11-13-2006, 10:31 PM

How do you make everything black and white except for One item?

11-13-2006, 10:41 PM

There are several ways to do it, actually. One way is to lasso the area you wish to keep colored, then remove the saturation from the rest of the photo until it is grayscaled.

Then you end up with something like this:

11-13-2006, 10:44 PM

Sorry, Im a noob at photoshop, but how do you remove the saturation?

11-13-2006, 10:52 PM

Go to:

Images -> Adjustments -> Hue/Saturation

11-14-2006, 02:53 AM

You can also go to Layer-->New adjustment layer--> hue/saturation. Then remove the saturation and use the eraser tool to bring the color back where you want.

11-14-2006, 10:21 AM

If the object you wish to leave colored is a different color than other objects in the image, after you open the hue/sat layer simply drop everything but that colors saturation.

I think the best way however is to create a seperate layer via copy and turn it into black and white with your preferred method and then erase the area you want to be colored. What you are doing there is erasing the top layer only allowing the original colored layer below it to show through.

11-14-2006, 10:24 AM

I used the layer and eraser way to make the photo in this card:

11-14-2006, 10:46 AM

Here's how I do it 50% of the time, it seems like the long way 'round, but I find it more accurate and easier:

1. Roughly marquee around the area I want colored.
2. Copy and Paste Into a new layer.
3. Then, do Select > Color Range and select the color of the object.
4. Select Inverse.
5. Save Selection.
6. Merge layers down.
7. Load Selection.
8. Image > Hue & Saturation, turn the Master saturation all the way down.

I use this method about 25% of the time:

1. In CS2, enter quick mask mode.
2. Select an adequate brush size with the hardness/opacity turned all the way up.
3. Paint the object you want to keep colored with the brush.
4. Exit quick mask mode.
5. Desaturate.

Then this method occasionally:

1. Duplicate Layer.
2. Filter > Extract.
3. With a small brush size, paint around the edge of the colored object.
4. Fill with Paint bucket tool and Extract.
5. Select original layer and desaturate.

Only when those don't work will I use the lasso tool/desature inverse method.

11-16-2006, 01:19 PM

Came out good. I love that trick. Makes some really cool pictures.

12-01-2006, 08:19 AM

It looks like you've figured it out, but here's how I do it in Photoshop Elements:

1. create a duplicate layer of the color picture. I name it "front" just so I don't confused. The original is the "background" by default.
2. Remove the color from the "front" layer. Do this with Enhance->color->remove color (I think that's right...I'm on a PC at work, so I can't double check).
3. Use the magnetic lasso and select the part of the image you want to be in color and hit "delete" to remove that part from the black & white "front." It exposes the color in the "background."

You can actually do the above in the order 1, 3, 2...but you can't tell if you deleted the right section until you remove the color from teh "front" in the last step.

I've only had the program for 2 days and this is what I figured out. It's also the free 30 day trial I got from download.com. The ways mentioned above might be easier.