![]() ![]() In fact, it still is, in some situations, but we’ve come a long way since the early days of photo editing, when you had to do it all by hand, in a process similar, to a certain extent, to what film retouchers did in the past. Removing the background detail behind hair is one of the most difficult tasks in photo editing… or it used to be. ![]() PhotoDirector 10 has a series of new features, including clipping masks, layer grouping and the ability to add new empty layers to projects, and the Background Removal function is not even new, but as these tools are always evolving, offering more refined results, I decided to try it in a simple project, but one with elements that has always been complex to solve in the past: removing the background from one photo with flyway or wispy hair. While trying some of the new features, I also checked the tools to remove backgrounds, and while playing with them decided it made sense to use the software to comment on the evolution of these tools. In this article I look at something else, the background removal options present in CyberLink’s PhotoDirector 10, which I also reviewed recently. I reviewed the program too, and more recently noted that Imerge Pro 2 is already available, with some new options included. ![]() I recently wrote here at ProVideo Coalition about Imerge Pro, from FXhome, a compositing tool which is the world’s first non-destructive RAW image compositor, available for both PC and Mac. Retouching and removing elements from images started almost as soon as photography became a popular medium, and it continues to this day, and now even smartphones users have access to options that would be considered “magic” or probably “witchcraft” two centuries ago. Larger size negatives, up to 8×10 inches (or 20x25cm) are much easier to retouch, but it was/is common sense that an intermediate copy should be used by those not experienced at retouching. With negatives, it is not advisable to retouch small formats, 35mm included, as the working area is much to small, but anything from 6 x 4.5 cm in medium format is workable, the detail complexity of the image being the only constraint, in some cases. Retouching prints and negatives concur to the same end but are two different arts and require different approaches. Those brave enough to try it directly on the negative, would follow a process not much different from what we do today in the computer, but riskier because there was no “Undo” if the negative was damaged. While we now do it digitally, in a cleaner process, studio and portrait photographers using film have to retouch the final image in a laborious process, including bleaching, cutting and scraping, many times on print. From complex compositions to the simple replacement of a washed out sky, we now have all the tools needed to do, many times almost automatically, what once took hours, sometimes days of painful painting of areas to be removed. The evolution of the photo editing software is amazing, for the variety of options we’ve been able to explore in recent years. Layer masks, content aware clone and other options allow users to mix content from different origins in a single final image. Requires at least 1 GB RAM, preferably more.Ĭompatible with Adobe Photoshop CS3-CS5, Photoshop Elements 6-9.Removing backgrounds from images was once an art reserved for a few, but the evolution of software has made the process not only automatic but intelligent, as PhotoDirector 10 reveals. PowerPC processors like G4 or G5 are not supported. Maintain transparency in hard-to-mask objects like veils and hair. Isolate areas for selective adjustments or bokeh effect.Create multiple cutouts for unique compositions. This capability allows users to have endless control over every aspect of color, detail, positioning and size in their images.Įasily extract intricate image details like hair and fur. Similar to a pair of scissors, ReMask 3 allows users to easily define the edges of an element to be masked / cutout from it’s background – which is an important feature in any post-processing workflow because it opens the door to a variety of creative and corrective tasks. Topaz ReMask is a multi-purposeful plug-in specifically engineered to handle the most common masking and extraction tasks facing photographers and designers. ![]()
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