How to make cropping arbitrary in Photoshop. How to crop an image in Photoshop for various purposes? Working with the Tool Frame

Article chapters:
Crop tool – Photoshop Frame
Framing with a Photoshop Frame

Cropping a photo– these are special actions to change the scale and position of an image within the boundaries of a given frame when taking a photograph or when processing it in Photoshop, for storing and later using this photograph.

Of course, it is necessary to crop photos correctly when taking photographs, but this is not always possible. But even if the photo is framed perfectly at this stage, you may need to change its format for some purposes. It is more convenient to crop photographs in the Photoshop program, since it has more possibilities.

Cropping photos in Photoshop after taking photos is necessary in three main cases. Firstly, if the photo needs to be output to some external device, such as a printer or TV. Secondly, if it is necessary to remove image composition errors. And thirdly, for creative work such as creating collages.

Before cropping a photo

Cropping a photograph is directly related to changing its size and resolution, which are closely related. By changing one of these quantities, the others change. Before cropping photos in Photoshop, you first need to recalculate the dimensions and resolution, bring them to a clear form, and only then work with them.

This is especially true for those digital photo files that were scanned from film negatives or slides. In this case it is set a high resolution, for example 2400 dpi, with a frame size of 36 by 24 mm. To accurately crop a photo in Photoshop, the dimensions must be an order of magnitude higher and the resolution an order of magnitude lower.

To recalculate the size and resolution of a photo before cropping in Photoshop, you need to select “Image Size” in the top panel in the “Image” menu. A window of the same name will open to set the size and resolution of the photo. This window can be opened faster using the hot buttons " Alt» + « Ctrl» + « I"(Fig. 1).

Rice. 1 Photoshop program window for recalculating the size and resolution of a photo when cropping

Immediately you need to uncheck the box next to the “Interpolation” item. This is necessary so that the image dimensions and resolution change simultaneously and influence each other. If the checkbox is checked, then when changing the resolution, only the dimension in pixels will decrease. The print dimensions will remain the same.

For example, if you uncheck “Interpolation” and change the resolution from 2400 dpi to 300 dpi (Fig. 1), the dimension will remain the same, but the dimensions of the printed print will change from 3.5 x 2.2 to 27.9 x 17.5 cm. Such dimensions are clearer to us and we can consciously work with them in Photoshop when cropping a photo.

How to crop photos

In Photoshop, you can crop photos in different ways, it depends on the final purpose of cropping. It should be taken into account that cropping is a way of changing the size of a photograph by cropping it on one or several sides. This process is irreversible and you need to think carefully before cutting a photo.

In order to crop a photo in Photoshop in a different way or in some other way, you need to crop not the photo itself, but its copy. The photograph must be stored unchanged in a digital photo archive. All cropped copies of photographs must be stored in separate photo archives.

Such separate storage of a photograph allows you to avoid repeating the process of cropping it twice, and if you wish, in Photoshop you can make another crop of the same photo at any time. This way you can frame any photo many times in different ways.

Before you start cropping a photo in Photoshop, you need to determine exactly what it is for. The type of framing will depend on this - normal, with rotation or with image deformation. This needs to be determined in advance, since for each type of framing they apply different methods and Photoshop tools.

Photo Crop Tools

There are several different tools you can use to crop photos in Photoshop. Depending on the purposes of framing, the desired tool or their combined use is selected.

The main tool for cropping photos in Photoshop is “ Frame" Most often, photographs are cropped using this particular tool.

You can use all the tools to crop photos in Photoshop. discharge, which create a dashed frame on the image - an ant's path.

Using the " Ruler"In Photoshop, you can expand and crop the image. Areas of the photo that extend beyond its dimensions when rotated are removed.

You can crop a photo in Photoshop without changing its size. In this case, the image is reduced and its scale is increased. For this purpose they are used layers.

Tool " Canvas size"This is perhaps the easiest tool for cropping photos in Photoshop. With this tool, you can quickly set the final dimensions of your photos or specify how much to crop them on one or more sides.

Another convenient tool for cropping photos in Photoshop is “ Trimming" With its help, you can find the edges of shadows or shaded edges and crop the photo based on them.

Read about how to work with each cropping tool in Photoshop, when and what they are best used for in the following chapters of this article.

