photoshop, information technology may not piece of work for some of the more difficult images. But if you don't have admission to Photoshop, this could be just what you need.

one. Insert the image into PowerPoint.

Images with white/solid backgrounds or those that accept loftier contrast with the foreground are the easiest to manipulate in PowerPoint.

Insert image into PowerPoint slide

ii. Beginning, click on your image. Then, under 'Picture Format' on a Mac (or 'File' on a PC) in your toolbar, choose 'Remove Background.'

Picture Format tab to Remove Background of photo in a PowerPoint slide

iii. PowerPoint volition automatically try to remove the background, simply information technology might not get it just right.

image-background-removal-powerpoint

4. Using the options in the toolbar, click to mark areas you want to keep or remove from the terminal cropped paradigm.

Meet how information technology's cutting off office of the girl'southward torso and cape above? Commencement, elevate the box around the epitome so it includes the entire surface area of the prototype you want to keep.

Proceed in mind that the areas highlighted in purple will ultimately be removed. Using your cursor, however, you can be even more than precise well-nigh what you desire eliminated. Hover over both the purple background and the subject in your picture -- you'll see your cursor produce either a plus sign or a minus sign. The minus sign, when hovering over your subject, allows y'all to mark areas to remove -- simply click on any boosted areas you would similar to remove.

If there are purple areas you actually want to keep, hover over any majestic spot and click to mark areas to keep -- they will feature a plus sign.

To get a closer look at the areas yous want to select, zoom in on your epitome. Beneath, you'll see small-scale minus signs surrounding areas of the girl's pilus -- I clicked on these spots where I thought PowerPoint might go dislocated as to which parts of the background between strands of pilus should go or stay.

Minus sign symbols used to mark areas to remove background of photo in PowerPoint

PowerPoint could see these strands of hair as the border of the girl, and non remove the background between this hair and the rest of her head. In this blazon of case, these minus signs can help you.

If you happen to mistakenly include or exclude something, merely click on the plus or minus sign that covers the area, and information technology will disappear.

5. Click somewhere outside of the prototype when you're finished.

Photo of girl with cape after picture's background was made transparent

Last but not to the lowest degree, save the prototype every bit a PNG file to preserve its transparent background.

How to Make a Background Transparent in Photoshop

Considering Photoshop is much more than sophisticated than PowerPoint, there are a few different methods you tin utilize to make a background transparent. Each is good for a unlike kind of epitome. Click the links below to jump to the tutorial for each method:

  • The Polygonal Lasso method is great for images with straight edges.
  • The Quick Selection method is expert for images with round edges.
  • The Brush method is all-time for images whose edges crave more precision.

The Polygonal Lasso Method: For Images With Straight Edges

Let's say I want to remove the blue background (as well equally the pole) from this "end spam" paradigm.

no-spam-stop-sign.jpg

Considering this prototype is made upwardly entirely of directly edges, this method of background removal is perfect. Here's how to brand that blue background (and the silver pole) transparent.

i. Go your image set up in Photoshop.

The first thing you'll want to practise subsequently yous drag and drop your image into Photoshop is catechumen it into a "Smart Object," and and so rasterize it. Here'southward how:

Click on the Layer dropdown in your Photoshop menu, highlight Smart Objects , and then click Convert to Smart Object .

Convert to Smart Object option to remove background photo in Photoshop

Next, click on the Layer dropdown once again, merely this fourth dimension, highlight Rasterize , and so click Smart Object .

Rasterize option to remove background from photo in Photoshop

Now yous're prepare to catechumen that pesky background into a transparent 1.

2. Zoom in on your paradigm so you can exist more precise with your background removal.

Yous can zoom in and out by clicking the View dropdown and choosing Zoom In or Zoom Out, or using the keyboard shortcuts as indicated.

3. Select the Polygonal Lasso Tool from the toolbar on the left.

The Polygonal Lasso Tool looks like this: polygonal-lasso-tool.png

In one case selected, click on a starting point, and trace the part of the epitome you want to keep using a serial of clicks from indicate to bespeak. I adopt to go rid of the blackness edge on the stop sign, so I'm tracing the sign only within the outer edge of the white border.

Lasso icon in Photoshop

4. Connect the line with your starting point.

One time you've fabricated it all the way around your image, connect your line to the beginning signal y'all started with. You'll know it's connected when your cursor includes a little circle, as shown below.

Connected cursor used to remove background from photo in Photoshop

Once you connect your line to your first point, a flashing dashed line will class around your prototype, similar then ...

dashed-line-edge.png

5. Select the background you want to delete.

Do this by clicking the Select dropdown in the top menu, and clicking Inverse. This will highlight the entire background yous want to make transparent.

Inverse option in Photoshop

half dozen. Delete the background.

Hitting Delete on your keyboard, and the background volition turn into a checkered filigree like you lot see below. This is how you lot'll know your background is at present transparent.

Stop sign image with transparent background removed with Photoshop

7. Save your image equally a PNG file.

This will ensure your background transparency stays in tact.

