Load selection

#1

It seems like Photoshop needs a file open to call its saved selection. I’d like to access a list of previously saved selections without accessing their files, just like I would access a collection of patterns. Any ideas here?

#2

http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?f=14&t=860093

A few ideas in there possibly for how to save selections and share them between images quickly.

#3

What is the reason why you want to keep a bunch of selections? I just can’t come up with any reason and I’ve been using Photoshop since PS 4 in 1996.

#4

Hmmm, the only ‘visual’ method I’d be able to conjure up is to save each selection as an individual psd (with transparency), collect them all in one ‘selections’ folder, and use Bridge to preview and load them. Ctrl-click on the layer to load the selection, and copy the selection to the file you want to use it in. Not a lot of control, however.

Come to think of it, as a second visual method, you could also save all the selections in a brush library… Do this:

  1. create selection you wish to save in a library
  2. save each selection as a greyscale brush. Base form should be black (inverted from your original selection), otherwise the selection becomes harder to work with later. What’s more, try to work at a high resolution, so the selections can be used on high resolution images as well as lower resolution images.
  3. save all the ‘selection brushes’ as a brush library.

To use them:

  1. load up the selection brush library (if needed)
  2. select the selection you wish to use
  3. scale up and down with <[> and <]> (handy! This way you can apply any selection to any scale and any resolution, as long as the original brush was created at the highest resolution you intend to use them for)
  4. switch to quick mask mode (<Q>)
  5. make certain to use black as a foreground colour (<D>, <X>)
  6. click to apply selection
  7. exit quick mask mode (<Q>)
  8. invert selection for original selection, if necessary (<CTRL> <SHIFT <I>)

This method allows you to quickly choose and set selections. Or combine them. Quick mask mode is the key here. Additional advantages: a) you can import this selection library on other systems and share them; b) different greyscale values when applying the mask in quick mask mode gives even more control over your selections. Easy! :wink:

#5

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