Post-Processing Workflow in GIMP

Removing clutter (crop and clone)

Not always do we want to keep everything in the picture.

Crop

If the unwanted object is on the edges of the scene, it can be easily removed by cropping the image:

Given image

  1. select the crop tool (Tools -> Transform Tools -> Crop);
  2. in the options, click 'Fixed' if you want to keep the aspect ratio;
  3. in the options, under 'Highlight' you can choose some assistive guidelines, e.g., 'Rule of thirds';
  4. recompose the image:
    Crop grid
  5. click in the center of the image.
    Crop done

If cropping is not an option, cloning and resynthesizing can do the trick.

Resynthesize

For this to work, the 'resynthesize' plug-in must be installed. This tool can be used as 'smart delete' – select the unwanted object, and the plug-in will attempt to erase it seamlessly.

As an example, let's remove some of the people from this picture.

Pesky humans

To remove personae non gratae, select them (better to select some extra pixels than to miss some). In this example I used Free Select tool:

Select to resynthesize

In the menu, select Filters -> Map -> Resynthesize, and press OK.

Resynthesize done

This tool is not perfect – it doesn't work as well with edges and straight lines. Remeber to remove selection when done (in menu Select -> None).

Clone

The Clone tool works like a brush, but instead of applying solid color, it paints another part of the image. In the example above, we would like to paint rock over the bag:

  1. select the cloning tool (Tools -> Paint Tools -> Clone);
  2. select an appropriate brush (the fuzzy brush usually gives the best result);
  3. place the pointer above the source (the ground in this image);
  4. hold 'Ctrl' key and click on the source;
    Clone select
  5. paint over the obstacle.
    Clone done

Sometimes, for instance, when the background forms a regular pattern, a simple copy and paste can be more useful than more sophisticated tools.


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