The background eraser tool is one of the most popular tools in Photoshop. It is used to erase the background remove bg of an image so that a transparent or translucent version of the image can be created. This tool has both pros and cons, which will be discussed in this article. So, whether you are just starting out with Photoshop or are a seasoned pro, read on to learn more about the background eraser tool.

1. PROS OF THE BACKGROUND ERASER TOOL

The Background Eraser tool has many advantages, but the most significant one is that it completely eliminates the background of an image simply by painting on it with a soft-edged brush . It does this without creating jagged edges or non-transparent pixels around the object which you want to keep in your image. It erases the background while retaining the softness of your brush, and this makes for a very natural look.

Another advantage of using this tool is that it does not require you to come up with a precise selection before trying to erase or remove an area from an image. It does not need to sample the color of the background, because it only deals with pixels which are visible. All you have to do is paint on the object with your brush.

Another advantage of this tool is that it can be used with layers and masking also . This means that you can use this most effectively when trying to create complex shapes by combining the background with another shape.

This tool also lets you have more control over your editing . This is because it provides complete control over which area of an image you want to erase. You can choose how much of an area gets erased, and what will be left behind.

2. CONS OF THE BACKGROUND ERASER TOOL

The Background Eraser tool has some disadvantages too, which you should be aware of. The main one is that this tool works like a brush, and each click you make will erase an area completely . Moreover, the anti-aliasing feature of this tool cannot be turned on while using Photoshop CS5 . This means that areas near your initial cut will not be anti-aliased, and this can create jagged edges.

Another major disadvantage is that you cannot use it with 16 bit images . This means that if the background of your image consists of 3 colors or more, you won't get satisfactory results while trying to erase it with Photoshop CS5.

3. CUSTOMIZING THE BACKGROUND ERASER OPTION

The Background Eraser tool can be customized in Photoshop CS5 in several ways. The first thing that you need to do is open the Adobe Photoshop Preferences, which you can access by going to Edit > Preferences > Tools . Once this has been opened, look for the Background Eraser drop-down menu , where you can choose between the following brush tips:

By default, the Stamp setting is selected. This means that this tool will erase pixels upon clicking with your mouse. You can also select the Paint setting, which erases pixels by dragging the paintbrush while holding Alt key on your keyboard . As I mentioned above, there are some limitations to this option , but that's not a problem because you will have lots of options in the upcoming versions of Photoshop.