Image cutout is a photography-post production work that isolates a subject from its background and other elements. Photo cutouts display products or subjects in high-quality and in-detail images to the viewers.
Professional post-production service providers offer 5 types of cutout service for images: simple, medium, complex, multiple, and super complex. Cutouts are used in different industries, such as fashion, advertising, wearables, food, and e-commerce.
Outsourcing photo cutout service from renowned post-production service providers benefits high-quality images, displaying e-commerce products in pristine and realistic condition, saving time and resources, and ensuring visual consistency across all the publishing platforms.
What you’ll learn in this article
- 1 What is an Image Cutout?
- 2 What is the Difference Between Image Cutout, Clipping Path, and Background Removal?
- 3 What are the Types of Image Cutout Services?
- 4 What are the Benefits of Cutout Image Backgrounds?
- 5 How to Choose the Right Image Cutout Service Provider?
- 6 Why Choose Clipping Path Studio for Professional Image Cutout Services?
- 7 Final Overview
What is an Image Cutout?
Image cutout, also called deep etching, is a technique to separate a subject from its original background and other elements in the image and make it available to use for any distribution channels and e-commerce platforms.
Clean and high-quality images are the prerequisite for marketing. Image cutout of the photo editing process extracts the object, eliminates distraction, and prepares it to be placed on any background and platform. For example, a white and transparent background is the most demanding & popular way to represent product images. Social media product images need a vibrant and custom look for brand building. This deep etching service is the best way to enhance the image’s appearance that fits well on different e-commerce platforms. The photo cutout aims to make the following changes to the images.
- Focus on the main subject vividly.
- Adjusts color, and brightness, and creates drop shadows for a natural look.
- Removes image background & unwanted objects for a realistic and detailed view.
- Reduces file size or resizes images without losing the quality to suit commercial purposes.
What is the Difference Between Image Cutout, Clipping Path, and Background Removal?
Image cutout, background removal, and clipping path are closely connected and often interchangeably used by professionals, even in the photography post-production industry. They have very subtle differences, and one comes after another without overlapping.
Image Cutout
Image cutout is a general technique to isolate a subject from the surroundings. Photo editors achieve image cutouts by using different object separation tools and popular photo editing software techniques. Once a subject is clipped, the background gets removed. The cutout is ready to use on any background or kept on a transparent background.
Clipping Path
A clipping path is a specific object separation technique by drawing the vector path around a subject of its background. It is the process of manually creating clippings with tools similar to the pen tool used in Photoshop. This method creates a precise outline for refined and sharp edges. The clipping path cuts the connection between an element and the background in an image. It is specially used in product photography.
Curious about What the is Clipping Path in Photoshop? Discover how this powerful technique can transform your images with precision and professionalism!
Background Removal
Background removal encompasses a broad term of eliminating backgrounds. There are several methods to remove an image’s background; clipping path and deep etching are 2 of those. Other background removal methods include selection tools, magic wand tools, or AI-based automated tools. Background removal is mostly used in e-commerce product background.
What are the Types of Image Cutout Services?
There are 5 types of image cutout services, simple, medium, complex, multiple, and super complex. These categories are subtly defined by the type of images and level of editing complexity.
1. Simple Image Cutout
Simple product image cutout is the process that is applied on simple and curvy items with holes. In the simple deep etching process, the path’s anchor points are smaller than others. Products such as rings, bags, shoes, watches, headphones, and other accessories require simple product cutout images.
- Industries that need simple cutouts: Electronic gadgets, footwear products, and daily used wearables need simple product cutout solutions.
2. Medium Image Cutout
Medium cutout of product images offers professional-level cutout for items having more holes and a round shape. The number of anchor points and paths increases compared to simple ones. Therefore, the applied editing techniques of medium product image cutouts are more advanced than basic. Product images of bags, jewelry, shoes, bracelets, fashion items, and items containing a few embedded transparencies need a medium product image cutout.
- Industries that need medium cutouts: Fashion industry, beauty products, cosmetic brands, jewelry, accessories, etc.
