Marquee resize possible

[mikecox]

I have found that if I draw a circle, using the Marquee tool, I can move it around I can't resize it; I have to redraw it again and again, until I get it right.

Is there a way to resize it, without starting over? :confused:

[mrod]

Hi Mike. In Elements, no, there's not (the full version of Photoshop allows you to transform selections).

There are some plugins that give this functionality (Grants Tools being one), but there's a way you can go through the back door:

- draw an oval using the shape tool. It will automatically go on its own layer. Size and position as necessary

- Ctrl click the shape layer's icon in the Layers palette

- throw away the shape layer. This should leave your selection on your image layer in the size and shape you want.

Hope that helps!

Oh, and best wishes down there in SD. I have relatives that live there, and they say it's pretty bad.


Mike

[troush]

Mike, You can get Grant's Tools for your version of PSE (do a forum search) and it has an action called "Transform selection" which will allow you to resize your selection.

-Trish

[jo]

When you make a selection with the elliptical marquee tool (or any other selection tool) and you have the marching ants, you can contract up to 100 pixels under select>modify>contract. You can expand, but the shape doesn't hold as well as when you contract.

Is this what you are asking?

[mikecox]

Hi Mike. In Elements, no, there's not (the full version of Photoshop allows you to transform selections).

There are some plugins that give this functionality (Grants Tools being one), but there's a way you can go through the back door:

- draw an oval using the shape tool. It will automatically go on its own layer. Size and position as necessary

- Ctrl click the shape layer's icon in the Layers palette

- throw away the shape layer. This should leave your selection on your image layer in the size and shape you want.

Hope that helps!

Oh, and best wishes down there in SD. I have relatives that live there, and they say it's pretty bad.


Mike

Very clever! I like it. Thanks

It appears that the worst is over, the winds have died down and people are returning to their homes. The only problem now is that the winds are no longer predictable, now that the Santa Ana has passed, and fires are moving east again.

[Rusty]

There is an additional method...

Use your marquee tool to draw the outline - doesn't matter whether talking about square, rectangle, oval. Draw it on a blank layer. When you have your size somewhat close to what you want, fill the selection with a color. Any color, it doesn't matter.

Now, use the Move Tool to resize the shape: bigger, smaller, distorted, moved around. Whatever.

N.B. -- the selection resulting from initially drawing the shape is still active, you should not Deselect. Now, delete the layer with the colored shape on it; you don't need it anymore.

Now, back on your BG Layer, Ctrl-J will put that selection onto a new layer. Now you can deslect.

Rusty

[Chuck S.]

Very cool, Rusty! Great workaround!!

[mikecox]

Mike, You can get Grant's Tools for your version of PSE (do a forum search) and it has an action called "Transform selection" which will allow you to resize your selection.

-Trish

Thanks Trish, I got them; now I need to upgrade to v5

[mikecox]

When you make a selection with the elliptical marquee tool (or any other selection tool) and you have the marching ants, you can contract up to 100 pixels under select>modify>contract. You can expand, but the shape doesn't hold as well as when you contract.

Is this what you are asking?
usually I just want to make it wider or longer; not to increase the size overall.

[mikecox]

There is an additional method...

Use your marquee tool to draw the outline - doesn't matter whether talking about square, rectangle, oval. Draw it on a blank layer. When you have your size somewhat close to what you want, fill the selection with a color. Any color, it doesn't matter.

Now, use the Move Tool to resize the shape: bigger, smaller, distorted, moved around. Whatever.

N.B. -- the selection resulting from initially drawing the shape is still active, you should not Deselect. Now, delete the layer with the colored shape on it; you don't need it anymore.

Now, back on your BG Layer, Ctrl-J will put that selection onto a new layer. Now you can deslect.

Rusty
Amazing, and so simple! I love it!

Thanks!!

btw what does N.B. and GB stand for?

[Chuck S.]

Amazing, and so simple! I love it!

Thanks!!

btw what does N.B. and GB stand for?

N.B. Nota Bene - Latin phrase, basically means "Note well" or "Take Note Of"

BG - BackGround ( I think....)

:)

[Rusty]

sorry for the jargon, Mike,

NB is a holdover from when I was gainfully employed; we used it a lot in internal business correspondence as a shortcut for IMPORTANT.

Many of the people on this forum use BG when explaining something to avoid constantly typing out background layer

Rusty :)

[mikecox]

N.B. Nota Bene - Latin phrase, basically means "Note well" or "Take Note Of"

:)

Huh, should have known that one. I'm used to Latin abbreviations for medical terms like prn, npo, bid, qs, etc. But they are all expressed in lower case. I think there's a rule; that Latin abbreviations be in lower case, as in nb.

But don't quote me ;)