: GIMP - change color of object preserving feathering I have an .xcf image and I like to change the color of some objects within it. The objects are mostly one solid color with the edges feathered

@Sue6373160

I think I found the easiest way to do this (at least for me), running GIMP 2.8.3.


Open the image to change.
Select the pen.
In the upper right, select the tab that's 3 layers: RGB.
In the cell regarding alpha, click it so it's no longer selected.


Now, when you draw, the colours can change, but the alpha won't.


Draw the desired colour over the existing pixels. Make sure to get
the whole image.


Voila! It's in another colour, but the alpha stays the same.

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@Si6392903

your background is already transparent, then lock it and you can use the Bucket Fill tool. Retains the feathering and you can use any ol' color you like!

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@Debbie163

I just figured this out too. I'm designing my logo and have a transparent background so I can apply the logo anywhere.

If your background is already transparent, then lock it and you can use the Bucket Fill tool. Retains the feathering and you can use any ol' color you like!

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@Eichhorn212

You could also convert the transparency into a layer mask using Layer → Mask → Add Layer Mask... and selecting the "Transfer layer's alpha channel" option.

This will let you edit the color and transparency components of the layer independently. In particular, to recolor an object, you can just select a region around it and fill it with a solid color.

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@Vandalay110

Personally my favorite approach is Color->Hue, Saturation... and use sliders.

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@BetL875

Try checking the "Lock" option for the layer (which prevents transparent pixels from being filled), then use the Fill Bucket. If that doesn't work, you may have to take a slightly roundabout approach. From what I can tell (I'm taking this from the documentation as I don't have Gimp installed) this will work:

Add a black layer below your feathered white layer, so that what you see is your white feathered object against a black background.

Right-click one of the RGB channels (they should all be the same) and choose "Duplicate Channel" to make an alpha channel that looks like your regular composite view.

Delete or hide the black layer.

Create a fresh blank layer, then turn your saved channel into a selection by right-clicking and choosing "Channel to Selection".

Fill the selection with your new color, and hide the white layer.

(Note: In Photoshop, you add Shift to the keyboard shortcut for Fill -- the Backspace/Delete key plus Ctl/Cmd for background color or Alt/Option for foreground -- as the quick way to fill while preserving transparency. The Gimp UI does things a differently, but I would expect there is a similar keyboard shortcut somewhere, if you poke around in the documentation.)

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@Cofer715

If you have an option to merge a layer by "darkening only," you might eliminate the white halo effect you are seeing, but I doubt it will be perfect.

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