Changing the Color of a Background in Adobe Photoshop

[JodyBuchanan]

The other day, a friend of mine asked me how he could change the color of a background in a photo he was working on. He told me about a photo he had that consisted of a few objects sitting in front of a solidly colored wall. He was curious if I knew a way to alter the color of that wall. “Of course I do,” I told him. And I went on explaining how to do exactly that inside of Adobe Photoshop.

While I generally feel my explanations are suffice in person, I get the feeling they’re not often completely understood. That’s why I prefer to share lessons on this blog. Here, I have more room to type and to show screenshots. Let’s just say it’s much easier to understand the concept of what I’m trying to explain in a more visual environment.

In today’s post, I’m going to use a mere three adjustment layers in Adobe Photoshop to alter the look of a photograph. The first adjustment layer will clarify and alter the temperature of the photo, the second one will change the color of the background in it and the final adjustment layer will add some contrast to make the photo look better overall. Since I’ll be doing all of this in Photoshop, this should be a fairly quick and straightforward post. There are no surprises in it and I’ve covered all of this material on this website before.

The Demo Photo​

Here is the original photo. It’s of a blue bicycle in front of an orange wall.



I want to tell you that I won’t be making any selections while working on this photo. Because of this, you’ll see some colors on the piece of pottery to the left change as well as some colors on the box that sits upon the rear of the bicycle. If I were going to go all out with this photograph and truly do a good job, I would select only the wall and alter the color from there. Today’s post is fine to give you an understanding into changing colors in a photo though, so we’ll ignore these types of intricacies for now.

Another option would be to use the masks that come standard with the adjustment layers I’ll be utilizing to make my adjustments. I could easily paint any areas I don’t want affected by the changes black. I may actually take advantage of this option towards the end. I’ll see how I feel about that later on.

Cooling Down the Shadows​

As I look at this photo, it almost appears that the shadows are too warm. There’s something off here and I think I know exactly what to do about it. I need to make one quick adjustment to the darker areas of the photograph. Since the photo is already opened up in Photoshop and is just waiting for me to work on it, I think I’ll go ahead and click on the Color Balance icon in the Adjustments panel.



Once I do that, a new adjustment layer will appear in the Layers panel and the Color Balance Properties panel will pop up to the left of that.

Now, since I only want to cool down the shadows, I’ll click on the Tone drop-down box and select Shadows from the list of options. By the way, this list contains Shadows, Midtones and Highlights. After I make that selection, I’ll push the Yellow/Blue slider down at the bottom of the sliders to the right a bit. I’ll go as far as a +20 value. That does a good job at cleaning up any light haze in areas that are meant to be crisp and dark.

Changing the Color of the Wall​

This is the fun adjustment. It’s going to make a huge difference. To change the color of the wall, I’ll click on the Hue/Saturation icon in the Adjustments panel.



As you can see from the screenshot above, I now have a new adjustment layer in the Layers panel. A different Properties panel also appeared to the left of that.

I’m going to do things the easy way. Instead of trying to guess the color of the wall and then push the Hue slider in the Properties panel to the left and right to find the perfect color, I’ll use the Targeted Adjustment Tool to do the work for me. This tool can be identified by its hand shape.



In the above screenshot, I circle the Targeted Adjustment Tool. When I clicked on that tool, I was able to hover my mouse over any area of the photo and click on the specific color I’d like to adjust. When I clicked, the color was selected by Photoshop and it was shown in the bottom rainbow sliders. To change the selected color from what it was to something new, I dragged the Hue slider to the left and right. When I found something I liked, I let go. That was it.

Now, I have a green background as opposed to the orange one I began with. Again, to erase any of these alteration later on, I can paint them out with a black brush on the adjustment layer mask. That’s fairly simple.

Adding Contrast to the Photo​

This final adjustment is super simple. All I have to do is make a few clicks with my mouse to allow a preset to add contrast to the photo for me. To do this, I’ll head back up to the Adjustments panel and I’ll click the Curves icon.



Again, after doing this, I have a new (third) adjustment layer in the Layers panel as well as a new Properties panel with the Curves controls inside of it. To add contrast, I’ll simply click the Preset drop-down box in the Properties panel and select Medium Contrast.



And that’s it for the adjustments. Let’s take a look at the photo.



That looks pretty good.

Removing Certain Changes​

Instead of continuing this post with how to go about removing the changed color from certain areas of the photo, such as the large pot on the left and the box that sits on the rear of the bicycle, I’ve decided that I would point to you a post I wrote a while back that will give you a much better understanding of layer masks than I would be able to offer here.

What are Layer Masks in Adobe Photoshop?

