Choose an exact color instead of guessing at values

Use the Color Picker, Swatches panel, or Color panel to get the exact shade you want.

Published July 20, 2026

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00:01

Introduction

[Jan Kabili]: Photoshop has a number of different ways to select color, which we'll take a look at in this video.

If you're following along, you can use this image, from the practice files for this tutorial.

Or you can use an image of your own.

The most full-featured way to select a color

00:14

Choosing colors with the color picker

is the Color Picker.

To open the Color Picker, go down to the Foreground Color box at the bottom of the Tools panel and click there, and the Color Picker opens giving you choices for the foreground color.

A good place to start in the Color Picker, is with this slider which by default shows you different hues of color.

I'll click and drag this slider to get to the hue I'm interested in.

This light blue hue.

But hue isn't the only property of color.

Saturation and brightness are 2 other properties.

And they're represented here in this large box.

So, for example, if I want a dark de-saturated blue I'll come down to the dark area and over to the left for the de-saturated shades of blue.

And then I'll click to select a color.

Or, if I want a bright, very saturated shade of blue, I'll come up here, for bright, and over to the right for saturated.

The color that I choose appears in this square in the new area.

The bottom of the square represents the last color that was selected.

When I have a color I'm happy with I'll click OK.

And that color appears in the Foreground Color box at the bottom of the Tools panel.

And if I'm working with a tool like the Brush tool, that applies color that's the color that it will use.

The Color Picker isn't the only place to go to choose color.

01:42

Selecting colors with the eyedropper tool

We've already seen the Eyedropper tool which you can use to select a color by clicking on it in an image and this is very useful when you need to match a color to the colors already in an image.

There are also 2 panels over on the right that you can use to choose color.

01:58

Using the swatches panel

The Swatches panel and the Color panel.

If these aren't open, you can open them from the Window menu at the top of the screen.

We've been using the Swatches panel throughout this series of tutorials because they're easy to access.

The Swatches panel contains preset chips of color.

To set a foreground color, all you have to do is click on one of these chips, and it appears down here in the Foreground Color box.

The color chips that you've used most recently appear here at the top of the Swatches panel for easy access.

I'm going to click on the Color tab

02:33

Exploring the color panel and workflows

to see the Color panel.

The Color panel is a lot like the Color Picker.

Over on the right, it has a Color slider that you can use to choose a hue, and then it has a large field where you can choose a shade of that hue according to its brightness from top to bottom and its saturation from right to left.

If I select a color here, it appears here in a replica of the Foreground Color box.

And if I go down to the bottom of the Tools panel, I'll find that same color there.

And then I can use it with any of my tools, like the Brush tool.

So that's an overview of the various places to select colors in Photoshop.

You're welcome to use whichever of those methods is most convenient and most comfortable for you.

By the way, if you don't want to save this image, you're welcome to close it without saving, by going up to the File menu and choosing Close.

Or you can just click the X here on the Document tab.

Note: Stock assets provided are for practice purposes only. See terms.

What you’ll learn

Dial in an exact color with the Color Picker

When you need a specific color with precision, the Color Picker gives you the most control of any method in Photoshop. Open it by clicking the Foreground Color box; a hue slider sets the color family, and a large field lets you fine-tune saturation and brightness within that hue. The selected color previews live against the last chosen color so you can compare before committing.

Match a color already in your image with the Eyedropper

Sometimes the color you need is already sitting somewhere in the photo. Click the Eyedropper tool directly on that color in the image. It's the fastest way to keep new edits consistent with tones that are already there.

Access preset colors fast with the Swatches panel

Opening the Color Picker every time you need a color adds friction, especially when your palette is predictable. Recently used chips move to the top, so your most common colors stay within reach.

Fine-tune color with the Color panel

The Color panel offers slider-based control similar to the Color Picker, without leaving the canvas to open a dialog. It's a lighter, always-available alternative for picking color on the fly.

Instruction by: Jan Kabili
Photography by: Martin Hoang
Woodcut Artist: Matt Ritchie

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