Hands On 1: Making Selections

Overview

When I was a kid, Mr. Potato Head was a special toy. It was one of the only objects in my toy chest that let me make real aesthetic choices. I would start with a potato and choose from dozens of plastic facial features that could attach to produce a unique character.

For this first Hands On exercise, Fred Photato Head is the virtual version of the popular toy. In the process of assembling a character from dozens of features, you will learn how to use Photoshop s selection tools. All of the elements are on a single document. You will choose a feature, select it, and drag it to the character. In this way, you will build your unique version of Fred Photato Head.

Making accurate selections is fundamental to maintaining the credibility of your image. Poorly drawn selections that are rough, inaccurate, or stair-stepped, or that contain unwanted edge pixels, are sure to destroy the illusion of a seamless reality. It s important, then, to familiarize yourself with the masking process and to hone your selection-making skills. That is what I hope this step-by-step section will accomplish.