To create a mask, simply select a brush and start painting over the image. The color of the tool indicates which type of mask you will create:
Green: Keep mask brushes: paint over
areas you want to keep.
Red: Delete
mask brushes: paint over areas you want to remove.
Blue: Blend
mask brushes: use as the border between keep and delete masks.
Grey:
Eraser brushes:
erase existing masks.
You can change the color used as the overlay for each type of mask on the Workspace Settings dialog.
Local brushes typically give you the best combination of speed and control. Global brushes are useful when an image has a lattice structure with mixed areas of background and foreground. Exact brushes are good for touching up small areas along the border of your cut-out. See Brushes to learn more about the different kinds of brushes.
Adjust brush strength and brush size as needed to mask your image quickly. Fluid Mask has an unlimited Undo feature so you can always “back up” a bit if your mask flows into the wrong areas.
Keeping the following keyboard shortcuts in mind when painting can make masking quicker:
Brush size: “[“ = decrease, “]” = increase
Keep brushes: “K” = exact, “Shift-K” = local, “Ctrl-K” = global
Delete brushes: “D” = exact, “Shift-D” = local, “Ctrl-D” = global
Blend brushes: “C” = exact, “Shift-C” = local, “Ctrl-C” = global
Erasers: “E” = exact, “Shift-E” = local, “Ctrl-E” = global
Undo: “Ctrl-Z”
Preview Cut-out tool: “T”
Zoom: “Ctrl+=” = increase, “Ctrl+-” = decrease
When first masking an image, it is generally easiest to let Fluid Mask apply the blend masks automatically. If there is a problem with blending along an edge after you try a cut-out, you can fix it later.
Note: If you try to paint over another mask and nothing happens, examine the protection settings on the Tool Options bar. When a mask type is protected, you cannot paint over it. To paint over the mask, uncheck the Protect option. Fluid Mask remembers separate settings for each type of brush.