Complex Image Cutout
Complex product image cutout is applied to images where items have complicated shapes, messy backgrounds, holes, embedded transparency, and closed paths. Image editors work with precision and care during complex product image cutouts. It is used for floating fur, jewelry photographs, group close-ups, landscapes, bicycles, chains, furniture, etc.,
- Industries that need complex cutouts: Apparel industry, jewelry products, architecture photographs, indoor photography, etc.
3. Multiple Image Cutout
Multiple cutout product images is a technique that changes singular segments of a product picture by upgrading several contents in images including shading level, size, color, multiple fillings, rotation, effects, and filters. Due to creating high-quality and engaging cutouts, this type of cutout is popular for GIF and Flash composite activity, style indexes, online-based business products, web layouts, design inventory, and many other sectors.
- Industries that need multiple cutouts: Web design and development, online advertising, graphic designing, etc.
4. Super Complex Image Cutout
Super complex product image cutout is applied to product images having tricky shapes or curves inside and outside, model’s flying hair, decorative chairs & chains, and vertical and horizontal zigzag designs. These types of images need a large number of paths and anchor points—a perfect option for using super complex product image cutouts.
- Industries that need super complex cutouts: E-commerce industry, fashion photographs, jewelry items, etc.
Want to master the easiest way to cut out an image like a pro? Read this Photoshop tutorial and take your editing skills to the next level!
What are the Benefits of Cutout Image Backgrounds?
The benefits of cutout image backgrounds are offering clear images, removing distractions, and preparing them to use for any online surface. Cutout creates an attractive, engaging look that evokes customers’ emotions. As a result, image cutout of photo editing services in e-commerce impacts traffic and sales. The importance of image cutouts for other professionals is as follows.
Benefits of Image Cutout Among Photographers
In the photography industry, clear and high-quality product images matter a lot. Cutout service helps photographers get an ideal shape and image format to upload pictures to any online marketplace. It also contributes to strengthening their portfolio. Using professional photo cutout services, photographers receive the following advantages.
- Saves photographers’ time by investing in their expertise
- Enhance image look and quality
- Contributes to creative composition
- Creates professional and consistent results
Benefits of Image Cutout in Advertising Agencies
Advertising agencies crave more leads, connections, sponsorship, and revenues. Top-notch and premium-quality image cutout fulfills advertising companies’ commercial goals. Professional quality images represent brands’ professionalism, highlighting product essence. Advertising agencies use photo cutouts for the following reasons.
- Ensures consistent marketing and branding across all platforms
- Offers flexibility for creative visuals
- Fast turnaround for ad campaigns
- Improves in-house productivity
Benefits of Image Cutout for Product Catalogue Companies
In the e-commerce industry, product catalogs and product listings often need cutout images. Cutout services also offer photo color correction, contrast, white background removal, and many more to highlight the product’s focal points. E-commerce business owners, retailers, online store owners, the apparel industry, and product manufacturers use cutout services to display their products in the best light.
- Impacts in increasing product sale
- Improves product presentation
- Displays product benefits and features
- Makes products attractive and scannable for viewers’ easy understanding
Benefits of Image Cutout in the Magazines and Publications
The fashion industry, offline and online magazines, and publishing platforms frequently use image cutouts to create positive aspects among viewers. Cutout images fulfill file size, composition, quality, and resolution and show images in a polished and glamorous way. It impacts creating brand recognition and credibility among the viewers.
- Scalable results for a larger volume of projects
- Optimizes for print and digital media
- Enforce visual uniformity
- Faster catalog production cycles
- Scalable results for a larger volume of projects
How to Choose the Right Image Cutout Service Provider?
To choose the right image cutout service provider, evaluate these 6 factors: Expertise, service category, and quality, data privacy, client reviews, turnaround time, and pricing structure.
- Expertise: Look for the cutout service provider’s expertise, and how long they are serving in the post-production industry. Companies that have worked for years would have vast tactics, knowledge, and experience to deliver high-quality results effectively.
