Tutorial (GIMP): Making an Image Transparent

Sometimes you have an image with an opaque background that blocks whatever is behind the image. In many cases, this is undesirable. However, replacing the background with a transparent background is a simple solution to this problem. Here is how you make an image transparent in GIMP


Note: Most screenshots are enlarged to show detail


Making an Image Transparent
1. Open image in GIMP
2. In the Layers dialog, Right click the main layer, and click "Add Alpha Channel" if it is not greyed out.

Step 2

3. Select the Fuzzy Select tool (Magic Wand icon)
4. Select background areas
5. Press the Delete key to delete these parts of the background, leaving a transparent background.

Steps 4-5

6. Save the image as PNG image (.png) to preserve transparency

Here are the original and final images side by side to show the difference transparency makes. (Note: Blogger puts a background behind the images)