Selecting Daisy...

Using the basic techniques that you have practised on the previous pages, grab the pen tool and start selecting. When making a path on a pixelated image, it is best that you select your points slightly within the line of the image so that the background is omitted completely.

Here is Daisy on her own if you prefer

Tip: If you keep your history palette open alongside the image that you are working on (as shown above), you can always step back a couple of stages if you feel that you have gone hopelessly astray - this is sometimes easier than reworking nodes with the path selection tools at the end.

Once you have clicked back to the beginning anchor point for the outside path, continue adding a path on the same layer for the internal areas (negative space where the background shows through as shown below).

When happy, double click the 'work path' to save it as a path. Load the selection using the selection button at the bottom of the paths palette as and when you need it as often as you like.

From there you can do what you like with it.

For example:

• Go up to select> inverse on the menu bar to select the background and delete it... a feather (select> feather) of a pixel or 2 before doing that, omits a hard edge to the image and makes it look more 'natural'.
• Move your selection with the move tool wherever you want to within it's current document borders or hold down the 'alt' and duplicate it on the same layer...
• Copy and paste it into a new document or drag it with the move tool into a brand new document...
• Manipulate it as you like within the selection borders...

The End