How to Make Selected Color Photos Using Corel Paint Shop Pro X2

I have always enjoyed digital photo editing and one of my favorite things to do is make selected color photos using Corel Paint Shop Pro X2. You may have seen a lot of selected color photos by photographer Kim Anderson. Those are the ones with the cute little kids in black and white, but their clothes may still be in color. It's a pretty simple process that you can do with any photo, here's how:

Step 1: Open Corel Paint Shop Pro X2.

Step 2: Once you have the program open click on file and select open.

Step 3: Choose the photo you would like to work with, highlight it, and click open.

Step 4: Now that you have your photo open and in front of you we are going to use the selection tool, but first we need to enlarge the photo on screen to make this easier.

Step 5: Choose the area that you would like to keep colored. On the top tool bar click the zoom button. You will want to make the area you are working with as large as possible, but it has to stay visible on the screen.

Step 6: Go to the side toolbar and choose the selection tool. You'll want to use the freehand selection tool. Using the freehand selection tool and your mouse, carefully trace around the portion of the picture you'd like to keep in color. (If you need to select more than one section hold down the shift key while you are tracing)

Step 7: On the top toolbar highlight the selections tab and choose invert. This basically reverses the selection you just made, highlight everything except what you want in color.

Step 8: Go back to the top toolbar and highlight the effects tab. Scroll down to photo images and a box will pop out to the side. Choose black and white film.

Step 9: In the pop up box that appears click on ok. This changes the highlights areas to back and white.

Step 10: Go back to the top toolbar, on the selections tab click select none.

Now you have a selected color photo! Make sure you save your work. (Don't forget to use save as so you don't accidentally erase your original) Now you can choose to print your photo if you'd like!

Tips:

Personally I think this type of digital editing works best when your photos don't have a lot objects in them.

Try leaving different area of the photo in color, for example leave the background in color and the main focus black and white. This is a cool technique for outside pictures.

Use this with pictures of snow. Black and white looks good, but if you use this technique the snow will look really white and beautiful.

Use this technique with some special photos, then frame them and use them in your home for decoration.