- Service category, and quality: Check the cutout service provider’s website for their service category and quality. A reliable service provider with a long history has diverse photo editing service categories. Each service category has a sub-team of experts such as ghost mannequins, photo clipping masks, or drop shadow teams. Their expertise includes quality works with variation. You can check how the company serves with its ‘Free Trial’ option.
- Data privacy: Ensure your listed cutout company ensures data confidentiality, has a quality-control process during the post-production process, and ensures the client’s intellectual property.
- Client reviews: A reputed and reliable image cutout service provider has a positive reputation among users and the industry. Check Trustpilot and similar review sites and client feedback about the company’s professionalism and service.
- Turnaround time: Check their turnaround time and how fast they can deliver the project. Inquire directly about their professionalism and client service.
- Pricing structure: A trustworthy company has a transparent pricing structure where photo retouching costs and photo editing costs differ. Clients can compare their pricing models and match their budgets. Many companies offer promotional pricing and bulk discounts- ask your companies about it. Consider the value of your investment.
Why Choose Clipping Path Studio for Professional Image Cutout Services?
Clipping Path Studio (CPS) is an all-in-one outsourcing clipping path company offering commercial-grade image cutout services. It assists professional photographers, e-commerce business owners, online marketers, advertising agencies, and many other professionals with their visual content needs. Our commitment and excellence in skill have earned us the trust of global clients. Global brands, professionals, and e-commerce businesses choose Clipping Path Studio for professional image cutout services for the following reasons.
- Pixel-Perfect Results: Our tech-savvy designers love to handle complex cutouts and serve high-end and pixel-perfect solutions that fulfill e-commerce business demands.
- Fast Turnaround: Save time and resources with our high-end in-house photo editing professionals. We always ensure a quick turnaround time without compromising image quality.
- Affordable Pricing: Clipping Path Studio offers a competitive price rate for any post-production services. Bulk discounts for a large volume of projects, seasonal promotions, festival cut-offs, and other cost-saving deals are available all year round to fulfill all sizes of business demands, ensuring image quality.
- E-commerce Optimized: We offer clear, customer-oriented, high-quality images with different image formats that align with e-commerce and distribution channel requirements and contribute to sales.
- 24/7 Support: Our client service is active 24/7 to offer image editing solutions or assist clients with any queries.
- Hassle-Free Onboarding: After the free trial, we have an easy and effortless 4-step onboarding process respecting clients’ time.
FAQs
How to do image cutout in Photoshop?
To cut out images in Photoshop, you can use 4 types of tools: quick selection tool, object selection tool, magic wand tool, and pen tool. Select the subject with a quick selection tool, lasso tool, or object selection tool, and refine the selection. Create a cutout around the subject and use the brush tool to clean up.
How much do photo Cutout services cost?
The cutout service cost starts from $0.29/image if you hire CPS as your professional image editing solution provider. And the costs will increase as per image complexity level.
Are image cutout services important for e-commerce?
Image cutout service is important to create clutter-free, clean images that boost your e-commerce business. Cutout offers consumers a high-quality, understandable, & product-oriented background that builds viewers’ trust and engagement.
How long does it take to cut out an image?
The time required for an image cutout depends on the image complexity level & editing procedures, project volume, etc. We recommend you discuss the time length with your preferred outsourcing company beforehand.
Final Overview
Here is a summary of what this article has covered so far.
- Image cutout is the image extraction process from the background to use for any colored, custom, or transparent background to fulfill business marketing purposes.
- There are 5 types of image cutouts based on complexity: Simple, medium, complex, multiple, and super complex.
- Industries that need photo cutout services the most are the e-commerce industry, fashion industry, digital marketing, electronic gadget industry, architecture photography, etc.
- Professional image cutout service providers offer faster and pixel-perfect results at affordable pricing. To choose the right image cutout service provider, consider their expertise, service category, and quality, data privacy, client reviews, turnaround time, and pricing structure.
- Cutout provides clean and high-quality images and an enhanced and polished look.