I had to go and research what the "Cookie Cutter" tool was in Elements, and what it did, exactly.
And of course, what you do using that tool in Elements is available to you in Photoshop, you just have to know how. The instructions below may seem a little complicated at first, but if you do it a few times you’ll see that it’s pretty easy, and that you have MUCH more control over the final result of Photoshop’s "Cookie Cutter" procedure.
Basically, you create a mask. It doesn’t actually cut away the image data unless you tell it to. And that’s a good thing.
Try this:
* Open an image in Photoshop.
* Tap the "D" key on your keyboard to return Photoshop’s Foreground & Background colors to their default state.
* Hold ALT and Double Click on Background in the Layers Palette to turn it into an actual layer. * Add a Layer Mask to this "Layer 0".
* Select your Custom Shape Tool [U] and choose "Custom Shape" (the rounded-off "star/blob") up in the Options Bar
* From the 3 modes of Custom Shape creation at the left side of the Options Bar, choose "Fill Pixels."
* Select a shape from the drop down menu.
* Drag out the shape in your document window.
* You will see that the inside of the shape has been "cut out" (masked, actually) from your image.
* Making sure that the "focus ring" is active on the Layer Mask icon in your Layers Palette, hold CTRL and tap the "I" key to invert the black and white colors in the mask.
* See how that affects the "Cut Out?"
* Now, with the focus ring still present around the Layer Mask icon, bring up your Filter—»Blur—»Gaussian Blur… and play with the slider. See how it "feathers" the "Cut Out?"
* Blur the mask a little and hit OK to apply the Gaussian Blur. * Right-Click on the Layer Mask icon to drop a contextual menu. Choose "Apply Layer Mask."
* Voilà! "Cookie Cutter" procedure has been performed! * Close your image without saving.Again, that may seem like a lot to do just to replicate Elements’ "Cookie Cutter" feature, but ultimately, you’ll find you have more control over the final product.
Thanks PD!
However, you lost me at step 8. When I drag the shape in the document, nothing happens, nothing’s masked. 🙁 Grrr…. I follow your steps, but I’ve never done this before, so is there something I can be doing wrong? I’m using Photoshop CS right now.
Plus, is there a way to load more shapes to that pulldown menu? Is there a download somewhere? Or something I can purchase?
Thanks (so far),
kristin
Step 8 won’t work if you don’t meticulously observe Step 6.
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To load more shapes use the flyout menu.
I did select "Fill Pixels" …
Oh, and thanks for the flyout tip. I found it. 🙂 yay…. although I’m still not getting past step 8. 🙁
"However, you lost me at step 8. When I drag the shape in the document, nothing happens, nothing’s masked."
You tapped the "D" key right?
Foreground black, background white…Photoshop’s defaults.
Also, have you selected the "Fill Pixels" option from the group of 3 buttons on the left side of the Options Bar?
While you were preparing that screen shot Phos, Kristin answered the Phil Pixels bit.
Yeah, I’ve selected the "fill pixels" & hit the D key to go to default. It’s still not working. Maybe this will help…. Here’s a screen capture of where I’m at… maybe you can see something I’m doing wrong.
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Tap the "X" key.
Your Foreground and Background colors are reversed from Photoshop default.
What’s happening is that you’re trying to "Fill Pixels" White-on-White.
That won’t create a mask. It creates pretty much nothing, as you have seen.
🙂
HOORAY!!! 🙂 THANK YOU PD & JJ! 🙂 You rock! … now lemme finish the steps….
Now that we’re acquainted, feel free to call me Phos.
Everyone else does.
And you can call J.J. "Atlantean-by-the-Sea-Guy."
He loves that.
😉 XD
Hitting D should give you a Black foreground and a White background. You have the opposite and I can see your mask is all white, thus not masking anythimg. Also I don’t see that step in your History so I have to think you didn’t do it.
EDIT: Never mind. That step doesn’t show on History.
Hit X to reverse them. Select All and click on the mask and Alt-Delete to fill it with Black, then procede. Or drag the mask to the trash and remake it.
You can download Shapes from the Adobe Exchange. As the owner of a Photoshop license you are entitled to log in there. I haven’t been there in a while and hear they’ve messed up the site.
Plus, you can make your own custom shapes simply be defining any Vector object you create or import as such. You can even define outlined text as a custom shape. This is really useful for adding watermarks and/or copyright notices to your images.
Ya’ll rock! I was gonna post another question & Ed here just happened to answer it for me! Great minds think alike, eh?
I occasionally drop into this forum to get help. We’re getting upgraded to CS2 w/in the next couple months so I’m sure I’ll be back.
Thanks for taking the time to help me. Sometimes this stuff is so hard to find/figure out on my own. I learned so much more/quicker when I was in the computer lab at the U & could ask classmates…
Again, Thanks Phos, Atlantean-by-the-Sea-Guy ;), and Ed!
