Making Images Transparent: A Step-by-Step Guide

If you’re creating web graphics in Photoshop, you probably have some images that need to have transparent backgrounds. This allows you to superimpose them on other images or layers without the background showing.

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Learning how to make your images transparent requires only a few steps and can be done in both Photoshop and GIMP by following the instructions below. Just follow these simple directions, and soon, your images will be ready for any design project you can dream up.

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Benefits of Making an Image Transparent That You Probably Didn't Know

Images can bring your web pages to life and make them more interesting to look at, but sometimes you want the background of an image to show through, or you might want your design to be transparent so that it blends in with the rest of your website instead of being a focal point.

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There are many ways to add transparency to images, and in this article, we're going to go over 10 ways you probably didn't know about.

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1) Transparency helps you avoid cluttering the screen

Transparent text is the perfect way to let your images shine without cluttering the screen, and it's easier than ever with apps like Pixlr for PC and Snapseed for Android. Here are 10 awesome benefits that make using transparent text worth your time.

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Transparency lets you layer your content on top of an image rather than fill the background with text. As a result, more space is created on your screen, allowing readers to appreciate everything in greater detail.

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The transparent text allows readers to choose their background color when reading a blog post or magazine to feel more immersed in what they're reading.

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2) Transparency helps improve usability and makes interfaces easier to use

Transparency can be an important accessibility feature, but without needing to accommodate users with disabilities, transparency can be an excellent tool for enhancing an interface's design and usability. This is because transparency doesn't take up any space on the screen - thus giving your interface more room to breathe - while remaining aesthetically pleasing.

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Plus, it's easy to overlook all how transparency can improve your design. If you use it correctly, transparency can help simplify design elements, create a sense of depth in the UI, and provide cues for interactive elements on the screen.

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3) Transparency gives your images depth

A white background is an excellent choice for showcasing images, but what if your client prefers blue or green? Images like these can be improved by adding transparency.

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It's an effect that also makes your images appear three-dimensional and with greater depth. It's a simple feature to add to your graphics program or use the Image>Adjustments>Levels tool. It automatically lightens or darkens each pixel in the selected area without affecting neighbouring pixels.

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When transparency is applied, the overlapping colors blend to create seamless transitions between pixels. In other words, this powerful tool allows designers to make one color semi-transparent while leaving another solid and unchanged.

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4) Transparency increases visibility in photographic scenes

Making the background area of your picture transparent is quite an easy task when photo editing software like Adobe Photoshop is at your disposal. But how exactly does it work? 

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Typically, any visible object in the background will block light from reaching pixels. With a white wall behind your subject, the surface would appear to be fully blocking any light because they are reflecting all of it away.

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5) Transparency creates visual appeal

Transparency adds visual interest to your design, softens your site's edges, and adds texture. This kind of design isn't just for aesthetics; it has powerful UX benefits. Transparency removes distracting elements and provides the user with the key focus point.

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It encourages exploration by showing how content relates to its container (often allowing them to see what they might not otherwise) and informs their understanding of where they are within a site’s hierarchy by providing more information about an item’s level in the navigation.

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6) Transparency can be used to save time when designing a web page

Image transparency is an important feature for creating web pages because it makes the designer's job much easier. Because we live in an RGB world, where RGB stands for Red, Green, and Blue (although there are other color spaces), each pixel has one of these three colors.

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Transparency allows the designer to skip over some tasks: like manually changing the layer opacity or using masks to blend images. Knowing how to work with transparency and layers will make designing easier and faster.

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7) Making an object look like it's floating on top of something else

A similar technique is called clipping in which you cut a portion of the objects on top. Clipping is used to make the object's edges seamlessly blend in with its background while still retaining its shape. 

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This would require cutting out part of the image and placing it on the scene. This can be done by first creating an empty layer, filling it with color or pattern, and then adding clipping masks to your clipped objects. 

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To add clipping masks to your objects, right-click on their layer, select Create Clipping Mask, and then select the newly created empty layer (which should now show through as a rectangle) from below them in the Layers panel

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8) Transparency can give objects added style

The transparency feature can be used for more than just hiding images. Making an object transparent and placing it on top of other objects will give them more style. Furthermore, transparency can be used to create beautifully balanced compositions with large text as well as smaller text without getting covered up. Below is a fantastic example from Apu Gomes for all things design related. 

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On the left, he has transparency enabled and on the right, he disabled it. The first has a very artistic look while the second seems to have been drawn by two very different people.

