Tip: Combine different Generative Fill variations

Introduction

When you use Generative Fill in Photoshop, it creates three variations.

It can be tough to choose which variation you want to use.

Why not combine more than one?

Hi, I'm Colin Smith, from www.photoshopcafe.com and today I'm going to show you how to combine the best parts of different Generative Fill variations using layer masks inside of Photoshop.

Removing unwanted elements with Generative Fill

So the first thing we want to do is get rid of these other people that are ruining her vacation photo.

So, let's grab our Lasso Tool and we're going to make a selection around the areas you want to remove.

We want to remove these people and generate content that blends with the surrounding scenery.

So, go to the Contextual Taskbar and click on Generative Fill.

Leave this prompt blank so it removes the people and generates new content and perfectly blends it with the surrounding image.

Click on Generate.

Generative Fill did a great job of replacing it and we get three variations.

Now which one to use?

Evaluating and comparing generative fill variations

If we click on the second one.

I really like what it's doing down here in the background, but in the foreground, the trail doesn't look very good.

If I click on number three, the trail looks perfect, but I'm not so excited about the background and the way it blends with the arm.

So, we can use both.

So let's choose the second variation

Combining variations using duplicated layers

and now we're going to duplicate the layer.

So, let's drag the layer into the New Layer icon and it creates a duplicate.

Notice a duplicate has all the variations too.

Click on the third variation.

So, now we want to keep the path on this variation but use a background from the variation underneath.

Blending the best results with layer masks

Select the layer mask, choose Black for your foreground color, choose the Brush Tool and a Soft Round brush.

So when we paint on a layer mask using a black brush, it hides the contents of that layer and allows the layer underneath to show through.

In this case, we're hiding the portion that we're painting on on the top Generative layer and allowing the Generative layer underneath to show it through to create the perfect fill for us.

Here we are before and after.

So, now we're choosing the best part of two different variations to get an even better result.

Why don't you give this a try next time you're removing something in Generative Fill in Photoshop?