Paste Into Selection for a
Fresh Change of Scene

Paste and Paste Into Selection in Photoshop Elements can be confusing if you don't learn the difference between them. You might already be familiar with the Paste command. You either select part or all of an image and then go under the Edit menu and choose Control-C (Mac: Command-C) to copy your selection. Then you press Control-V (Mac: Command-V). That will paste whatever you originally copied onto a new layer and you can move it to where you want it.

The Paste Into Selection command lets you paste your copy into a different selection. Follow this tutorial to see how this is done.

STEP 1
Open the photo you want to change using Photoshop Elements.


STEP 2

Open the image you want to borrow the scene from. Press Control-A (Mac: Command-A) to select the whole image. Press Control-C (Mac: Command-C) to copy the image.


STEP 3

Go to the original photo again and duplicate the Background layer by dragging it onto the Create New Layer icon at the top of the Layers palette. Make a selection of the area you want to replace. In this case it's the window area.



STEP 4

Now go up to the Select menu and choose Save Selection. When the dialog window opens type in a name and click OK. This will let you open your photo anytime in the future and put in a different scene without having to redo your selection. You can just load the saved selection by going to the Select menu and choosing Load Selection.


STEP 5

Now for the moment we've all been waiting for. Go under the Edit menu and choose Paste Into Selection or use the keyboard shortcut: Shift-Control-V (Mac: Shift-Command-V).

The photo you copied back in Step 2 will be pasted into your selection. Move it to the position you want it. It will only appear within the selected area, but you can move it so the part you want to see shows through. When the photo's where you want it, deselect to commit the change. Once you deselect you can't move it anymore.

Here's a look at the before and after:

The Paste Into Selection technique works great for changing the scenery outside a window like we did here, although you might want to do it for a house or building window. Or you could change what you see when you look at a window from the outside (you could paste a person into the window looking out). It's also good for putting a picture into a screen like a TV or camera view finder. Another use would be to change the reflection you see in sunglasses.

That wraps up this Photoshop Elements tutorial on how to use the paste into selection. See more Photoshop Elements tutorials by clicking on the link at the bottom of this page.

If you have comments, questions or requests please don't hesitate to use the Contact form to let me know.

Until next time,
Rick

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