Applies to: Photoshop CC. To select the color of an image area with the eyedropper tool. Positioning the eyedropper tool over any pixel area displays the pixel color values in the Info panel. Clicking the eyedropper tool changes the foreground color to the value.
Photoshop uses the foreground colorto paint, fill, and stroke selections and the background colorto make gradient fills and fill in the erased areas of an image. Theforeground and background colors are also used by some special effects filters.
You can designate a new foreground or background color usingthe Eyedropper tool, the Color panel, the Swatches panel, or theAdobe Color Picker.
The default foreground color is black, and the default backgroundcolor is white. (In an alpha channel, the default foreground iswhite, and the background is black.)
Video Tip | Make a shortcut for the Color Picker
Video Tip | Make a shortcut for the Color Picker
The current foreground color appears in theupper color selection box in the toolbox; the current backgroundcolor appears in the lower box.
Foreground and background color boxes in toolbox
A. Default Colors icon B. SwitchColors icon C. Foreground color box D. Backgroundcolor box
- To change the foreground color, clickthe upper color selection box in the toolbox, and then choose acolor in the Adobe Color Picker.
- To change the background color, click the lower colorselection box in the toolbox, and then choose a color in the AdobeColor Picker.
- To reverse the foreground and background colors, clickthe Switch Colors icon in the toolbox.
- To restore the default foreground and background colors,click the Default Colors icon in the toolbox.
The Eyedropper tool samplescolor to designate a new foreground or background color. You cansample from the active image or from anywhere else on the screen.
- Inthe options bar, change the sample size of the eyedropper by choosingan option from the Sample Size menu:Reads the precise value of the pixel you click.
- In the toolbox, click the foregroundor background color selection box.
- In the Color panel, click the Set ForegroundColor or Set Background Color selectionbox.The Color Picker is also available when features let youchoose a color. For example, by clicking the color swatch in theoptions bar for some tools, or the eyedroppers in some color adjustmentdialog boxes.
Choose a CMYK equivalent for anon-printable color
![Colors Colors](/uploads/1/2/4/2/124280086/922845034.png)
TheEyedropper tool makes it easy to copy a color without having toselect a swatch. It copies, or samples, the color of an area inyour photo to set a new foreground or background color. You cansample from the active image, from another open image, or from yourcomputer’s desktop.
If you want the color always to be available,you can add the sampled color to the Color Swatches panel. You canalso specify the size of the area that the Eyedropper tool samples.For example, you can set the eyedropper to sample the average colorvalues of a 5‑by‑5- or 3‑by‑3-pixel area under the pointer.
Selecting a foreground color with the eyedropper.
A. Point sample B. 5 by 5Average sample
- (Optional) To change the sample size of the eyedropper,choose an option from the Sample Size menu in the Tool Options bar:
- Point Sample to get the precise value ofthe pixel you click.
- 3 By 3 Average or 5 By 5 Average to get the averagevalue of the specified number of pixels within the area you click.
- In the Tool Options bar, select where the color pickertool must sample from. Choose from All Layers or Current Layer.
- To select a new foreground color from animage, click the desired color in your image. To select a colorthat appears elsewhere on your computer screen, click inside yourimage and drag away from it.
- To select a new background color from an image,Alt-click (Option-click in Mac OS) the color you want.Asyou click and drag the Eyedropper tool, the foreground color boxchanges.
Note:
You can temporarily switch to the Eyedropper toolwhile using most painting tools, which allows you to change colorsquickly without selecting another tool. Simply hold down the Altkey (Option key in Mac OS). Once you’ve chosen your color, releasethe Alt key (Option key in Mac OS).
- To set the foreground and background boxesto black and white, click the Default Colors icon.
- To switch the colors in the two boxes, click theSwitch Colors icon.
- To change the foreground color, click the topmostcolor box in the toolbox, and then choose a color from the ColorPicker.
- To change the background color, click the bottomcolor box in the toolbox, and then choose a color from the ColorPicker.
TheColor Swatches panel (Window > Color Swatches) is agood place to store the colors that you use often in your images.You can select a foreground or background color by clicking a colorswatch in the Color Swatches panel. You can add or delete colorsto create a custom swatch library, save a library of swatches, andreload them for use in another image. You can change the way thumbnails aredisplayed in the Color Swatches panel by choosing an option fromthe More menu.
