Making Selections with the Selection Tool

Use the Selection tool to select a portion of a raster layer, or to create a raster selection of objects on a vector layer. You can make a selection of a specific shape: rectangle, square, rounded rectangle, rounded square, ellipse, circle, triangle, pentagon, hexagon, octagon, star, or arrow.

Note: If you select a Feather value in the Tool Options palette, that value affects the next selection that you make with the Selection tool. You can also change the feathering of an existing selection; choose Selections > Modify > Feather or Selections > Modify > Inside/Outside Feather.

To use the Selection tool:

On the Tools toolbar, choose the Selection tool from the Selection tool flyout.
On the Tool Options palette, choose from these options:

Selection Type Choose the shape of the selection area (such as rectangle or circle).

Mode Specifies whether you want to Replace, Add, or Remove from an existing selection.

Feather Specifies a width in pixels (0 to 200) that the selection is faded along the edges. When you move or paste the selection, feathering helps blend the selection into the surrounding area and makes it appear more natural. The higher the Feather value, the softer the edges. Set the width to 0 to create a selection with no feathering and distinct edges.

Anti-alias Mark this check box to use anti-aliasing, which produces a smooth-edged selection by partially filling in pixels along the edge, making them semi-transparent. Clear the check box to keep the original edges.

Note: After you create a selection, you cannot change the Selection Type or the Anti-alias setting. Changing these options applies to the next selection you make. You can change the feathering; see Changing the Feathering of a Selection.

To make the selection, click and drag in the image. As you drag, a border indicates the selection. When you release the mouse, the selection border becomes a marquee. If you select a Feather value, that portion of the selection is added to the marquee.
To make a selection of a specific size, choose the Custom Selection tool and then enter the selection position in pixels for the left, top, right, and bottom positions.
To modify the selection, on the Snap Section to area of Tools toolbar do one of the following:
Choose the Surround current selection button to have a new selection surround the current selection. This option is helpful if you have an unusual selection shape (perhaps created with the Freehand Selection tool) and you want to place a rectangular selection boundary around it.
Choose the Layer opaque button to select opaque areas (the non-transparent area that has data) of the current layer, select Select opaque area-current layer.
Choose the Merged opaque button to select the opaque area of all layers within the image. This option is unavailable if the image has only one layer.

To modify the selection borders, do any of the following:
To add to the selection, from the Mode drop-down list, choose Add, or hold down the Shift key and click and drag another selection area (it does not need to be part of the original selection).
To subtract from the selection, from the Mode drop-down list, choose Remove, or hold down the Ctrl key and click and drag within the original selection.
To move the selection marque, right-click and drag with any selection tool, or choose the Mover tool and right-click and drag within the selection.

Note: You can also switch to another selection tool before adding to or subtracting from the selection.

You can now edit the contents of the selection (move it, copy it, paint it, correct colors, apply effects, and so on). The selection remains active until you make another selection, or right-click outside the selection boundary to deselect it while one of the selection tools is active, or choose Selections > Select None.

Making Selections with the Selection Tool

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