Selections - Adobe Photoshop Elements 11 for Photographers - page 275

The Modify menu contains
several options which can
be used to alter existing se-
lections.

Modifying Selections
The Select > Modify menu contains four options that can be used for changing the qualities
of an existing selection.

Border - Choosing the Border option from the Modify menu displays a dialog where you
can enter the width of the border in pixels (between 1 and 200). Clicking OK creates a bor-
der selection that frames the original selection. This feature can be used to quickly outline a
selection.

Smooth - This option cleans up stray pixels that are not selected after using the Magic
Wand tool. After choosing Modify enter a Radius value to use for searching for stray un-
selected pixels and then click OK. This feature works well when selecting skies.

Expand - You can use this feature for increasing the size of a selection by a set amount.
After selecting Expand enter the number of pixels that you want to increase the selection by
and click OK. The original selection is increased in size. You can enter a Pixel value between
1 and 100.

Contract - Selecting this option will reduce the size of the selection by the number of pixels
entered into the dialog. You can enter a Pixel value between 1 and 100.

Three of the four options, Smooth, Expand and Contract, are also available in the Refine
Edge dialog. As the Refine Edge feature provides a variety of preview options that you can
use to assess the changes you make to your selection, most proficient users apply these fea-
tures here rather than as simple menu selections. See the next page for details.

The Select > Modify > Bor-
der feature creates a feath-
ered border around the
edge of an existing selec-
tion. The size of the border
is entered into the fea-
ture's dialog.

BEFORE AFTER