Although you can add many colors to the ColorSwatches panel, you should manage its size and organization to improveperformance. Creating libraries can help you group related or specialswatches and manage panel size.
The Photoshop Elements installationfolderPresetsColor Swatches (for Mac, Photoshop Elements installationfolderSupport FilesPresetsColor Swatches)folder contains thevarious swatch libraries. When you create custom libraries, saving themto the Color Swatches folder makes them automatically appear inthe panel libraries pop‑up menu.
- If the Color Swatches panel is not alreadyopen, choose Window > Color Swatches.
- (Optional) In the Color Swatches panel, choose a swatchlibrary name from the Swatches menu.
- To choose a foreground color, click a colorin the panel.
- To choose a background color, Ctrl-click (Command-clickin Mac OS) a color in the panel.
If there is a color you’d like to use often,you can save the color as a swatch in the Color Swatches panel.Saved swatches are added to the library of colors in the panel.To permanently save your custom swatches, you must save the entire library.
- Set the foreground color in the toolbox to thecolor you want to add.
- Do one of the following in the Color Swatches panel:
- Click the New Swatch button at the bottomof the panel. The color swatch is added and automatically namedColor Swatch 1.
- Choose New Swatch from the More menu.
- Position the pointer over an empty space in thebottom row of the Color Swatches panel (the pointer turns into thePaint Bucket tool), and click to add the color.
Selecting a color with the eyedropper and adding it as a newswatch - If prompted to save the swatch library, enter a new namein the Save dialog box and click Save.
- Doany of the following in the Color Swatches panel:
- To save a library of swatches, choose Save Swatches from the More menu. To make the set appear in the panel’s swatch libraries pop‑up menu, save the file to the Photoshop ElementsPresetsColor Swatches (For Mac, Photoshop ElementsSupport FilesPresetsColor Swatches) folder.
Note:To see the new swatch set in the menu, you must restart Photoshop Elements.- To select and load a swatch library, choose Load Swatches from the More menu in the panel.
- To replace the current swatch library with a different library, choose Replace Swatches from the More menu in the panel and select a library.
Reset a swatch library to its defaultcolor swatches
- Choosea swatch library from the pop‑up menu in the Color Swatches panel.
- From the More menu in the Color Swatches panel, choosePreset Manager.
- In the Preset Manager dialog box, choose Swatches fromthe Preset Type menu.
- Choose Reset Swatches from the More menu, and confirmthe action when prompted.
- Drag the color swatch to the Trash buttonin the panel, and click OK to confirm the deletion.
- Press Alt (Option key in Mac OS) to change the pointerto a scissors icon, and click a color in the Color Swatches panel.
- If prompted to save the library, enter a name in theSave dialog box and click Save.
Note:
To permanently remove swatches you delete, you mustresave the library that contained them.
Youcan use the Adobe Color Picker to select the foreground or backgroundcolor by choosing from a color spectrum or by defining colors numerically.In addition, you can select colors based on HSB or RGB color models,or choose to select only web‑safe colors.
A. Adjusted color B. Originalcolor C. HSB color values D. RGB colorvalues E. Displays only web colors F. Colorfield G. Color slider H. Hexadecimalcolor value
- Click the foreground or background color boxesin the toolbox to display the Color Picker.
- Click inside the color field. When you click in the colorfield, a circular marker indicates the color’s position in the field,and the numerical values change to reflect the new color.
- Drag the white triangles along the slider to move toanother color.
- Alternately, to specify a number visually, do any ofthe following:
- Enter the hexadecimal value for your colorin the text box under the RGB values. (Hexadecimal color valuesare often used by web designers.)
- For RGB color, select a radio button and specifycomponent values from 0 to 255 (0 is no light and 255 is the brightestlight).
- For HSB color, select a radio button and specifysaturation and brightness as percentages; specify hue as an anglefrom 0° to 360° that corresponds to a location on the color wheel.
- The color rectangle to the right of the color sliderdisplays the new color in the top section of the rectangle. Theoriginal color appears at the bottom of the rectangle.
Note:
You can select colors using your system’s built‑incolor picker or a plug‑in color picker. Choose Preferences >General and choose the color picker.
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