How to Change Color in Photoshop

Today, we’ll be looking at how to change color in Photoshop with two easy-to-use tools. The Replace Color adjustment is fast and precise, while a Hue/Saturation adjustment is perfect for a more non-destructive approach. Let’s take a look at both.

What You’ll Learn in This Photoshop Tutorial

• How to change color in Photoshop
• How to use Hue/Saturation in Photoshop 
• How to use Replace Color in Photoshop 

1. How to Change Colors in Photoshop Using Replace Color  

Step 1

First, create a copy of the image layer using Control/Command-J. Replace Color is a destructive setting that will permanently edit the pixels of your image, so it’s best to save a copy. Let’s look at our first way to change a color in Photoshop using Replace Color.

From the top menu bar, select Image > Adjustments > Replace Color from the pull-down menu.

The Replace Color window will appear with the image in the center and several options along the left side.

Step 2

Next, click on the color in the image that you’d like to change. Photoshop will select all pixels that match or are similar to the color you clicked. The selected color will appear as white in the Preview window. 

Step 3

Now, look at the Result color, found at the bottom of the window. By default, it will be the same as the original selected color. Click the Result color to choose a new color. Below, I am going from blue to red. 

Step 4

You can adjust the Fuzziness slider to further control which pixels are selected. The higher the Fuzziness value, the more pixels will be selected. This setting will change from image to image. 

Step 5

You can further adjust the selected colors by using the top three Dropper tools. 

1. The first drop chooses the initial color.
2. The second color will add to the initial color, without resetting the color. 
3. The third dropper will remove from the initial color. 

Below, I used the second Dropper to add the blue highlights of the shirt. Press OK once you’re happy. 

Bonus: Step 6

In this image, the blue sheets of paper were turned red. If you want to pinpoint the color, you can use Layer Masks. 

First, make sure you have a copy of the original photo underneath your edited image. Next, create a rough selection around the edited subject using the Lasso tool. 

Next, add a Layer Mask to the edited image. Everything that’s not selected will become hidden, revealing the original blue paper. 

2. How to Change Colors in Photoshop Using Hue/Saturation

Step 1

We can use adjustment layers as a non-destructive way to modify color in Photoshop.

Create a Hue/Saturation Adjustment layer above the image you want to edit. You can find the adjustment layers in Window > Adjustments. Hover over the icons to see their names. The Hue/Saturation adjustment has an icon of a rectangle with two gradients. 

Alternatively, they can also be found at the bottom of the Layers panel, inside the icon of a half-filled circle. 

Step 2

With the Hue/Saturation adjustment created, double-click the adjustment layer’s icon. This will open the adjustment’s Properties.  

In the Master dropdown, choose the base of the color you want to edit. In this image, the lavender is closest to magenta, so I choose Magentas. 

Step 3

Use the bottom slider to zero in on the hue range you want to affect. 

If you’re having a hard time seeing if the hues you want to change are being selected, try temporarily increasing the Saturation to 100. 

Step 4

Use the Hue setting to change the colors of the affected hues. Use the Saturation to adjust the saturation of the affected hues. You’ll likely want to bring it down from 100 to 50 for a more natural color change.  

That’s It! 

That’s how to change a color in Photoshop. These are two of the fastest ways to modify color using Photoshop, with each tool having its own strengths. I prefer Replace Color for clothes and items, while Hue/Saturation is great for hair, flowers, and other items with lots of fine details.

Looking to learn more ways to change a color in Photoshop? Check out these Photoshop tutorials.

Note: This tutorial was written with the aid of an artificial intelligence tool. It has been thoroughly edited and checked for accuracy by the Envato Tuts+ editorial team.