Technical data

Working with Paint and Text 51
Using the Eraser tool
The Eraser tool works very much like the preceding brush tools,
with the same range of Brush Tip and Tool Properties tab options. But
it is used instead to rub out pixels and replace them with whichever
color is selected as the background color.
To erase, select the tool from the Tools toolbar and drag over the image
area. On the Background layer, erased pixels are replaced by the current
background color. On other layers, they are replaced by transparency.
q Try erasing and experiment with varying the opacity setting on the
Tool Properties tab. You’ll see that erasing is by no means an “all-
or-nothing” proposition. Some wonderfully creative effects are
possible using a semi-transparent eraser to reduce the contribution
of existing pixels to the overall image.
q Again, switch between the Background and standard layers to see
the results.
q By now, you may be getting inspired to create something
“interesting” instead of just scribbling. Perhaps it’s time to get a
beverage, make a few phone calls, and while you’re at it (if you
haven’t already) save this masterpiece-in-progress. We’d suggest
SANDBOX.SPP.
Using the Smudge tool
Smudging may sound silly, but the Smudge tool can be quite
useful for blending pixels the way an artist might hand-blend pastels. It
comes in handy when retouching photos—along with the Clone tool,
which we’ll look at next. Now that you have a trial image with lots of
painted and overlapping lines, let’s briefly try out the Smudge tool.
To use the tool, select it from the Tools toolbar and drag to pick up
color from the initial click point and “push” it in the direction of the
brush stroke.
Smudge tool properties are the same as for the Paintbrush and Airbrush,
except that there’s no Fade setting.