Gaussian Blur in Photoshop Elements 9

[Geoff F]

Yes I always use a tablet and pen for this sort of thing.

Tried several sizes, initially using a cheap 10 x 8 ins size which worked well for several years. They after that failed I purchased a more expensive 8 x 5 ins Wacom but for me, the size reduction wasn't so good. Then a friend offered me a secondhand 12 x 12 ins Wacom which was surplus to his business requirements. That is absolutely perfect, although it does take up a bit of space.

That photo edit didn't take a lot of time, if you discount the thinking time! Tweaking around the initial selection was the most time consuming, but it is always worth spending a little extra time on this.

Just remember, the more you learn about layers and masks the more you realise that you actually know very little.

Some good books and plenty of time for experimentation are required.

Various forms of HDR and similar effects but doing it by hand not using auto settings are my main uses for masking.

[Brownbear]

Thank you Geoff