In this article, we'll look at how you can easily crop a photo to the size you need. We will be dealing with image resizing. Let's look at how to get photos standard size: 5 by 7, 8 by 10, or 11 by 14 without distorting and making everything appear elongated and thin or squashed and thick.

Here's an example of the problem. I get many of my photos from my Canon Digital Rebel XT, which has 8 megapixels. Here's a photo I took of it last winter:

Original photo

Now, let's say I want to print 8 by 10 photos. Since the photo was taken with an 8 megapixel camera, printing an 8 by 10 photo with professional-grade quality shouldn't be a problem. Let's look at the length and width of this image in pixels so we can calculate what its overall size is.

I open the " Image Size" by selecting it from the " Image" menu. If we look at the section " Dimensions in pixels" at the top of the window, we will see that my photo, as I transferred it from the camera, has a width of 3456 pixels and a height of 2304 pixels:

Photoshop's Image Size dialog box showing the photo's pixel dimensions

Pixel size can tell us how many pixels our image is made up of, but it has nothing to do with the print size of the image. To view or resize a photo on print, we must refer to the section " Document Size».

Currently, the specified document length and width indicate that at a resolution of 240 pixels per inch, which is the standard resolution for professional quality printing, my photo will be printed at 14.4 by 9.6 inches. It's certainly a decent size photo, but I probably won't be able to find a paper size that fits those dimensions.

Let's see what happens if I use the dialog box " Image Size“I’ll try to change the print size of the photo to 8 by 10. As a rule, this is the format we use when printing. Since my photo is in landscape orientation ( those. width is greater than height), I actually want a 10 x 8 photo.

So I change the width value in the " Document Size" by 10 inches. I want to make sure that when resizing the image's proportions are not distorted. So I select the option " Maintain proportions" at the bottom of the dialog box. Here I changed the width value to 10 inches:

Change the print size of an image in the Document Size section

After I changed the width of my photos to 10 inches, since the option " Maintain proportions" was turned on, we can see in the picture that Photoshop itself changed the height of my photos to... 6.667 inches? It is not right. We need a 10 by 8 format, not 10 by 6.667. Hmm... I guess I just need to change the height to 8 inches:

Change the image height in the Manual Document Size section

Well done. I changed the height of the photo to 8 inches, and now in the " Document Size"I see that my photo is in the format... 12 by 8?! Hey what's going on? All I want to do is change the print size to 10 by 8. But if I change the width value then the height is not right for me and if I change the height the width is not right! How do I resize a photo to 10 by 8?

Answer: None. At least through the window " Image Size». Original sizes the photo will not allow you to change it to 10 by 8 without distorting the image. So what should we do? It's simple! We forget about the dialog box " Image Size».

Instead, we'll crop the photo to the sizes we need! To do this, we use Photoshop's Crop tool!

Step 1: Select the Crop Tool

The first thing to do is select “Crop” in the toolbar or press the letter C on the keyboard:

Selecting the “Crop” tool

Step 2: Enter the exact print dimensions you need in the Options Bar

If you look at the options bar at the top of the screen, with the Crop tool selected, you will see an option for Width and Height. Here you can enter the exact width and height values ​​you need.

And also units of measurement ( inches, centimeters, pixels, etc.). Since I want to crop my image to 10 by 8, I enter 10 in the width field, followed by “in”, which means “inches”. After that I enter 8 in the height field and then "in" again:

Entering exact width and height values ​​in the Options Bar

Step 3: Drag the Crop Frame

Once you've entered the exact dimensions, simply click inside the image and set the crop frame. The area of ​​the photo inside the frame will remain, and everything else that is now slightly darkened will be cropped out. You will notice how when you stretch the borders of the frame, the sides change proportionally, since we set the exact parameters.

The only thing we can do is adjust the overall size of the border with the same aspect ratio. To do this, you need to pull one of the corners of the frame. You can also move the cropping frame within the image. To do this, move the cursor inside the frame ( it will take the form of a black arrow), and then click and hold down the mouse button and drag the frame:

Move a crop frame using the Crop tool

Step 4: Press Enter/Return to crop the image

Once you have the crop box dimensions and position set to your desired size, simply press Enter ( Win) / Return ( Mac) to crop the image.

Using this tool is quite simple. In new versions of Photoshop, cropping boundaries are automatically set to the edges of the photo when you select Frames. The cropping area can be edited by dragging the frame using the handles located at the corners and in the center of each side. As soon as you release the mouse button, the areas that need to be trimmed will turn dark.

