How can I divide a picture into 2 (or more) irregular shapes (i.e., free-hand cropping)?

Question

(The answer to this question might apply to different versions &/or products, so my version -- Photoshop Elements 2 -- may be irrelevant.)
I need to "cut" a JPG photo into two (or more) irregular shapes, for a graphics project I need in my work.
I'd then want to save each shape as a separate JPG, for manipulating separately.
Can I do this with Photoshop Elements? If so, how and with which tool? The "cutting" should be free-form, so being limited to straight lines would not be a full solution.
I guess this is a kind of "cropping"--though maybe there's a better term, since this doesn't involve selecting a rectangular area within a picture.
Thanks.
Brad Burg
[email protected]

Answer 1

Brad,<br />It wasn't clear if you want to cut the picture into pieces jig-saw style so that the whole is the sum of its parts. If so here is one way using Elements 2 (maybe newer versions have ways of doing this more easily).<br /><br />In this example I cut the picture into 3 parts using the Lasso.<br />1. Select part 1.<br />2. Select > Save Selection: give the selection a name (e.g., part 1).<br />3. Copy/paste selection to new layer (Layer 1 in my example).<br />4. Activate Background layer.<br />5. Select > Reselect, and invert the selection.<br />7. Holding down <Alt>, use Lasso to delete all but part 2.<br />8. Select > Save Selection: give the selection a name (e.g., part 2).<br />9. Copy/paste selection to new layer (Layer 2 in example).<br />10. Activate Background layer.<br />11. Select > Reselect.<br />12. Select > Load Selection: In the Selection pull-down menu choose part 1 and check the "Add to Selection" box. The selection will now consist of parts 1 & 2.<br />13. Invert the selection to give part 3 and copy/paste to new layer (Layer 3 in example).<br /><br />The 3 pieces are in separate layers with transparent background. To save each piece turn off visibility of the other layers.<br /><br />http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1Q7SCAqb8IbQhcV6OdIWvj24WkzB5<br /> <br />Note that for just 2 parts it is much easier; you don't need the Save Selection steps:<br />1. Select part 1 and copy/paste to new layer.<br />2. Activate Background layer.<br />3. Select > Reselect, invert the selection, and copy/paste to new layer.