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[ 47 ]USING CONTENT-AWARE FILL
If you have plenty of similar background
pixels surrounding the object you want
to remove, start with the Fill command’s
Content-Aware option. Like the Patch
tool, this method is quick and automati-
cally blends pixels; however, you don’t
pick from where Photoshop copies pixels;
it uses the pixels just outside the selection.
Step One: Open the photo of the pyra-
mids. Duplicate the image layer by pressing
Command-J (PC: Ctrl-J). (The Fill command
doesn’t work on an empty layer, so the
only way to use it without harming your
original photo is to use it on a duplicate
image layer.) In the Layers panel, double-
click the duplicate layer’s name and enter
“shadow.” Zoom into the photo and repo-
sition it so you can really see the shadow at
the lower right. Press Shift-M until the Ellip-
tical Marquee tool is active in the Toolbar,
and draw a selection around the shadow
that extends off the document’s edge.
Make the selection a little larger than the
item you’re removing. You can press-and-
hold the Spacebar while you’re drawing
the selection to reposition it.
Tip: The Fill command only works on
single layers. If you have multiple layers,
activate the topmost layer and press Shift-
Option-Command-E (PC: Shift-Alt-Ctrl-E)
to create a new layer that contains the
content of all visible layers. Then use the
Fill command on that layer!