The Quick Selection Method: For Images With Circular or Wavy Edges

Okay, now allow'due south say your image isn't as directly-edged equally the image in the example higher up, and it's got some bend to it, similar the paradigm beneath. Here, you'll desire to employ the Quick Selection Tool.

Man with bag over head

one. Get your epitome set up in Photoshop.

Only like we did with the Polygonal Lasso method, the first matter you'll want to practice after you elevate and drop your image into Photoshop is convert it into a "Smart Object," and then rasterize it:

  1. Click on the Layer dropdown in your Photoshop menu, highlight Smart Objects , and then click Convert to Smart Object .
  2. Next, click on the Layer dropdown once more, but this time, highlight Rasterize , then click Smart Object . (See step 1 within the Polygonal Lasso method tutorial for screenshots if you're stuck.)

2. Choose the Quick Selection Tool from the toolbar on the left.

The Quick Pick Tool is right below the Polygonal Lasso Tool, and information technology looks like this: quick-selection-tool-button.png

3. Click the background to highlight the part you want to make transparent.

This tool takes some getting used to, only in one case yous get the hang of it, it's i of the fastest and easiest ways to remove the background from a photo.

Commencement clicking effectually on the background to highlight the parts you desire to remove.

Quick selection to remove background from photo in Photoshop

Accommodate the size of the pick tool accordingly. I recommend starting with a larger size, since that will allow you to select larger sections of your groundwork at a fourth dimension, speeding up the process.

quick-selection-size.png

Repeat this process until the entire background of the image is selected:

Highlighted foreground of image using quick selection tool in Photoshop

iv. Subtract selections every bit needed.

Oops! Let'southward say you notice role of the prototype y'all desire to keep is getting highlighted along with the background, like y'all run across in the screenshot below.

Subtract From Selection option in Photoshop

Accept no fear -- you can decrease parts of the image that accidentally get highlighted:

Showtime, click on the Subtract From Pick button in the toolbar at the top. (Alternatively, you tin concord downwardly alt while you lot click on a PC, or selection while you click on a Mac.)

subtract-from-selection.png

This is also something that may have some getting used to, but the fob is to position your cursor right along the inner edges of the part of the image you want to proceed. Y'all may desire to adjust the size of your Quick Selection tool for some of the finer details. And then click so the incorrectly highlighted section gets detracted.

five. Delete the background.

Finally, click Delete on your keyboard to make the background transparent.

Photo with background removed using Quick Selection method in Photoshop

6. Save your image every bit a PNG file.

This will preserve the transparency of your background.

Pro Tip: Sometimes using the Quick Option Tool results in jagged edges, especially on parts of the image where the edge should be a straight line. This tends to happen most on low-resolution images. If it happens to you, try smoothing out the jagged edges using the Polygonal Lasso method subsequently get-go removing the groundwork with the Quick Selection Tool.

The Brush Method: For Trickier Images

There'due south a third method you can fall back on if the offset two methods but aren't cutting information technology. This is smashing for images that demand a little chip more precision, although to be honest, the first two methods usually do the trick for me.

The in one case this method comes in handy for me is when I need to clean up some of the edges of images whose backgrounds were removed via the first ii methods. For example, I used the Polygonal Lasso Tool in Photoshop to remove the background of the shark male child image at the very top of this article, but I cleaned upwardly the spaces in between his fingers (which needed a fiddling fleck more precision) using the Castor Method.

1. Get your image ready in Photoshop.

Merely like the first two methods, the first matter you demand to practise after you drag and drop your image into Photoshop is convert it into a "Smart Object," then rasterize it:

  1. Click on the Layer dropdown in your Photoshop menu, highlight Smart Objects , and then click Convert to Smart Object .
  2. Next, click on the Layer dropdown again, merely this time, highlight Rasterize , and so click Smart Object . (Run across step one within the Polygonal Lasso method tutorial for screenshots if yous're stuck.)

2. Select the Brush Tool from the toolbar on the left.

The Brush Tool is right below the Red Eye Tool, and it looks like this: brush-tool.png

three. Modify the "Style" and "Hardness" of the Castor Tool.

Correct below the top carte du jour, alter the Mode to Clear. Then click the drop-downward arrow adjacent to the brush size box, and modify the Hardness to 100%. This will substantially transform your Brush Tool into an eraser.

Size and Hardness option in Photoshop

4. Brush abroad the background.

Erase your background past clicking and dragging. Adjust the size of your Brush Tool and zoom in on your paradigm for more fine-tuned precision.

Brush method of removing background from photo in Photoshop

5. Save your prototype as a PNG file.

Once you have your epitome the mode y'all want information technology, save it as a PNG. This volition preserve the transparency of your background.

That's it! Hopefully epitome background removal is now much easier for you using at least one of these methods.

Marketer's Guide to Photoshop

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Originally published Jun 14, 2018 10:26:00 PM, updated June 15 2018