NZ Photo Info

In 6 easy steps...

There are times when it is desirable to remove the background from images. This tutorial will take you through the process step-by-step using the freely available gimp software. This tutorial assumes you are running the Windows version, but the concept applies equally to other versions of the gimp and other photo editing software such as Photoshop.

The assumption is that you have a basic understanding of how to use the gimp.

When it comes to streamlining your workflow there are lots of little things that you can do to help your overall process. The EXIF data contained in your image files if used wisely can certainly be a great little time saver.

Gallery 2, like a lot of other image galleries can read your EXIF/IPTC data and put it to good use. This will make the process of uploading multiple images much quicker and easier by automatically applying: Titles, Descriptions and Keywords to your images without the need for any intervention afterwards. This is done from the Library module within Adobe Lightroom.

There are times when it may be desirable to replace the sky with another one which is visually more appealing. Perhaps the sky is blown and appears white or it is just plain dreary!

You could use the technique that I described in the article about Removing Image Backgrounds which uses the quick mask. You would of course need to go one step further than described in that article. You would need to add another layer (ctrl + L - will open the layers dialog box) below the main picture and paste the new sky into this layer. It will be visible on all the transparent parts of the image.

With the example images below I used a different but equally effective technique to achieve the required result.

Original Image


New Sky