Color range in CS4

[rovanpera]

It seems you can get better quality color selections with the new Color Range tool in the mask window, than with the Color Range menu tool...

I think the reason for lesser quality with the Color Range menu tool is that it gives you a selection, not a channel/mask, maybe the selection is only 8 bits, whereas masks/channels can be 16 bit or more...  

the example is the color range Cyan selected both ways, and the same steep levels adjustment applied to both masks...

the original file is 16 bit rgb.
[attachment=17684:color_range.jpg]

[Schewe]

I think the reason for lesser quality with the Color Range menu tool is that it gives you a selection, not a channel/mask, maybe the selection is only 8 bits, whereas masks/channels can be 16 bit or more...

Yes...



Channels and Layer Masks are 16 bit (well, 15 bit + 1) while selections are only 8 bits...

[gss]

Yes...



Channels and Layer Masks are 16 bit (well, 15 bit + 1) while selections are only 8 bits...

Could you elaborate on this?  If I do a selection by any means, and then hit Command-J, would I now have only 8 bits in that new layer?

[Schewe]

Could you elaborate on this?  If I do a selection by any means, and then hit Command-J, would I now have only 8 bits in that new layer?

No, it would be 16 bit...

The active selection (the dancing ants) is what's 8 bit. So, if you have a selection that has a soft edge gradation, that gradation would be 8 bit. This generally doesn't cause too many problems unless you are doing substantial modification to an active selection.

So, since a channel can be 16 bit, you are better off doing any modification to what _WILL_ be a selection while it's in the 16 bit state as a channel BEFORE turning it into an active selection.

[gss]

No, it would be 16 bit...

The active selection (the dancing ants) is what's 8 bit. So, if you have a selection that has a soft edge gradation, that gradation would be 8 bit. This generally doesn't cause too many problems unless you are doing substantial modification to an active selection.

So, since a channel can be 16 bit, you are better off doing any modification to what _WILL_ be a selection while it's in the 16 bit state as a channel BEFORE turning it into an active selection.

Thank you very much for the quick response.  I was sweating bullets thinking that I had done severe damage to poor, innocent pixels without realizing it.