Pixelmator Pro, a popular photo editing program, was upgraded today with an enhanced set of AI-powered masking capabilities, making selective editing easier. Masking was “reengineered from the ground up” in Pixelmator Pro’s new 3.6 version, making it faster to build and refine masks.
A new Hide backdrop option uses AI to nondestructively delete an image’s whole backdrop with a single click. The utility detects the image’s subject and applies a backdrop mask to hide the rest of the content.
Masking a layer or making a mask from a layer is as simple as double-clicking the canvas with the Arrange tool. The mask has settings for scaling and repositioning.
When a mask is selected or generated, tools for refining masks appear at the bottom of the screen. These tools make it easier to alter transparency, change edge softness, reverse the mark, add a new mask, etc.
Pixelmator has also added support for vector masks, allowing layers to be masked into specified forms. When you add a vector mask, only the region inside the vector shape is visible, while the rest is concealed. Select a shape from the Mask option at the top of the layers sidebar to mask a layer, or use the Pen tool. Vector masks are editable, meaning each point can be modified like a regular shape.
The new capabilities are free for current Pixelmator Pro users. Pixelmator Pro is $50 and available from the Mac App Store.