Cutting things out

Background removal turns a photograph into an element you can place. It is the step that makes one product shot work on ten different backgrounds.

Steps

1. Remove the background from a shot with good separation between subject and backdrop.
2. Check the edges, especially hair, glass and anything transparent.
3. Place the cutout on the destination background.
4. Match the light direction before you judge whether it works.

Why light direction matters most

A cutout with light coming from the left, placed on a background lit from the right, reads as wrong immediately even to people who cannot say why. Pick backgrounds that agree with your subject, or generate the background to match.

What to watch for

Hard shadows belong to the original scene and usually have to go. A subject with its old shadow attached, sitting on a new surface, is the most common giveaway.