Basically, to erase any change you make, all you need to do is to click to highlight any white box (adjustment layer mask) in the Layers panel. Then, select the color black from the Color Picker and use the Brush Tool to paint the area you want to remove the color from. This is really easy, after you do it once. Trust me on this. Read through that post I linked to above and you’ll be all set.



I just did this with the box on the back of the bike and the bike’s seat. You can see the difference if you compare those two items to previous photos above.

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I hope I clearly explained how to use adjustment layers in Adobe Photoshop to alter the colors inside of a photo. Remember, you can use multiple adjustment layers of the same type, so there is a tremendous amount of flexibility when it comes to these types of edits. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this post, please leave them in the comment section below. Thanks for reading!

 

[JodyBuchanan]

Adding a Colorized Background to a Photograph in Adobe Photoshop​

I see this all the time. Lots of folks out there take great photos that they’d like to add colorized backgrounds to. The reasoning behind this is to either give the photo an alternate look or to avoid distraction from the subjects in the images. Whatever the reason, it’s a good enough subject to cover on this blog. I’ve done this type of thing many times in the past, so I thought I’d share what I know here.

In today’s post, I’ll work through a project where I first desaturate the original image in Adobe Photoshop. Then, I’ll add a colorized effect to it and finally, I’ll duplicate the original image so the previous color shines through once more. After that, I’ll select the subject of the image using the Focus Area tool and mask out the background of the colored layer. This will give me the effect of having a normally colored image in the foreground with a neat colored background. All completely editable, of course.

This is the original photo that I’ll be working with.



You can probably guess why I chose this photo to work with. Since I’ll be selecting the girl in the image with the Focus Area tool, I wanted a good separation between the areas of the image that are in focus and those that aren’t. I’d say that most of the girl is sharp while the background is soft. I don’t think I’ll have much of an issue with the tool today.

By the way, if you’d like to read up on how to use the Focus Area feature in Photoshop, please click through below.

Selecting a Specific Focus Area in Adobe Photoshop

Also, as I mentioned above, the subject of the photo is sharp while the background is blurry. Do you know how the photographer did this? If not, feel free to read up on aperture priority mode in photography. It’s all there.

How To Use Your Camera’s Aperture Priority Mode

Setting Up My Layers​

Okay, I’ve already got the photo opened up in Photoshop. I’ll first add a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer from the Adjustments panel and within the Properties panel for that adjustment, I’ll push the Saturation slider all the way to the left to remove the color from the entire image. Then, I’ll add another of the same adjustment, but this time, I’ll check the box that says Colorize down near the bottom of the Properties panel and I’ll push the Hue slider around until I find a color for the background that I like. In this case, I’ll go with an aqua/blue. Mind you, this new colorized effect will cover the entire image. Separating out the girl in the photo from the background will come next. For the final step, I’ll make a duplicate of the background image layer and bring that all the way to the top of the other layers in the Layers panel. Here’s what things look like as they stand.



I turned off the visibility for the top layer so you can see the color that I chose.

Selecting the Girl​

I’ll go ahead and turn the visibility back on for the top layer. What I’ll be looking at will appear as the regular original image. I’ll click on the top layer in the Layers panel as well to select that layer.

From here, I’ll head up to the Select > Focus Area menu item and click.



When I do this, the Focus Area dialog box will appear and I’ll make sure that the On Layers option is activated in the View drop-down. This option will allow me to see both the background layer as well as the top layer while I’m editing.



I’ll also push the In-Focus Range slider to the left and the right if I need to, to add or subtract content that’s been selected. But once the majority of the subject in the photo has been selected, I’ll click on the Select and Mask button down near the bottom of this dialog box to move into the next area to clean up some of the selection’s edges.

When the Select and Mask palette opens up, I’ll use the Refine Edge Brush Tool to clean up the edges. This tool works particularly well in cases when you’re trying to select hair. I’ll run this tool around the edges of the girl. When I’m finished in this palette, I’ll be sure to output the selection to a New Layer with Layer Mask and then click the OK button.



To learn how to refine selection edges in Photoshop, please click through below.

Selecting Objects & Refining Edges in Adobe Photoshop

From here, I can make further adjustments to the mask if I need to. If you’re interested, this is what the resulting Layers panel looks like.



And that’s it! Take a look at the final image.



As I stated above, I can always go in and change the color of the background if I wanted to. Right now it’s blue, but I can make it any color I want. Since the subject of the photo has been masked, she’s completely separate from anything else in the image.

This is a fairly simple operation. The most challenging part is making the selection. I got away easy with this one because I chose a good photo to work with, but there can be some definite challenges for more complex photographs. For them, you’ll need to employ more of the tools in Photoshop’s arsenal.

If you have any questions regarding this post or the technique I covered today, please ask down below in the comment section or in the Photoshop user’s forum. Thanks for reading!

