Gimp. Not 1 tutorial on the internet accurately shows how to switch background

GoodEnough

Golden Member
Apr 24, 2011
1,547
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81
I have looked at over a dozen. And all leave out critical steps. Or show something that simply does not work.
Can someone list out how I remove select the subject from photo 1 and then use photo 2 as the background?
No, cut and paste does not work, as in 50% of the tutorials out there.
 
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edro

Lifer
Apr 5, 2002
24,326
68
91
I have tried... but GIMP is just terrible.
Go back to pirating Photoshop like everyone else.
 

poofyhairguy

Lifer
Nov 20, 2005
14,612
318
126
Select the subject in 1. Cut. Paste on new background.

Your problem is you are expecting a magic selection tool to select the subject for you. GIMP lacks that really, so you have to manually create the selection area.
 

GoodEnough

Golden Member
Apr 24, 2011
1,547
19
81
Select the subject in 1. Cut. Paste on new background.

Your problem is you are expecting a magic selection tool to select the subject for you. GIMP lacks that really, so you have to manually create the selection area.

Nope, I manually selected the subject with the Scissor tool. It has the flashing line around it.

Where is the new background? In a separate Gimp? Layer? Mask? Alpha selection? Alpha Channel? WTF?

I open the background as a new layer, but when I paste, it just shows up as "Floating Selection (Pasted Layer)"
When I use the green arrow to move the background layer down, I just get a blank.
 

cbrunny

Diamond Member
Oct 12, 2007
6,791
406
126
Are you calling the internet a gimp, brah? Be careful. he'll slap you down good.

Joffrey-gets-slapped-3.gif
 

GoodEnough

Golden Member
Apr 24, 2011
1,547
19
81
If Photoshop is easier to use, maybe someone can PM a way to get it ....cheap.
 

FeuerFrei

Diamond Member
Mar 30, 2005
9,144
929
126
I would think you'd open the second image as a layer, slip it under the first one, make your selection, invert selection, press delete and the whole first image vanishes other than what you have selected. Of course it has to have an alpha channel so the deleted content can be replaced with transparent area, letting the second image show through.
Then merge the layers. Might want to save the selection first though.
 

BxgJ

Golden Member
Jul 27, 2015
1,054
123
106
No one's asked for pics of the 'subject from photo 1'? Come on guys.
 

Crono

Lifer
Aug 8, 2001
23,720
1,502
136
First, open up both pictures in GIMP as two separate files. Then:

1. Using free select or fuzzy select (equivalent of magic wand in Photoshop, though not as good) isolate the subject from picture 1

2. Cut (Ctrl + X) the selection

3. Paste (Ctrl + V) onto picture 2

4. In the layers window, right click on "Floating Selection (Pasted Layer)" and click "To New Layer"

Now you are free to edit the background image and foreground subject separately as needed.

Also, Photoshop is much better than GIMP - though I really can't complain about GIMP, as it's pretty handy and powerful for the price of free - but it has a steep learning curve, too, though Adobe has improved the interface while adding features over the years.
 
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Ken g6

Programming Moderator, Elite Member
Moderator
Dec 11, 1999
16,610
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The GIMP Move tool has to be set to move the thing you want: Selection area, or layer.
 

dullard

Elite Member
May 21, 2001
25,888
4,470
126
First, open up both pictures in GIMP as two separate files. Then:

1. Using free select or fuzzy select (equivalent of magic wand in Photoshop, though not as good) isolate the subject from picture 1

2. Cut (Ctrl + X) the selection

3. Paste (Ctrl + V) onto picture 2

4. In the layers window, right click on "Floating Selection (Pasted Layer)" and click "To New Layer"

Now you are free to edit the background image and foreground subject separately as needed.
I don't have GIMP in front of me, but that sounds correct. Or, if you don't need two layers, just flatten the image after pasting it in.
 

Humpy

Diamond Member
Mar 3, 2011
4,464
596
126
Cut out the image of your cat with some rounded scissors.

