Today’s Question: Sometimes when creating a selection in Photoshop I want to get it aligned perfectly with an object in an image. For example, sometimes I want to create a perfectly rectangular selection that aligns with a sign or other object. When using the Rectangular Marquee tool it is difficult to draw a full rectangle while zoomed out and still get the selection aligned exactly where I want it. Is there some trick for making a more precise selection in this way?
Tim’s Quick Answer: In this type of situation I think the best approach is to make the initial selection reasonably accurate but without worrying about being too precise, and then use the Transform Selection command to zoom in and perfectly align the selection.
More Detail: When you need to get a selection in Photoshop to perfectly align with an area of the image, the Transform Selection command can be invaluable. Start by creating the initial selection, such as to drag from corner to corner with the Rectangular Marquee tool. Then to improve the accuracy of the selection choose Select > Transform Selection from the menu to initiate the transformation of the selection.
Once you’ve initiated the Transform Selection command the selection will have a bounding box with handles, similar to the Free Transform command or to the Crop tool. You can then drag any of the corners or edges of the bounding box to perfectly align with the area you want to select. It can be helpful to zoom in closely on the corners, for example, to ensure you’re getting the selection positioned perfectly.
Once the selection has been transformed, you can apply the change by pressing Enter/Return on the keyboard, clicking the apply button (checkmark icon) on the Options bar, or by double-clicking within the bounding box.
