Mask and fill part of a png?

[Patrick Bell]

I have a png of a signature with a transparent background. I want to fill-in the signature text but not sure where to start. 

[GarryP]

I think the answer will probably depend very much upon what you mean by “fill-in”.
Can you give us a better explanation of what you want to do with it?

I got this (pretty bad) example by adding a Maximum Blur Live Effect, then Merging it, doing the same again, then doing the same with a Median Blur Live Effect. Not great, I know, but someone else probably has a better method, depending on your specific requirements.

Edited May 8, 2020 by GarryP
Added example.

[Patrick Bell]

Interesting but I was hoping to get back to the (lost) original really which was just the black filled text, possibly trying different fill colors to match my background.

[GarryP]

It could be difficult to get back what has been lost as we don’t know what has been lost.
In other words, we don’t know what was there so it may be difficult to advise on how to get it back.
Maybe someone else has some good suggestions.

[Pšenda]

2 hours ago, Patrick Bell said:

I was hoping to get back to the (lost) original really which was just the black filled text

You can use the Pen Tool to reconstruct the original text (its outlines) and create vector curves. You can then edit them as you wish - enlarge, fill in any color, etc.

[Lisbon]

My try.

A) Duplicate Layer
B) Filters > Detect Edges > Edge detect
C) Maximum Blur: Check Circular / 1px
D) Flood Select Tool: Mode: Add / Tolerance 1% / Check Contiguous
Select the Black outside the signature and the black inside letters "a" and "e"
E) Invert Selection > Fill with white
F) Paint with white areas that were left behind. Paint with black minor imperfections.
G) Gaussian Blur: 3px
H) Levels to sharpen the edges
I) Invert Layer and convert the layer to a mask
J) Fill empty layer with black and apply the mask