Image Editor Object Select: hover, click, and multi-object boxes

Use Object Select in the Image Editor to highlight the object beneath the pointer, commit it with one click, select every object inside a box, combine the result with an existing selection, and refine automatic background removal.

Where: Open an Image Editor node → left tool rail → Object Select (J), or use Select / AI entry points

Before you start

• At least one visible raster layer in the Image Editor document.
• WebGPU for live hover/click object decoding; the automatic selection ladder can fall back when needed.

Key ideas

• Object Select is a live selection tool: Hovering paints a temporary object highlight. Clicking converts the highlighted mask into the normal marching-ants pixel selection, ready for masks, fills, erase, copy, or AI edits.
• A box selects the union of objects: Dragging a box is not the same as Marquee. It samples object masks across the area and unions the distinct objects whose pixels substantially lie inside the box.
• Normal selection algebra applies: Choose Replace, Add, Subtract, or Intersect in the options bar. Shift, Alt, and Shift+Alt temporarily override that mode for a single click or drag.
• Five entry paths converge: The tool-rail gesture, Select Subject (canvas), Select → Select Subject, Select → Select Subject (Layer), and AI Remove Background → Refine with Object Select all use the shared subject-selection ladder and finish as a normal pixel selection.
• Composite versus layer matters: Canvas/composite selection sees the flattened scene and understands objects in context. Select Subject (Layer) analyzes the selected raster’s own source pixels and offsets the contours back into document space.

Steps

1. Open the Image Editor and select Object Select in the tool rail, or press J until Object Select is active.
2. Choose Replace, Add, Subtract, or Intersect in the options bar before selecting.
3. Hover over an object and wait for its tint, then click to commit it. Shift-click adds and Alt-click subtracts regardless of the saved mode.
4. To select several objects, drag a box around them and release; review the resulting object contours rather than expecting the rectangular box to remain.
5. For one automatic full-scene guess, click Select Subject (canvas) or choose Select → Select Subject. With one raster selected, use Select Subject (Layer) for layer-only pixels.
6. After AI → Remove Background, choose Refine with Object Select to load that exact mask as a selection and continue adding/removing objects without another removal pass.
7. Use the selection to add a mask, run AI Fill/Erase/Restyle, copy pixels, delete/clear, or continue with Refine Edge and saved selections.

All entry points

• Tool rail → Object Select (J): hover/click or box gesture.
• Options bar → Select Subject (canvas): whole visible composite, respecting Replace/Add/Subtract/Intersect.
• Select → Select Subject: whole composite, or the active rectangular selection as a multi-object region prompt.
• Select → Select Subject (Layer): exactly one selected raster layer’s source pixels.
• AI → Remove Background → Refine with Object Select: traces the just-created mask and switches tools without rerunning removal.

Selection modes and modifiers

• Replace: discard the prior selection.
• Add: union the new object with the prior selection.
• Subtract: remove the new object from the prior selection.
• Intersect: keep only the overlap.
• Shift: temporary Add.
• Alt/Option: temporary Subtract.
• Shift+Alt/Option: temporary Intersect.

Shortcut family

Object Select uses J. Spot Healing and Patch share that letter; press Shift+J to cycle the family. The options bar always names the active tool, so verify it says Object Select before pointing.

Cached hover behavior

The editor encodes the visible composite lazily on first hover and reuses it. Pointer movement is debounced, only one decode runs at a time, and a newer hover replaces the pending one. Any layer-tree change invalidates the encoding so highlights cannot target an earlier document state.

Tips

• Use composite selection when context helps identify an object; use the Layer command when surrounding layers confuse the result.
• Build a complex selection with Add/Subtract before converting it to a non-destructive layer mask.
• Zoom in after a box selection: separate objects can create several polygons and holes that are hard to judge at Fit view.
• Use Refine with Object Select immediately after Remove Background so you start from the exact automatic matte already applied.

Limitations and important notes

• The Image Editor currently commits the best-scoring SAM mask; Tighter/Looser candidate cycling is exposed in the Flowgen Select Subject card and canvas Select subject dialog, not in this editor tool yet.
• The hover highlight is trailing/debounced rather than a frame-by-frame pointer effect.
• Refine with Object Select creates/refines a pixel selection. Apply that selection back to a mask when the final goal is a refined layer mask.
• Rotation and complex transforms can make a layer-only source selection less representative of the final composite; inspect the result in document space.

Troubleshooting

J activates Spot Healing instead of Object Select

Press Shift+J until the options bar says Object Select, or open the J-family flyout and choose it directly.

Hover highlights an object where it used to be

Make another document edit or switch away/back to invalidate the cached composite. The current implementation invalidates automatically on layer-tree changes.

Select Subject (Layer) is disabled

Select exactly one raster layer. Text, shapes, groups, adjustment layers, or multiple selected layers do not provide the required layer-pixel source.

The box behaves like a plain rectangle

Confirm Object Select—not Marquee—is active, release the drag, and wait for object analysis to finish.

Subtract removed nothing

Start with an existing selection, choose Subtract or hold Alt/Option, then click inside the unwanted object after its hover tint appears.

FAQ

Does Object Select delete pixels?

No. It creates a pixel selection. The next command—mask, clear, fill, copy, or AI edit—determines what changes.

Why does a box select more than one disconnected shape?

That is intentional: Object Select unions distinct object masks inside the region. Use Marquee when the rectangular region itself is the desired selection.

Which Select Subject command should I use?

Use the canvas/composite command for the visible scene, the Layer command for one raster’s source pixels, or the live Object Select tool when you want to choose and refine individual objects interactively.

Related guides

• Select a subject or object across flowmo
• Object Select node: click, add/remove objects, boxes, cutouts, and masks
• Image Editor tool rail: complete reference
• Use AI Fill, Erase, Restyle, outpainting, and Remove Background
• Image Editor layers, masks, adjustments, filters, and workspaces