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Making one or more objects transparent will not only provide contrast but also subtlety in your work since they won't cover up too much space or overlap with other objects

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9) You can fade an object out completely, which can be useful if the content behind it is more important than what's in front.

There are so many benefits to an invisible or transparent background and with these 10, there should be at least one that's perfect for your project. In business promotions, this technique is commonly used as the background for video demonstrations or as plain support for text.

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It's important to note that anything can be used for backgrounds - pictures and even video files. Below, we'll go into some more detail about how images can be manipulated when it comes to their opacity. 

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There are so many benefits to an invisible or transparent background and with these 10, there should be at least one that's perfect for your project! In business promotions, this technique is commonly used as the background for video demonstrations or as plain support for text.

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10) Transparent gradients increase website flexibility while maintaining design consistency

If you're looking to make your designs more flexible, consider implementing gradients as opposed to graphics. 

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Consider this example: One graphic is used to cover both the top and bottom half of the page, where one gradient covers the top and another gradient covers the bottom. If a company needs to change the color scheme on their website from green to blue.

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They would need to change only one section instead of two, saving time and money in redesigning process. In addition, backgrounds created with gradients are easier for designers to work with because they are automatically aligned at all times.

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10 Tools for Making Images Transparent

Have you ever wanted to put text on an image, but the image didn’t have a transparent background? This can be annoying if you don’t have the right tool for the job.  Whether you need to put text on an image, add color or other objects over the top of an image, or create some other kind of design with an image.

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There are plenty of tools out there that can help you do this very easily and quickly. Here are 10 great tools to help you make images transparent so that you can start using them in your designs.

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1) Pixlr

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Pixlr is a great tool to make images transparent. It has many useful features, but the one that I like most is the ability to upload your graphics and make them transparent. You can also change the opacity of an image layer.

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Pixlr has been around for quite some time and it's a pretty reliable tool. Pixlr also allows you to do other things with your photos such as adding text, drawing on them, or adjusting color levels. It's free to use, so give it a try.

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2) Preview App

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Preview is an app that lets you view your image in the context of a webpage. It's super useful if you want to make sure your photo will look like it belongs on a particular background.

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You can also use this app to make sure the color of your photo matches the website's theme. This app is available in both iOS and Android versions, so it's great no matter what device you have.

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3) Canva (Website, Android)

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Canva is a free online tool that lets you create graphics, presentations, and other visual content. You can choose from a variety of templates in many different formats. It's also possible to upload your images or designs.

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Canva has tools that allow you to resize your image as well as crop, rotate, and add text. If you want to edit an image with more than one layer, there are tools to do this too. Canva is available on Android devices so it's easy to use when you're on the go.

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4) Affinity Photo

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Affinity Photo is one of the best photo editing software, which offers a range of tools and effects that can help you to make your photos look stunning. You can use it to remove any unwanted objects or people from your photos and make them look professionally retouched.

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It has a quick selection tool that makes it easy to grab the object you need to remove. Another great thing about this software is that it does not require any special skills or knowledge to use, as it has an intuitive interface with many handy features.

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5) BeFunky (Website, Android)

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BeFunky is an app available on Android and web browsers that makes it easy to make images transparent. The app has several features, such as color filters, fonts, and various other effects. Users can also add text to their images or doodles. The app is perfect for making graphics with transparency in them.

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6) PicsArt (Android, Website)

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PicsArt is a great tool for making images transparent and editing them. The app is very easy to use and has a lot of features that can make your pictures pop. You can create drawings, add text or stickers, crop, draw shapes, and so much more. PicsArt also lets you put filters on your pictures to give them a cool effect.

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7) VSCO (Android, Website, Mac OSX)

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VSCO is a photography app that has been around since 2011. It has since developed into a full-fledged photo editor with editing tools like exposure, contrast, and color corrections. 

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The most well-known feature of VSCO is its ability to make images transparent. When you go to the Exposure section of the app, there will be a slider that says Transparency. All you have to do is drag the slider to the left and then save your photo. Easy peasy.

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8) Snapseed (Android, Website, Mac OSX)

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Snapseed (Android, Website, Mac OSX) is a photo-editing app that offers many features. One of them is the ability to make images transparent. To do this, tap on the Edit tab and tap on Color. Scroll down to Tint and change it to Red or Blue.

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9) Photoshop CC (Website, Android, and iOS app are in development as of March 2016).

