How to Use Quick Mask Mode in Photoshop
Quick Mask is a feature in Adobe's Photoshop image editing software that lets you make precise adjustments to your image when the "magic lasso" tool just won't cut it. You make these minute adjustments by masking, or protecting, parts of your image from changes so that you can add filters, switch colors or use other effects on the unmasked parts of your image. Once you've finished, you can remove the mask to see the how the changes affected your photo, graphic or other image.
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Instructions
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Open the photo you wish to edit in Photoshop. Select the part of the image you want to change using any of the selection tools.
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Click the Quick Mask button toward the bottom of your toolbar; it looks like a square with a circle inside it.
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Check your paint color, setting it to black if it is not already that color. Paint on your image over the portions of the image that you don't want to change. You will see red strokes on your image. The painted area is your quick mask.
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Click the Quick Mask button again to turn off the mask. The painted area is now surrounded by a moving dotted line.
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Click the Quick Mask button again to paint or erase as needed. Toggle back and forth as much as you wish to get a quality selection. When you are satisfied, make any changes you wish to the image. Save your selection when you are finished to finalize your changes.
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Tips & Warnings
Always duplicate your file before beginning a photo editing project.
You can apply the mask in reverse, choosing white from your paint palette, and paint on the areas that you want to change instead of using black to paint on the protected areas of your image. You can also create a semitransparent mask by choosing gray or another color, and then apply your effects so that they are feathered into the semitransparent area of your mask.