To move the crop frame while you create it, press and hold the Spacebar. When it's in the right place, release Spacebar and continue drawing the frame. You can expand it by moving the mouse pointer beyond the outer border. The cursor will take the form of a double-headed arrow. Click on the image and move your mouse. The frame will rotate in the specified direction.

Once you have defined your crop boundaries, press Enter. The outer edges of the photo will be removed. If you're cropping an image that has multiple layers, you can have Photoshop simply hide the cropped portions instead of deleting them. To do this, in the “Options” panel, set the “Clipped” switch to the “Hide” position. Now you can return the cropped area using the “Image” - “Show All” command.

If cropping requires an image of a specific size, enter Width and Height values ​​in the Options panel. You can also keep the original image's proportions or set specific aspect ratios.

How to straighten a photo

If the horizon in the photo is obstructed, you can straighten it using the Perspective Crop tool. It is located under the same button as the “Frame” and is also called up using the hotkey C. To switch between tools, use the combination Shift+C.

Create a cropping frame around the element you want to straighten and drag the corner handles so that they are parallel to the image lines. Press Enter. This technique works well for architectural shots, but don't use it to frame photos of people or animals. The tool distorts the proportions and living creatures will look like in a distorting mirror.

You can use the Ruler tool to straighten your photo. It's hidden in the Eyedropper toolbox and accessed by using the I hotkey. Place the cursor at the point where you want to start measuring and draw a line through the area to be aligned. In the Options panel, click the Straighten button. The photo will be straightened and cropped.

Framing principles

Poor framing can ruin even a good photo. When cropping a photograph, try not to place the subject in the geometric center of the photo - this technique is only suitable for depicting static monumental objects. Don't leave too much space at the top of the photo - the photo will look empty. If you want to show an item close-up, then as a result of cropping it should occupy 70-80% of the photo.

If the photo shows a moving object, it should not rest against the edges of the photo. Leave plenty of space in the direction of travel. It is better to place it on the right side of the photo. In this case, the viewer’s gaze and the object seem to move towards each other. If necessary, you can rotate the image using the command “Editing” - “Transform” - “Rotate Horizontal”.

Photos of roads, rivers, and fences will look more dynamic if these objects are positioned diagonally in the photo. At the same time, a composition directed from the upper right corner of the image to the lower left looks calmer.

"Golden Ratio" and "Rule of Thirds"

To create a harmonious image, professional artists use the principle of the “Golden Section”. It has been noticed that regardless of the image format, the four points of the composition always attract the viewer. They are located at a distance of 3/8 and 5/8 from the corresponding edges of the plane. The main objects should be located near these points.

The Rule of Thirds is a simplified version of the Golden Ratio. When used, the image is visually divided into three parts horizontally and vertically. In this case, the horizon should coincide with one of the horizontal lines, and the main shooting objects should be located near the intersection points.

IN latest version Photoshop CC has added another handy feature to the Frame tool. When cropping, the program automatically displays a grid that allows you to divide the image into parts. At the same time, in the “Options” panel, you can choose between several types of grid: “Rule of Thirds”, “Grid”, “Diagonal”, “Triangle”, “Golden Ratio”, “Golden Ratio”

Today you will learn how to implement cropping in photoshop. We will work with the Crop Tool. But first, let's find out what framing is and why it is needed.

Cropping is trimming unnecessary parts of the image that, according to your plan, do not fit into the composition.

For example, this is the original image:

And this is the cropped version:

There are several ways to implement cropping in photoshop. The most convenient one, in my opinion, is the Crop Tool.

Open any image

Now select the Crop Tool, hold down the left mouse button to start the selection and release when the selection is complete. A frame like this will appear:

As you probably noticed, the frame has 8 points. By moving them, you edit the area that needs to be left “in frame”:

Anything outside the frame will be cut off. To confirm cropping, you need to press the Enter key:

This is such a simple tool. For starters, I’ll show you a few more ways to crop in Photoshop.

Crop using selection

Another very good method that I sometimes use. Make a custom selection

Now go to Image -> Crop. That's it, framing is done! 🙂

You can also copy the image (Ctrl+V) with active selection, then create new document(Ctrl+N), which will already be the required size. And then just paste the copied image (Ctrl+V).

Trimming

This is the last framing method we'll look at today.

Trimming works on the principle of removing unnecessary pixels. Those. If there are transparent areas around the edges of the image, trimming will cut them off.

