is it possible to select a group of objects from a scan?

[creativemac]

Hi everyone and happy new year

I am cutting out objects from child drawings. I have scanned them, but some of them are REALLY detailed, and I was wondering if there was a way to group selected objects and place them/export them as a png? At the moment, I am just cutting out each object and exporting it to a png, which is working fine. It's just a bit tedious. I've tried hitting 'group' while having all the objects selected, which did group the selected object. However, when I did that I couldn't get rid of the black mask that goes on top of selections...so I guess I am missing a step or two or more?

Thanks in advance.

Linda

[gwpriester]

Hmm? And hmm? Can you post an example of what you are working with? I am not visualizing this.

You can select objects and export them as a PNG True Color + Alpha and only the selected objects will export. Is this what you are trying to do?

[pauland]

I think Linda is masking out objects in a bitmap, one at a time. I could be wrong.

Show us, Linda.

[creativemac]

[creativemac]

Sorry for the vague explanation, but Pauland, you're right, I am masking out objects in a bitmap This is one of the pictures (I have approx. 58 of them). I am cutting each element out, with the bezier tool; the bird, the tree, the flowers, etc. and exporting each to a separate png. Is there a way that I can, mask out a group of them, e.g. ALL the flowers in one go and export them? I did try and mask out several objects, but those remained a black mask and not the actual image. I masked them out individually with the bezier tool, then: 'select all', 'arrange', 'combine shapes', intersect shapes'. Some of the pictures have 6 or 7 teeny, tiny stickmen, and it would be a RELIEF if I could get them all in one go

[Egg Bramhill]

Without knowing exactly how all the resultant png's are to be used for, it's not easy to say the best method to go about it. However, the way I'd go about it as follows.

Remove the background.
It's not white, more a greyish mottle. So start with the mask painter and zoom in an mask colours you wish to keep, but ensure you don't include the background page colour within the mask. You don't need to mask all the areas you wish to keep, just a few areas of that colour.

Next with the eraser tool, erase some of the page background. Best erasing just some from each corner and around the page centre.

Hit Erase Background.

You can then use the Freehand tool to draw around parts you wish to seperate, shift select the picture below and Combine Shapes/Slice (Ctrl+4) Do this as much as you require. You can then either export each individual part as a png with alpha or just use as is to create a montage, pulling in other pices from the other drawings.

I attach the resultant xar file.

EDIT: You don't need to be very acurate at all, nor select all the colours, they will remain provided there's a large colour diffence between the background.

[pauland]

I think Eggs idea is spot on (though why we are both awake at this time, is a mystery).

[Acorn]

I'd been awake too if I'd heard of the killer puffin on the prowl,
Acorn

[creativemac]

hahahahahaha killer puffin?? Admittedly I would have a heart attack if a puffin of this size came flying in overhead!
Egg Bramhill - Thank you so very much for this demo. It's extremely kind of you. Of course, this is absolutely the way to go!!!! I am doing a music video for a children's' song. My thought was to animate the objects. Hopefully, the killer puffin will be flying across some real photos. That's the reason for all the png separation hoopla
I hope you're all sleeping tightly
regards
Linda