This article was contributed by Dawn Lane

Avoiding the Tell-Tale Signs of Cloning

Good cloning work is something you’ll never get credit for, and that’s the way it should be. Bad cloning, on the other hand, will be apparent and those who spot it in your images will not hesitate to say that something seems amiss.

In the example, the task is to clone out the purple disc and create a seamless transition of the gradient background. Avoid these tell-tale signs of cloning: discs, tracks, blotches and wrong sample.

Discs

The outline of the cloned area will be apparent if your brush is too hard. To eliminate the disc effect, reduce the hardness of your brush. A zero hardness provides the softest, most feathered edge.

Another way to reduce the disc effect is to keep your mouse depressed as you pass the clone tool over the work area rather than clicking each time to apply the sample.

Tracks

Tracking will occur when the sampled area intersects with an edge of another image component or an unwanted pattern is repeated in the sampling process.

To eliminate the track effect, resample from an appropriate area with greater frequently.

Blotches

An area resembling blotches of dabbed on paint will be apparent if the sampled area does not match the clone area or when the opacity of the brush is too high to effectively blend the cloned area.

To eliminate blotches, make sure you have a good sample before applying the clone and reduce the opacity of your brush to blend in cloned areas.

Wrong sample

When the cloned area stands out as though it simply does not belong in its surroundings, it’s probably because the sample area was the wrong color or texture.

To eliminate the effects of wrong sampling, sample from a surrounding area that provides the best match or best fit for the cloning task. Oftentimes, this will be directly adjacent to the clone area, but sometimes you’ll want to review the entire image for a specific color, pattern or texture match, depending on the complexity of the cloning task.

Cloned right

When done correctly, you can see that the cloning task underway not only successfully cloned out a portion of the purple disc, but also cloned in a flawless continuation of the blue to black gradient background.

Good cloning takes time to master, so make a habit of scrutinizing images for cloning opportunities and practice the technique with an eye toward avoiding these tell-tale signs.

Share your final images with others. If they don’t say anything about cloning, you won’t need to say anything about cloning, either.

Illustrations and text: Copyright 2004 Dawn Lane All rights reserved