How to Use Photoshop Eraser With Layers

If you have a multi-layered photograph, you can use the “Magic Eraser” tool to automatically change similar pixels within the same layer. If you are working in a background layer, or an otherwise “locked” layer, the pixels will change to the background color you chose when you created the file. Otherwise, the pixels will be erased to transparency, or varying levels of transparency, depending on what options you set for the tool.

Instructions

1. Select the Magic Eraser Tool in the toolbox. It looks like a rectangular eraser.

2. An options bar will open at the top of your workspace. Enter a tolerance value that will define the colors to be erased. A lower number will erase a narrow range of colors similar to the first pixel you click. A higher number will erase a wider range of colors.

3. Select “Anti-aliased” to create a smooth edge around the area that you erase. Selecting “Contiguous” will erase only the pixels next to the one that you click.

4. Specify an “opacity” for the eraser. This will designate the erasure strength. A high opacity number, such as 100%, will erase the pixels completely. The lower the opacity percentage, the lighter the force of the erasure. For example, a level of 50% will erase half the opaqueness from the pixels.

5. Click on the part of the layer that you want to erase. Experiment with varying strengths of erasure and opacity to discover the tool's possibilities.