In the Spotlight: Using the Eyedropper Tool in Photoshop or Photoshop Elements
In the spotlight today is the Eyedropper Tool, which is found in both Photoshop and Photoshop Elements. It is important for those interested in digital scrapbooking or photo editing to become familiar with the tools in the most popular graphic programs (Photoshop and Photoshop Elements).
The basics of the Eyedropper Tool works basically the same in both Photoshop or Photoshop Elements so as you look at the examples below they will apply to either program. However, past the basics Photoshop gives the photo editor or scrapbooker lots of extras when it comes to this tool and the hidden tools underneath (see tomorrow’s blog for more details on these extras in Photoshop). However, in today’s blog article we will just cover the basics that Elements and Photoshop both have, then in tomorrow’s blog article we will cover the extras in Photoshop.
Today’s article should give something for everyone, if you are new to digital scrapbooking we will talk about some basics of the eyedropper tool and if you are a Pro Scrapbooker we will talk about a few tips that many people don’t know about! So here we go….
What is the Eyedropper Tool? The Basics:
The Eyedropper Tool (#1) is used to quickly change color in the color picker tool (#2). The Eyedropper tool makes it easy to copy a color without having to know the color codes for an image. It copies, or samples, the color of an area in your image to set a new foreground or background color. You can sample from any active image in your workspace.
So here is how it works for a digital scrapbooker.
For this example we are using Photoshop Elements 8 but it works basically the same for Photoshop too!
First, as a digital scrapbooker, I want to put a dark blue mat behind my photo of the children snow skiing. If I draw a rectangle it will be whatever color that is in the color picker (mine is black right now!) but I want to have it be the color of my digital scrapbooking tag, which is a dark blue color.
Since I don’t know the color code for the dark blue color, I can sample the color and copy it by using the Eyedropper tool.
One very easy way I can set the color to match the color of the tag is to go to the eyedropper tool. So in the image below you can see the 
foreground color is black (#1).
So I select the eyedropper tool (#2) and then I go and click on the color of the dark blue tag (#3)
This changes the color in the color chip 
tool from black to dark blue.
This means whatever tool uses the foreground color in color chip tool will now use the dark blue color. So if I paint with a brush, type with text, or even use the rectangular tool as I had originally planned it will come out the dark blue color that is in my tag! This is a great way for digital scrapbookers to match digital scrapbooking supplies or photos even if you don’t know what color it is (i.e., the color name or code)!
So now you can see from the image below that when I made my photo mat it matches the color of my tag exactly, and makes my scrapbooking page look like I am keeping a color theme!
Now that I have set the color with the eyedropper tool, the color is in the color picker that matches my blue tag and I can keep up with my color coordinated theme because any tool I use now that uses the color chip will start on the blue color of my tag that I got by using the eyedropper tool! So by picking the Text Tool which will start with the color just picked by the eyedropper tool, and writing some text it will also match the photo mat, and tag!
As the image above shows now that the color has been selected with the eyedropper tool I can type text that matches both the photo mat and the tag!
I didn’t stop here, I used the color that I picked with the eyedropper tool and then selected the brush tool, picked a snowflake brush and “stamped” a snowflake on my digital tag. Because I had picked the dark blue color with the eyedropper tool this “stamped” brush matches colors found in the tag, text, and photo mat! This is how a digital scrapbooker can coordinate the colors in their digital scrapbooking page! This is a super top secret – please use with care!!!
The eyedropper tool is one of the handiest tools for both digital scrapbookers and photo editors, it helps us find colors we don’t know the name or code for!
Now you are ready to use the Eyedropper Tool!
These are some of the basics about the Eyedropper Tool that every new digital scrapper or photo editor needs to know if they want to use Eyedropper Tool within Photoshop or Photoshop Elements!
The Eyedropper Tool is good to use to make Digital Scrapbooking Pages look better so all the colors are matched in a digital project. Once you give this tool a try, you won’t know how you lived without!
Advanced Features of the Eyedropper Tool:
Once you get comfortable using the Eyedropper Tool then you might want to use some of the extra features found on the top option menu that becomes available when you select the Eyedropper tool.
In Photoshop Elements 8, you have these additional settings to change the sample size of the eyedropper, choose an option from the Sample Size menu in the options bar.
Point Sample: use to get the precise value of the pixel you click on.
3 by 3 Average: use to get the 3 by 3 pixel average value of the pixels within the area you click.
5 by 5 Average: use to get the 5 by 5 pixel average value of the pixels within the area you click.
Both of the last two options just give you a bigger area to sample to get blended color. This is good to use when you need a color that will blend better with several colors or shades.
Photoshop will have more options with the Eyedropper Tool!
The basic way to use the Eyedropper tool will work the same as Elements in Photoshop. However, Photoshop will have several more options than Elements has. For example one thing you will notice is that it can sample many more sizes than Elements can – see the image below. The averages will work the same but you will have more choices for larger areas in Photoshop options bar. The larger areas give you more chance to blend your colors better in a certain area of your project.
There are several other differences for those using Photoshop and Eyedropper tool – check tomorrow’s blog to learn more!
Extra Helpful Tips for Using the Eyedropper Tool in both Elements and Photoshop:
Eyedropper Tips: Do one of the following to choose a color from your image or scrapbooking project:
- To select a new foreground color (in the color picker tool) from an image, click the desired color in your image.
- To select a color that appears elsewhere on your computer screen, click inside your image, hold your left mouse key down as you drag away from the image to the new color on your computer screen! (This tip most people don’t know!) It is very useful if you have something on your computer screen you want to match but isn’t in Photoshop or Elements work area!
- To select a new background color (in the color picker tool) from an image, hold the Alt key down as you click on the color you want. (Mac users: Option Key)
- If you hold down the left mouse button as you drag the Eyedropper tool across your image, the foreground color box changes
Tip: Using another tool but need to change colors? You can temporarily switch to the Eyedropper tool while using most painting tools, which allows you to change colors quickly without selecting another tool. Simply hold down the Alt key. Once you’ve chosen your color, release the Alt key. (Mac users try Option Key)
The Eyedropper Tool is an important tool to learn about if you are interested in using Photoshop or Photoshop Elements for either digital scrapbooking or photo editing!
So open up your program, bring in a few digital scrapbooking projects, and start trying all the fun ways you can use the Eyedropper Tool to match your scrapbooking supplies, text, brushes and your images!
Have a nice day and take a few moments to learn about your digital scrapbooking tools!
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If you want to learn more about Digital Scrapbooking or Photo Editing please check out our Scrap Shop for great video tutorials!
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Do you have any Eyedropper Tool tips or Stories? Let us know how you Digitally Scrap using the Eyedropper Tool!
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