 

[JodyBuchanan]

How to Add a Customizable Background Color in Adobe Photoshop​

There can be any number of reasons you might need a background color while working in Adobe Photoshop. One such reason I can think of off the top of my head is to create a border around a photograph. Let’s say I’ve got an image of a flower that I’d like to reduce in size so a black border of about an inch appears around the photo. How can I add the color to the border itself? Well, there are a few methods for completing this task and I’ll explain how to go about getting this done below.

First off, here’s the sample image I’ll be working with today.



I’ve got this flower photo opened up in its own tab in Photoshop. The first way to add color to a background is to create the background itself. To do that, I’ll need to add a new layer in the Layers panel and then make sure that empty layer is at the bottom stack. To do this, I’ll click the Create New Layer button that’s located at the bottom of the Layers panel and then, when the layer appears, I’ll drag it under the flower layer.



Next, I’ll use the Free Transform Tool (Ctrl+T) to reduce the photo size. Then, I’ll align the image so it sits perfectly in the center of the canvas. To align, I’ll select the entire canvas with the Rectangular Marquee Tool (with the image layer highlighted) and then click on the Move Tool. In the options bar up top, some alignment buttons will appear. I’ll click Align Horizontal Centers and Align Vertical Centers buttons. That should do it. I’ll deselect by going to the Select > Deselect menu item and clicking.

Finally, I’ll click on the empty layer in the Layers panel, move back over to the left and choose the Paint Bucket Tool, choose a color in the color picker and then pour the paint into the empty layer. It’s that easy. The only problem with this method is that if I want to change the color, I’ll need to pour a new one in the layer. This is a limited method.



A more versatile method for adding a background color to a file in Photoshop is to take advantage of the Solid Color feature. For this example, I’ll open up a new flower photo. Then, I’ll immediately go to the bottom of the Layers panel and click the Create a New Fill or Adjustment Layer button. Next, I’ll click the Solid Color option.



Doing this will add a new layer that looks a bit strange to the Layers panel. It’ll also open the Color Picker so I can choose my color. I’ll do that and then click and drag that layer to the bottom of the stack so it’s in the background. Then, I’ll reduce the size of the flower layer again and align it as well.



The benefit us using this method is that it comes with a ton more options for future editing. If I want to change the color, I can double-click on the box in the layer and the Color Picker will open back up. I can also take advantage of the fact that this new layer comes with a layer mask installed. So if I would like to adjust that, I can. Take a look. I masked away some of the black.



So, if you would like to add a background color to a file in Photoshop, you now know how to do that. Let me know if you have any questions and thanks for reading!

 

[JodyBuchanan]

Changing Photo Background Color Using Adobe Photoshop​

The idea of changing the solid background color in a photograph is fairly straightforward. All you need to do is separate out the foreground object from the background and then add some color to that background. The issues arise when you attempt to do that separation. Selecting objects in Photoshop is notoriously challenging, even with all the marvelous tools that Adobe has given us. I’ve been working in Photoshop for years and I still shutter at the thought of making selections. It’s not an easy task.

Let’s quickly run through the process of applying a colorcast to the background of an image. The first step you need to take is to add a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer to the file. This adjustment layer, with the Saturation slider pushed all the way to the left to remove any color, will leave the image looking desaturated. This is good because you’ll need a more neutral appearing photograph for the next step.

Next, add another of the same adjustment layers, but this time, check the Colorize box in the Properties panel to add some color back to the image. This will be the overall hue, so be sure to push the Hue slider up above to choose the color you’re happy with.

As of right now, you’ll have a consistently colorized photograph across its entirety. This is exactly what we want, but now we have to get the object you want to stay with its original color, out and on top. To do this, copy the original image layer and then move that layer to the top of the stack in the Layers panel. It’s time to make a selection.

If your image shows a relatively deep depth of field, meaning that the subject is completely in focus, while the background is completely out of focus, it’s probably easiest to use the Focus Area tool under the Select menu to make your selection. Then, after that, go into the Select and Mask palette to deal with any edge issues that need to be addressed. If the depth of field isn’t that direct and obvious, you’ll need to choose a different selection method. Perhaps use the Quick Selection Tool or something similar. You’ll likely still need to tend to any edge issues in the Select and Mask palette. When finished with that, output the selection to a mask and you should be all set. The entire process is as if you’re making a copy of a physical photo and then cutting out the object you’d like to stay with its original color with a pair of scissors. Then, you’re colorizing the first photo and placing the cutout on top of it. It’s that simple and direct. The idea of it all is anyway.

If you’d like to see how this process is completed with screenshots, please click through to the post below. Also, if you have any questions or comments please be sure to add them below.