Trimming is called up in the Image -> Trim menu:

The Based on parameter specifies on what basis the image will be cropped: Transparent Pixels, Top Left Pixel Color, Bottom Right Pixel Color.

Trim Away determines which side will be trimmed. If all the boxes are checked, trimming will be done from all sides.

This concludes the lesson on cropping in Photoshop. Leave your comments :) I say goodbye to you until the next meeting (which will be very soon :)) on the pages of the site

Cropping or Crop– one of the main tools of Adobe Photoshop. Composition instrument. After all, in essence, photography itself is framing. But even though many of us have been familiar with Photoshop for a long time, it often happens that we don’t know much about Crop. That is why we propose to study in detail the possibilities of cropping in the most popular graphic editor, and we will tell you about 10 things that every photographer or designer must know.

You can watch a video tutorial in which Martin Perhiniak talks in detail about framing in English, or read a text description in Russian.

1. Crop Guide Overlays mode

In mode Crop There are several options for overlaying the framing grid. You can see them immediately after you select the tool Crop, and switch between them by pressing a key O. The following types of overlay are available:

– Rule of Thirds
– Grid
– Diagonal (diagonal)
– Triangle (triangle)
–Golden Ratio()
– Golden Spiral

All of them help to arrange the picture according to the composition according to its laws, and make framing easier. You can also change the position spirals or triangle in case Golden Spiral or Triangle is selected by pressing a key combination Shift+O.

2. Change the cropping orientation

You've probably already encountered the fact that it's not so easy to rotate your customized cropping frame in Photoshop. When you want to rotate the frame 90 degrees while maintaining the proportions, press the key X. This way you can easily switch between landscape and portrait orientation.

3. Hide cropped areas

To make it easier to understand how good the frame will look after clicking the Accept button, you can hide the cropped crop fields by clicking H. This will allow you to see the final result before you confirm the framing. In the settings there are more options to adjust the crop preview: click on the crop settings icon, where you can change the intensity of the darkening of the cropped area, as well as its color.

4. Classic crop mode

In Photoshop CC, you've probably already encountered the fact that cropping is different than in previous versions. Namely, the framing window has become static, and the image itself needs to be moved and adjusted to the grid. For those who prefer to use the classic framing mode, in which you need to move not the picture itself, but the frame, you can do this by pressing the key P which will switch you to Classic Mode. You can also do this in the crop settings menu in the settings panel.

5.UsageFront Image

When working with two documents, the resolution and image sizes of which are different, you can easily crop one document to fit the size of the other using the option Front Image. First you need to open both documents and select the one you want to use as a reference. Next select Crop Tool, and in the pop-up window in the options bar, select FrontImage or press the key I. This will remember the size and resolution of the first document. Next, you can switch to another document in which Crop Tool will already contain setting the size and resolution of the first image.

6. How can you confirm framing?

In addition to clicking on the checkbox in the settings panel, there are other options for confirming the cropping you have made:

– Press Enter
– Double click on the crop area
– Click on the confirm icon in the settings panel
– Right click > Context menu > Crop
– Image Adjustment Menu > Crop

7. Perspective Crop Tool

If there is an object in the frame with a pronounced perspective, such as a building, then its planes may not be parallel to the frame of the frame. In this case you can use Perspective Crop Tool. To crop, you need to mark the four corners, and press Enter once the crop frame is formed. The finished frame will be positioned frontally to you with even planes. If you want to straighten an object without applying cropping, use Auto Upright in the tab Lens Corrections in settings Camera Raw Filter.

8. Reversible cropping

The best way to keep the "cut off" parts of the image when cropping is to uncheck the option Delete Cropped Pixels in the framing settings. Another way is to create a layer Smart Object, which you can crop without fear of irreversible consequences, even regardless of whether the checkbox was turned on Delete Cropped Pixels or not.

9. Expanding boundaries

While most users use cropping to trim away excess from a photo, some use it to add something to the image by expanding its frame. To do this, you just need to pull the corners of the cropping frame outside the picture, and if you have a background layer, pixels of the same color as the background layer will be added to the picture; if not, then the expansion areas will remain transparent.

10. Straighten a photo using cropping

You can also use Crop Tool to correct your photos. Just holding Command/Ctrl, click and drag to draw a line indicating the horizon of the photo. You can also use any vertical straight lines to line up the image.