turtleboy Posted February 11, 2016 Share Posted February 11, 2016 Very new to the Affinity Photo game so trying to get to grips with the most efficient workflows. I'm trying to remove a green screen background for some product images to make useable PNGs of the product images. I have had reasonable results simply using the selection brush tool and gradually selecting the edges then refining as best I can however the results are not always as clean as I'd like them to be, I'm sure there are some much more efficient/cleverer methods of reaching the same goal. I have linked 2 images (the uploader wouldn’t let me add any for some reason) both of which contain finer detail around the bottom tassels, with the cream coloured product a green glow is left over around the edge from the green screen once I've removed it. So, what I'm asking you guys for is... * What is the most efficient method of removing a background like this from an image? • What is the best method for refining the selection around the finer details? * What is the best means of removing the green glow around the edge of the product after background removal? Cheers guys, any help is very much appreciated! Image 1 Image 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crabtrem Posted February 11, 2016 Share Posted February 11, 2016 I was going to recommend the Flood Selection Brush as the first choice. Thinking that would be give the best results. But I am always amazed at how good the Affinity selection brush, with refine selection options is. I haven't even begun to fine tune the refine and got really good results from just using the normal Affinity Selection Brush. I'm no expert. Make your own decisions. But my opinion says stick with the regular Affinity Selection Brush and Refine selection options. HardworkingT and turtleboy 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asha Posted February 11, 2016 Share Posted February 11, 2016 My first choice would be to check the channels to see if there is one that will enable you to make a good selection. If you create a new grayscale layer from one of the channels, you can use the threshold adjustment to clear out parts you don't want, then make a selection from what's left. Then you can refine selection, or make a mask or whatever. There is also the background eraser tool. I think that is really only good for quick checks, because I find the effect to be a bit harsh. Anyway, all you do is use the eye dropper to select foreground and background colors, then use the background eraser on the background near the edge of your subject. You may need to uncheck contiguous if there is hair or something where the green color shows through. You will need to play with the tolerance too, to avoid leaving green areas behind. turtleboy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
turtleboy Posted February 11, 2016 Author Share Posted February 11, 2016 Thanks guys, much appreciated!! I'll try the channel selection method and also get better acquainted with the selection brush! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R C-R Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 ... But I am always amazed at how good the Affinity selection brush, with refine selection options is. I just recently discovered the Adjustment brush available in the Refine Selection window. Once I figured out how to use it (more or less), I was amazed by how well it works on fine details like separating hair from the background, even when the color differences are minimal. I just wish I had discovered it sooner. Quote All 3 1.10.8, & all 3 V2.5.5 Mac apps; 2020 iMac 27"; 3.8GHz i7, Radeon Pro 5700, 32GB RAM; macOS 10.15.7 All 3 V2 apps for iPad; 6th Generation iPad 32 GB; Apple Pencil; iPadOS 15.7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimmyJack Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 So.... ummmm.... can you please explain how you figured out how to use it? Pleeeeeease!!!!! I can't seem to come close to the instructional vids. And to be honest.... I'm getting a bit discouraged. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R C-R Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 My first clue about how to use the Adjustment brush came from this YouTube video that I stumbled on by accident. (It is a little out of date so you can ignore the comments about it being a beta & lacking the brush size adjustments.) Until I saw that I did not even realize that I could paint with the brush on the workspace to selectively refine the selection. Once I understood that, some experimentation showed me the basics, & searching Affinity Help on "selection brush" eventually led me to the "Refining pixel selection edges" help topic that explained the purpose of the matte, foreground, etc. brush settings. Guided by that, more experimentation followed (which I'm still doing) to get a better feel for which settings work best for different photos. It isn't a "one size fits all" sort of thing, so don't be discouraged if you don't get the results you want on the first try or if you still have to use other tools to clean up a few areas that the refinement algorithms can't cope with. Asha and turtleboy 2 Quote All 3 1.10.8, & all 3 V2.5.5 Mac apps; 2020 iMac 27"; 3.8GHz i7, Radeon Pro 5700, 32GB RAM; macOS 10.15.7 All 3 V2 apps for iPad; 6th Generation iPad 32 GB; Apple Pencil; iPadOS 15.7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barninga Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 there is only an official tutorial, that describes how to use the refine selection tools: R C-R 1 Quote take care, stefano Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimmyJack Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 there is only an official tutorial, that describes how to use the refine selection tools: Uh yeah.... that was the frustrating part! I've watched that vid a dozen times and was only coming close to getting the same results, but never great. At a certain point any brushing (very small brush with controlled strokes) to refine was just all of a sudden taking way too much. The other thing.... was working in white matte overlay mode, saved to mask, hit refine mask (didn't touch the selection at all) and the white matte was really quite a bit different. So I'm still playing with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crabtrem Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 I am trying to follow your problem, but I am just guessing. But did you try to use the output to, 'new layer with mask'. That might help. For your original photos, I found adjusting the ramp down a little did wonders. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barninga Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 never tried the refine mask thing. i used the refine selection tools several times, mainly to select hair. i never got perfect result, let's rather say satisfactory. in some cases, working on single channels (as greyscale layers) helped. i also noticed that the result of a single matte brush stroke can be noticeably different if undoed and repeated: i guess that the stroke per se (length, direction, position) counts. Quote take care, stefano Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crabtrem Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 What really helps is the use of the foreground and background variations of the refine, in conjunction with the matte really helps me. But like I said, I have found the ramp to be my friend. It takes awhile for my system to update and refresh, I guess it's a lot of math. But it really sets me on the path to refining a good selection. So far, I have had good luck with the selection brush, and always refine no matter what. But I need to do a lot more practice with it, that's for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asha Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 Masking always takes a lot of time and care. The tools go a good distance, but usually you have to do some manually too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimmyJack Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 Thanks guys and gal, I will try all these suggestions. And I will also try to post an example of the different mattes I have been getting without changing anything. Asha, yes... time and care, time and care :). I've been doing it that way for a long time and was just hoping for something a little closer to magic this time ;) . I do think barninga is on to something though.... "i also noticed that the result of a single matte brush stroke can be noticeably different if undoed and repeated: i guess that the stroke per se (length, direction, position) counts.". I will add onto that brush size. So, in the cold unfeeling world of computer ones and zeros, I guess, in this case I need to get to know this tool's ...... personality. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crabtrem Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 Good luck, I wanted a chance to show you what I did to start a selection on your photo. https://youtu.be/YLvPRAlzL1E Good luck. I usually brush then ramp adjust. But I drifted out momentarily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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