Foreground Select Tool

mahvin · **Joined:** Oct 06, 2010 **Posts:** 4050

What's not to like about something that does an outstanding job, even if imperfect?

This image is 98% Foreground select tool, with minimal 2% of using of the Smudge tool to get the tail looking frizzy again. Again, no tinkering was done with the selection, other than slightly marking the background "misses".

The horse original:

The horse in a new background, using Foreground Select (revamped to be a tad more realistic):

jakeyjoey · **Joined:** Mar 10, 2011 **Posts:** 105

That is very cool! I only use the foreground select tool when I am putting a render on the image. I didn't know the power of tool.

ofnuts · **Joined:** Oct 25, 2010 **Posts:** 4812

Very nice cut out, but the splice doesn't look very natural. The lighting is more vertical in the target picture, and the horse misses a shadow IMHO.

mahvin · **Joined:** Oct 06, 2010 **Posts:** 4050

Ofnuts:

Thanks for the critique, but my emphasis was more about how well the selection was in comparison to being done by hand/masking. I wasn't aiming for a perfect/realistic photo shot.

Edit: I added a better pose (although not perfect) in the first post.

Willy · **Posted:** Mon Apr 18, 2011 6:18 pm **(#5)**

Who wants to explain this to me? or is it the Magic Wand we are speaking of?

mahvin · **Joined:** Oct 06, 2010 **Posts:** 4050

Foreground Select tool, it's next to the Scissor tool.

Willy · **Posted:** Mon Apr 18, 2011 6:31 pm **(#7)**

Lol I have Never Used it

mikethedj4 · **Posted:** Tue Apr 19, 2011 5:09 am **(#8)**

Now that I know how this tool works, I love it

jakeyjoey · **Joined:** Mar 10, 2011 **Posts:** 105

That tool still confuses me.

lylejk · **Joined:** Sep 24, 2010 **Posts:** 12832

The Foreground extraction tool (believe based on SIOX) pretty much by itself is useless. In conjuction with using the quick mask toggle, it does save a heck of a lot of time though. I heard they are improving it for GIMP 2.8; hope so. I like GML Matting (no longer free, but my version is old and there was not a license limitation with it) better for most of what I have to do.

Rod · **Joined:** May 16, 2010 **Posts:** 16161

Yup i too stick with GrowCut.

Although none of them are perfect in any sense of the word.

spunkygurl80 · **Posted:** Mon Nov 25, 2013 2:08 am **(#12)**

I know this an old topic.
I seriously do not get this tool at all.
I' am trying to cut a person out from a picture to paste on another picture, and it just does nothing for me. Honestly.
Any Help is Appreciated here.

Esper · **Joined:** Jul 17, 2012 **Posts:** 2769

http://docs.gimp.org/en/gimp-tool-foreg ... elect.html

fluffybunny · **Posted:** Mon Nov 25, 2013 2:40 am **(#14)**

Another possible solution may be found in this thread here too.

spunkygurl80 · **Posted:** Mon Nov 25, 2013 6:44 pm **(#15)**

Those tutorals, do not help me at all.
I just want to cut out a person from a picture and save the person in .png format to place on another picture.

I tried the foreground tool. Painting only what i wanted to cut out from the picture. I click... Enter. Nothing happens. It should be cutting the rest of the picture out, only leaving, what i have colored in. It's not doing that.

sallyanne · **Posted:** Mon Nov 25, 2013 6:50 pm **(#16)**

Nice to know I am not the only one who can't work this tool.

Must admit I haven't spent a lot of time on it though.

molly · **Joined:** Apr 07, 2010 **Posts:** 14182

It sucks, always has.

fluffybunny · **Posted:** Mon Nov 25, 2013 6:54 pm **(#18)**

spunkygurl80 wrote:

Those tutorals, do not help me at all.
I just want to cut out a person from a picture and save the person in .png format to place on another picture.

I tried the foreground tool. Painting only what i wanted to cut out from the picture. I click... Enter. Nothing happens. It should be cutting the rest of the picture out, only leaving, what i have colored in. It's not doing that.

It is a 'Foreground Selection' tool not a cutting tool, once you are happy with the selection you have created, click the 'Edit' menu, choose 'Cut', then 'Paste' it into your other image.

Esper · **Joined:** Jul 17, 2012 **Posts:** 2769

its easy
the manual
read it

Rod · **Joined:** May 16, 2010 **Posts:** 16161

The tool has been updated to select transparent values or semi transparent pixels Partha has compiled it into a separate version of GIMP.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkQ1r5g49d4

Download the version here - http://www.partha.com
Scroll to the bottom of the page and look for RGGJAN download link on the left.
There is a 32 and a 64 bit version available. About 31 MB in size. Also it is a portable version. Open it to any folder and double click gimp-run file (wilber icon)