Quick Shapes
Use the Lasso tool ( L ) or Polygonal Lasso tool to rough-in a shape. After making your selection, open the Paths panel (Window>Paths), press-and-hold the Option (PC: Alt) key, and click the Make Work Path From Selection icon at the bottom of the panel. Choose a suitable Tolerance from the ensuing dialog and click OK to create the path. Grab the Direct Selection tool (nested under the Path Selection [ A ] tool in the Toolbox) and edit the path as necessary to achieve the proper geometry and smoothness. Control-click (PC: Right-click) the path and select Define Custom Shape, name it, and click OK.
Great tip! I can’t wait to get home and try this one out! The tip of the day is my favorite feature of this site – So many good little tidbits that I didn’t know!! Thank you!!
Thank you so much for this tip! I can’t tell you how much this is helping me right now! I have a job of extracting karate portraits from a flat background and putting them on custom backgrounds. This tip has cut my work time in half. What a great way to use a fast selection tool and not lose the quality you can achieve with the pen tool! Way to go!!