How to Auto Fill Background in Photoshop?

The quickest way to auto-fill a background in Photoshop is using the Content-Aware Fill feature.

Here's a breakdown of how to do it:

1. Select the Area to Fill: Use a selection tool like the Lasso Tool, Rectangular Marquee Tool, or Quick Selection Tool to select the area you want Photoshop to automatically fill with background content. This will usually be the empty or extended area around your original image.
2. Access Content-Aware Fill: Go to Edit > Content-Aware Fill…. This opens the Content-Aware Fill workspace.
3. Adjust Sampling Area (If Necessary): The Content-Aware Fill window shows a preview of the filled area and a green overlay indicating the source areas Photoshop is using to generate the fill. If the automatic selection isn't ideal (e.g., it's using elements you don't want in the filled area), you can refine the sampling area.
   • Use the Sampling Brush Tool (looks like a paintbrush) to add or subtract areas from the sampling region (the green overlay). The + mode adds areas, and the - mode removes them.
4. Adjust Fill Settings (Optional): Within the Content-Aware Fill window, you can customize settings like:
   • Color Adaptation: Controls how well the colors in the filled area blend with the surrounding area.
   • Rotation Adaptation: Allows Photoshop to rotate samples to better match the background.
   • Scale Adaptation: Lets Photoshop scale samples.
   • Mirror: Allows mirroring of sampled content for the fill.
5. Output Settings: Choose where to output the fill:
   • Current Layer: Fills the selection directly on the current layer.
   • New Layer: Creates a new layer with the filled area. This is generally recommended for non-destructive editing.
   • Duplicate Layer: Creates a duplicate of the current layer and fills the selection on that layer.
6. Apply the Fill: Click OK to apply the Content-Aware Fill. Photoshop will then generate the fill based on your selections and settings.
7. Refine (If Needed): If the initial fill isn't perfect, you can use other Photoshop tools like the Clone Stamp Tool or Healing Brush to further refine the background.

Alternative Method (Right-Click Method):

As the provided reference suggests, sometimes you can right-click on your selection after making it and choose "Content-Aware Fill" directly from the menu. This is a shortcut that applies the Content-Aware Fill with default settings, bypassing the dedicated workspace. However, using the dedicated Content-Aware Fill workspace offers more control over the process.