Want to know how to extract an image in Photoshop? Let’s go to the first method we recommend: the Object Selection Tool in Photoshop.

Method 1: Use the Object Selection Tool in Photoshop

Step 1

Choose the Object selection tool and click on the object you want to select. This method works on busy backgrounds, but is especially effective on simple backgrounds like the one in our example.

When you click on the object you want to select, it will be highlighted in pink.

Step 2

With your selection highlighted, scroll to the bottom of the Layers panel and add a layer mask. The mask will take on the shape of the selection, removing the background and leaving only the object. Always use layer masks instead of removing or erasing the background directly, because automatic selection tools are never perfect and you will need to smooth them out and clean them up.

Step 3

To simplify and clean up your selection, double click on your layer mask to open Select & Mask. You can also find Select & Mask in the Properties panel when a layer mask is active or in the top options bar when a selection tool is active.

Step 4

Now you can refine and smooth out your mask using the global refinement settings. First increase the Resilience to round 2 pixels and the Contrast to round 50%and you will see the jagged mask become smoother. Keep making small adjustments until the mask is nice and smooth.

Step 5

Next, begin to shift the border inward to remove any remnants of the background image. You can always select the brush tool and manually mask out some of the areas that may have been missed, such as in the corners.

Step 6

Then use the Object selection tool to reselect the milk splashes. Add a layer mask and refine it in Select & Masklike you did with the bottle.

Step 7

Take a hard round brush, set it to black and mask out any unwanted splashes.

Step 8

Now right click And Convert to smart object.

Method 2: Blend as

Step 1

With your object selected, double click the layer to open the Layer style panel, and choose Mix as. Blend If is easy to use. You can use the white switches to blend out the lighter values ​​of your image and the black switches to blend out the darker values. You can also Alt to then split these switches, which will give a smoother transition. When you’re satisfied, click OK.

Keep in mind that Blend If is non-destructive. You can always come back and adjust these settings by double-clicking on the layer.

Step 2

Add one Inner glow Adding a layer style to an object is a great way to quickly add a rim light and remove edge from images that are already very bright or from images that are naturally bright or glowing, such as fire.

Step 3

If that doesn’t quite work, you can also clean the edges of an object by Control and click on the object to make a selection in the shape of that layer. Then in the floating context bar go to Edit > Options > Contract Selection by one pixel. Add a layer mask and that edge will be masked.

Using Layer Modes to Achieve Realism

A layer mode determines how a layer interacts with all the layers below it. You can use it for everything from lighting and shading to blending and even extracting. In this section, you’ll learn how to do all three.

Step 1

Add a new layer over your background, grab a soft round brush set to black and paint on the edges of the canvas to create a slight vignette effect on the background. Then touch up the center with some white so that the center of your image is bright and the corners are darker.

Step 2

Then go to the Photoshop layer blend modes and add a Soft light layer mode to make it more subtle, and you get a realistic vignette effect.

Step 3

Place some clouds on the canvas and adjust their size and position by clicking. Commando-T to enter transform mode. Click and drag on the anchors to enlarge the image. Then cycle through all the layer modes to see what they look like. Soft light gives the cloud the subtle effect we are looking for.

Step 4

Add a layer mask and use a soft round brush, set to black, to mask out the bottom of the clouds and grass, but keep a small amount on stage. This will create some ambient light, some bounce light, and some highlights from the blue sky, and it will give everything a more cohesive look.

Step 5

Let’s use the layer modes to add shadows and highlights to our bottle and make the glass transparent. First duplicate the milk bottle by clicking, holding Altand then drag it under the original layer.

Step 6

Right click on the layer mask and delete it. Then change the Layer mode Unpleasant MultiplyMultiply will only show the dark parts of the image. That’s perfect, because we only want the shadows.

Step 7

Now if you turn your original layer back on you can see that you have a perfect shadow cast by the bottle. You can even edit and refine that shadow by Image > Adjustments > CurvesIf you want the shadow to appear lighter, you can move the top anchor point outward. If you want to make the shadow darker, you can grab the bottom point and drag it inward.

Step 8

It’s important to remember that shadows are never shades of gray. They always have a little bit of color, so go to Image > Adjustments > Hue/Saturation and click Coloring to add a little blue to the shadow.

Step 9

But what about the glass neck of our bottle? You need to turn your original bottle into a smart object and add a new layer mask. Then all you need to do is grab a hard round brush, set to black, and erase all that glass. You want to keep the milk and the cap, so you just remove the empty glass. And just like that, you have a transparent piece of glass!

Step 10

You can also use layer modes to add light and shadow to the bottle. While I liked the shape of this bottle and its appearance, I preferred the shine of another bottle image. Luckily, we can combine them using layer modes. Place the other image on top and make it about the same size. Then, hold Alt until you see the square and down arrow icon, and click to cut this layer back to its original. This will be a clipping maskThis means that this new bottle will be limited to the pixel boundaries of our original bottle.

Step 11

Then change the glass layer to multiply, leaving only the dark parts of the image. Go to Image > Adjustment > Curves to increase the intensity of the shadows by bringing the bottom point inwards. Also increase the white slightly to define the dark areas. Lower the layer Opacity Unpleasant 15% to give the glass bottle some more depth and shadow.

Discover more Photoshop resources and tutorials

In this tutorial, we covered how to extract an image in Photoshop and then how to make your image look realistic with shadows and highlights. For more tutorials on Photoshop effects or Photoshop techniques like expanding a background, installing brushes, or reducing file size, check out Envato Tuts+ and the Envato blog. And for premium digital resources that cover all your creative needs, be sure to check out Envato.

Here are some great resources to get you started: