Masking out hairs using Alpha Channels photoshop tutorial

Alpha channels are basically specialized selection processes. Alpha channels are used to make, store or edit selections made using tools such as Lasso, Magic wand or Pen tool.

Alpha channel is another type of image masking. When we say mask, it is an 8-bit channel using 256 levels of Gray, ranging from 0(black) to 255(white). With that being said, alpha channel is a masking technique which defines a selection in black, white, and varying shades of Gray pixels. White acts as the selected pixels; black acts as the unselected area and the levels of Gray define what is partially unselected or selected depending on your view point.

Here you will learn how to mask out hairs or in this case fur using the Alpha channel technique. Let’s begin:

Open the image of your choice, select the pen tool and make a clipping path on the part of the image you want to edit. If you’ve noticed, I have two images with the labels “1” and “2”. This represents the two clipping paths I’ve made for this image. For the image with the label “1”, I did a clipping path on the inner part of the hood. (Notice the faint clipping path line).

continue

Related posts:

Add abstract effects to a photo in photoshop tutorial In this masterclass, Craig Shields shows you how to turn these little outbursts of creativity into artworks. You’ll learn how to spirit your doodles off the Post-It note and into a digital illustration, using...

Create a Powerful Mental Wave Explosion Effect In this tutorial, I will show you how to create a crazy explosion, like a mix of Magneto’s ability with Peter Petrelli’s power. We will use images and filters to produce this wave explosion...

How to design and use your own background brushes in photoshop tutorial. This Photoshop tutorial by SweetBeat will show you how to design and use your own background brush Making the brush -Make a new document 60×37cm and make sure that the foreground and background colours...

Lens Flare control Photoshop Tutorial Here’s a tutorial in order to be in control of a lens flare and be able to make adjustments at will after the implementation of it : Get an image you wish to add...

Working with the Lucisart plugin and selections in photoshop The Lucisart plugin has been quite popular and still emerges daily on photos pushing the hdr-effect look beyond its boundaries.It’s a very handy plugin in order to recover detail from your images. When applying...

Displacement effects in photoshop tutorial. In this tutorial you will learn how to use a variety of filters and techniques to produce an image in an experimental style. It’s a flowing work technique, and things will always change and...

Design a business card in photoshop tutorial Document Business card size: 3.43″ x 1.93″ 87mm x 49mm 1028 x 579 pixels Create rounded rectangle using Rounded Rectangle Tool. Fill it with light color. In order to create volume effect I used...

Retouching a Studio Portrait in Photoshop Tutorial This Photoshop tutorial is written for experienced Photoshop users and will show you unique techniques for retouching photos. You’ll learn how to enhance backgrounds, dodge and burn, brighten eyes, and add hair shine while...

A Comprehensive Introduction to Photoshop Selection Techniques Have you ever had difficulties making selections and thought there was a better way? Let’s review both quick solutions, and on the other side, comprehensive and details techniques for making selections. Each approach has...

How to Create High-Contrast Black and White Images in Photoshop Tutorial. Open your photo in Photoshop and press CTRL-SHIFT-ALT-B to enter the Black and White conversion window. You can also select Image from the main menu and go into Adjustments. Once the window opens, you...