Using Eye Dropper, Color Sampler, Notes, and ruler tools

In this tutorial, we are going to learn about using Eye Dropper Tool, Color Sampler Tool, Notes Tool and Ruler Tool. This tutorial is going to be a lengther one as we are put 4 tools together. Ok, Now lets get started with this tutorial.

Eye Dropper Tool (Shortcut – I)

Eye Dropper Tools is the five icon or option in photoshop. This tool helps to define the foreground and background color. Let’s say that you like an particular colour in a image or a picture, but you don’t know the color code for that colour, in these cases eye dropper plays a vital role. You can just select the Eye dropper tool (shortcut key – I) and just click over the portion or area which has the colour that you want or you don’t know the color code, photoshop will take care of the rest. It will automatically detect the color that you clicked and will set that color color as your foreground color.
If you like to set background color, it very easy you can just hold down ALT key on your keyboard while clicking over a color. This is will set the background color.

The other way is, you can just double click on the background color icon, and just use the eye dropped. This will do the same as holding the ALT key. I recommend using the ALT key, it helps saving some time.

Menu Bar Options

In the Options bar, you can change sample size (the Eyedropper’s range) the “Point Sample” picks up the color from the pixel you click on all the other samples read average values from larger areas (movie).

Color Sampler Tools (Shortcut – I)

Color Sample Tool is the kept with Eye Dropper Tool. You can select the color sampler tool by right clicking on eye dropper tool, you will be see the other tools, in which you can see color sample tool.Color Sampler Tool allows you to view color values in defined spots of your image.

Click on the image where you want to set the first sampler. Sampler no.1 will appeare in Info palette that shows the current values in your color channels. You can set up to four color samplers on your image.

Samplers get saved in your image, so you can know color values in defined spots even after you reopen the photo or image.

Menu Bar Options

You can change sampler size or range. Point Sample reads out values from a single pixel, 3 by 3 and 5 by 5 read average values from larger areas. You can move samplers with Color Sampler Tool to any other spot to read color values from.

As default a sampler’s readout on info palette depends on color mode of your image (on animation – RGB); you can however choose other readout: right-click on a color sampler and choose in context menu other color mode. To hide / show annotations use Ctrl+H shortcut. To delete a sample, either use context menu (movie) or Alt-shift-click on it (mouse-click holding Alt+Shift keys pressed).

Ruler Tool

The Measure Tool calculates distances and angles in the work area.
In the Toolbox, select the Measure Tool.

To calculate distance from one point in the work area to another, drag line between the points.

In the Info palette and in the Options bar, you can read the measuring line data:

X, Y – coordinates of the starting point
W – horizontal length
H – vertical length
A – angle relative to the axis
D1 – total length
D2 – total length of second line

To measure other distance, you can just drag another measuring line, or drag an end of existing one to resize it. To measure an angle, crate a protractor by alt-drag ging (drag holding Alt key pressed) at an angle from one end of the measuring line. To constrain the Measure Tool to multiples of 45, shift-drag (drag holding Shift key pressed).To hide / show annotations use Ctrl+H shortcut.

To completely remove measuring line, just drag it out of the image.

Notes Tool

You can add notes to your images using notes tool. The notes that you make are not going to be visible when you finished it(i.e saved it as a image file). You can make a note just by clicking or dragging on the image having notes tools selected. This opens a text box, where you can add notes.
When you finished adding text to your note, you can just minimize it, you can create another note by dragging again.

If you like to edit the old note, then just double click on the notes icon that is seen inside your image, this will bring the text box again, you can just edit your text.


You can just hide the notes by pressing CTRL+H. If you want the notes to appear again, press CTRL+H again. To delete a note right-click on that note and you can se a delete option, or you can even delete it by pressing Delete button on your keyboard.