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Photoshop CC is a powerful, versatile photo editing tool with a wide range of features. Among the many things you can do with Photoshop CC, one of the most popular is using the Color Range feature to make images transparent.

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This blog post will take you through how to use this feature. The first step is to load your image into Photoshop CC and duplicate it by going to Image > Duplicate.

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10) Affinity Designer (Website and MacOS app coming soon. As of April 2017 the apps have not been released yet.)

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Affinity Designer is a design tool that has just been released for macOS. The software is currently not available on the website, but it can be downloaded from the Apple store. Affinity Designer is a vector-based design program that competes with Adobe Illustrator. 

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The interface of Affinity Designer is very similar to Illustrator's and also includes many of the same tools, such as a pen/pencil, brush, eraser, and various shape tools. It also includes more advanced features such as gradients, blend modes (such as multiply or screen), smart shapes (which are vector shapes that can be modified through color or fill), and raster grids which allow you to create pixel-perfect layouts or graphics.

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Using Erase.bg Make Your Image Transparent

Erase.bg is a simple, web-based application that allows you to make images transparent with just a few mouse clicks. You can download a PNG file of your image, upload it to the site, or paste the URL of an image from another site and edit it in Erase.bg's interface to remove the background online.

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Once you're done, you can save your work as a PNG file or a JPG file in any size you need. All formats are supported including.

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Reasons to Make Your Images Transparent With Erase. bg

Many designers find themselves in situations where they need to make their image transparent, either because of some restrictions or because they want to add it over another background.

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Despite the availability of numerous dedicated apps for this task, achieving it quickly and effectively often requires the right tool. This led to the creation of Erase.bg, an online tool designed to make your image background removal process simple and fast. Here are 10 reasons why Erase.bg should be your go-to tool to remove image background.

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1) Save Money

There are no watermarks or logos on the work unless you specifically request them, and it's really easy to upload files from your computer and remove backgrounds in just seconds. The background removal tool works well on photos as well as vector graphics like logos and illustrations.

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2) Create New Images From Old Ones

Fading and old, grungy photos can be made new again with a few clicks of the mouse. You can upload a picture and add the text or overlay you want to put over it, before saving the image as a . PNG file . There's no need for expensive software or intensive editing skills; all you need is some creativity.

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3) Add Text, Effects, Backgrounds, and Borders to Images

Erase. bg is a free online tool that allows you to upload and remove backgrounds from images, making them transparent for use in graphic design projects, presentations, or just for fun.

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4) Turn Images Into Free Artwork Downloadable Files

Erase.bg is a website that allows you to convert any image into a downloadable file for use as artwork. For example, the photo of the girl below was taken on an iPhone and uploaded to this website where it was converted into a file that can be downloaded and printed or used in other ways.

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5) Select Areas of an Image and Color Them

Selecting the areas of an image you want to color can be tedious, but it's worth it for the effect you'll get on the final product. To select a part of an image, use the marquee tool and drag it around the area you want to be selected. Then, right-click and choose Fill. 

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You'll have a selection that is filled in with color so that you know what area will be affected when you apply a filter or other effects. When you're done selecting, click on OK at the top of your screen and then click on Apply under Effects. The selected area will now be filtered or tinted as desired.

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6) Correct Red Eye in Images

One common photo issue is red eye, which happens when the light from a camera flash reflects off a subject's retina and causes the pupil to appear red instead of black. It can be hard to find the right balance between getting rid of the red eye and not making people look too weird or wacky in photos.

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7) Make Your Images Transparent - The Easy Way!

Do you have a bunch of old, unused photos on your phone? Well, instead of waiting until you use them and then deleting them, it might be a better idea to remove them from your phone as soon as possible.

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If you're not using the photo anymore there's no reason for it to take up space on your device! Thankfully there's an easy way that will help you do just that - using Erase.bg.

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Step 1 - Depending on the type of device and operating system you have, 

Step 2 - Install the Erase. bg app.

Step 3 - You can upload your image by dragging it and dropping it or browsing your drive.

Step 4 - Once you have selected PNG in the 'Export' section, toggle on 'Transparent Background'.

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Conclusion

Adding images to your posts and pages can give your content a boost of professionalism, but if you're using graphics you might want to make them transparent to keep your readers focused on the text rather than getting distracted by the background image.

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Follow these simple steps to learn how to make your images transparent so you can customize the backgrounds of your web pages and blog posts with ease.