Using the Marquee tools

The Marquee tools are used to select a rectangular or elliptical region of the image.

  1. Select the Rectangular Marquee or Elliptical Marquee tool by clicking on its icon in the tool box or by pressing S or E respectively.
  2. Click and drag on the canvas to create the selection.

Selection modifiers

Holding down certain keys while dragging modifies the selection behaviour.

KeyBehaviour
ShiftRestricts the selection to a square (or circle)
CtrlAdds the new selection to the existing selection
AltSubtracts the new selection from the existing selection

Note: The Ctrl and Alt modifiers cannot be used together.

Selection types

The selection types in the options palette allow you to restrict the selection dimensions.

TypeDescription
NormalThe selection is unrestricted.
Fixed Aspect RatioThe aspect ratio (ratio of width to height) of the selection is restricted to the dimensions specified in the options palette.
Fixed SizeThe selection size is fixed and is equal to the dimensions specified in the options palette.