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Using the Edit Brush

While the tools in Edit mode allow you to make a variety of global adjustments, sometimes you may only want to adjust specific areas of your photos. For example, instead of blurring an entire photo, you may want to blur certain areas, such as the background. To do this, and other local adjustments, you can use the Edit Brush.

The Edit Brush allows you to selectively edit your photo by simply brushing on the effects. The Edit Brush is essentially creating a mask that is used to determine which pixels will be affected by the current settings of the chosen operation.

Edit Brush

The Edit Brush button displays at the center of the top editing panel toolbar for all applicable Edit mode tools.

To Use the Edit Brush:

In Edit mode, select the tool you want to use.
Click the Edit Brush to enter Brushing mode and open the Brush controls. Or, toggle the Brush panel open and closed with the B key.
Specify the brush settings in the panel or on the fly as described in the table below.
Start painting the effects on your photo.
Adjust the sliders to get the effect you want.
Press Done to apply your brush strokes.

Edit Brush Options

Add brush stroke	Brush while holding the left mouse button down.
Erase brush stroke	Brush while holding the right mouse button down.
Adjust brush size	Use the mouse wheel to adjust nib width or adjust the Nib Width slider.
Adjust feathering	Use SHIFT + mouse wheel to adjust the amount of feathering.
Alternating between Brush mode and cursor-applied tools	For filters that involve drawing or clicking on the image, such as Lighting and White Balance, hold down the ALT key to switch from Brush mode to using the tool.
Clear all brush strokes	Removes all brush strokes from the image.
Invert all brush strokes	Toggle this option to invert brushed strokes. This makes brushed areas no longer brushed and untouched areas brushed. This is useful if you want the majority of the image brushed and a small section untouched. Simply brush only the small area you don't want affected and invert the brush strokes.
Load last applied brush strokes	Applies effects to the area most recently brushed and applied.
Show brush strokes	When this option is checked, your brush strokes will be displayed in the color shown. This is helpful when brushing a complex area with a subtle effect, as it can be difficult to tell if you have missed a spot. Alternatively, hold down the S key to see your brush strokes on the image.

When you click the Edit brush and enter Brushing mode, you need to apply brush strokes in order to see any of your adjustments.

To exit Brushing mode, toggle the Edit brush button.

You can also use the Edit Brush with Blend Modes and Selections to alter the way the effect is applied.

The Edit Brush is enabled in many of the editing tools and special effects filters. When it does not make sense to have this option, it is omitted. The Edit Brush is not available in the following tools: Crop, Resize, Lens Distortion Correction, Perspective Correction, Rotate, Flip, Watermark, Text, Red Eye Reduction, Repair Tool, and Selections.