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Cleaning up a scanned drawing or sketch in Photoshop allows you to remove the background, refine the lines, and change colors efficiently. This tutorial covers multiple techniques for achieving a clean and polished result.
Import and Adjust Your Scan
Import and Adjust Your Scan
Open your scanned drawing in Photoshop (File > Open).
If needed, adjust brightness and contrast to enhance the lines (Image > Adjustments > Levels or Image > Adjustments > Brightness/Contrast).
Remove the Background Using Color Select
Go to Select > Color Range.
Use the eyedropper tool to click on the background (typically white or off-white).
Adjust the Fuzziness slider to refine the selection—higher values select more areas.
Press OK, then hit Delete to remove the background.
Deselect the selection (Ctrl + D).
Manually clean up the scan using the Eraser Tool (E)
Refine the Edges
Refine the Edges
If the edges look rough, go to Select > Modify > Expand (by 1-2 pixels) and then Select > Modify > Feather (by 1 pixel).
Use Eraser Tool (E) or Layer Mask for manual clean-up.
Apply a slight blur (Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur) if the lines are jagged.
Change the Background Color
Change the Background Color
Create a new layer (Ctrl + Shift + N).
Drag it below your sketch layer.
Fill it with a color of your choice using the Paint Bucket Tool (G).
Change the Color of the Sketch
Change the Color of the Sketch
Select the sketch layer.
Go to Image > Adjustments > Hue/Saturation.
Check Colorize and adjust sliders to change color.
Final Adjustments and Tips
Final Adjustments and Tips
If any background residue remains, use the Magic Eraser Tool (E) to clean it up.
Adjust opacity or blending modes (Multiply works well for sketches) for a more natural look.
Save as a .PNG if you want a transparent background.
Experiment with different colors!
Last updated by Abigail Green - March 2025
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