Paste it on the unlikely new background with your glue stick.

Draw some funny words on background.

Save a picture of it with your phone.

Post your new funny cat meme in that ATOT thread with all the other funny cat pictures.
 

Red Squirrel

No Lifer
May 24, 2003
70,090
13,539
126
www.anyf.ca
I keep trying to use Gimp, I find it's just tedius to use compared to Photoshop. For example in Photoshop you can paste something, it creates a new layer, you can select it, resize, rotate, skew all in one go in real time. You can't do that in gimp, you paste it, but it does that weird floating layer thing, so you have to right click and go "to new layer" or something like that. Then it also does not have an alpha layer, so when you erase it's just the background colour (ex: white) instead of what's behind, so you have to right click on the layer and add alpha now. Now you want to resize, ok you can do that, but you can't rotate or move it at same time. The grid thing makes it hard to see too. All these extra steps. My favourite Photoshop version is 6.0, it's simple yet very usable. I always end up finding myself going back to that for any serious work, but then I have to fire up a vm, so it's kind of annoying.

Same with CAD, there does not seem to be any decent Linux CAD programs so I always find myself going back to Autocad 2000. The most well known CAD program in Linux is FreeCAD I think, but you can't just start a line, and type a number and it becomes that lenght. You have to actually manually make it the size you want. Just that alone can be the difference between whipping up a plan in 10 minutes, or an hour. There's lot of shortcuts and other stuff you can do in AutoCAD that is just more intuitive. I don't imagine a general purpose CAD program is that hard to make, so not sure why Linux can't be better at it. I've tried to use Blender for CAD, but one thing I find annoying about Blender is it's hard to be precise with stuff, it's not really made for that I guess.
 

skull

Platinum Member
Jun 5, 2000
2,209
327
126
I tried gimp a few times every time ended with me getting absolutely no where and smashing the shit out of my keyboard. So I was finally determined to do the super simple edits I needed, I shutdown linux got windows and ms paint going, piece of cake.
 

lxskllr

No Lifer
Nov 30, 2004
59,349
9,875
126
Gimp works for me. I don't do anything fancy, but what I do, works.
 

GoodEnough

Golden Member
Apr 24, 2011
1,547
19
81
First, open up both pictures in GIMP as two separate files. Then:

1. Using free select or fuzzy select (equivalent of magic wand in Photoshop, though not as good) isolate the subject from picture 1

2. Cut (Ctrl + X) the selection

3. Paste (Ctrl + V) onto picture 2

4. In the layers window, right click on "Floating Selection (Pasted Layer)" and click "To New Layer"

Now you are free to edit the background image and foreground subject separately as needed.

Also, Photoshop is much better than GIMP - though I really can't complain about GIMP, as it's pretty handy and powerful for the price of free - but it has a steep learning curve, too, though Adobe has improved the interface while adding features over the years.

Thank you. Using 2 different Gimp instances was the key.
 

dullard

Elite Member
May 21, 2001
25,888
4,470
126
I tried gimp a few times every time ended with me getting absolutely no where and smashing the shit out of my keyboard. So I was finally determined to do the super simple edits I needed, I shutdown linux got windows and ms paint going, piece of cake.
Gimp and MS Paint both have their places.

If you need to do a quick sketch or simple copy/paste/crop work, MS Paint is probably far easier and Gimp is terrible for it.

If you need to slim down just your mother-in-law in the middle of a group photo, color correct, automatically select a complex part of a photo with fuzzy borders so it doesn't look amateurish, then Gimp is the way to go. It really is quite user friendly and powerful for photo touchups. It sucks for just about anything else.
 

GoodEnough

Golden Member
Apr 24, 2011
1,547
19
81
I tried gimp a few times every time ended with me getting absolutely no where and smashing the shit out of my keyboard. So I was finally determined to do the super simple edits I needed, I shutdown linux got windows and ms paint going, piece of cake.

LOL