Add a Transparent Background to an Existing Picture

• 1). Open a picture in Paint Shop Pro 8. Click "File" and "Save As." Type a new file name, then select "GIF" or "PNG" as the file type.
  
  
• 2). Select the "Selection" tool from the toolbar. Select the edges of the subject in your picture. Click "Selections," then click "Invert."
  
  
• 3). Select the "Fill" tool from the toolbar. Select a color as the background color in the "Materials" palette. Make sure the chosen color doesn't appear in your subject, or portions of the subject will become transparent. Right-click within the selection area in the background of your picture.
  
  
• 4). Click "Image," then "Palette" and then "Set Palette Transparency." If prompted to reduce your picture to a 256-color image, click "Yes."
  
  
• 5). Click "Set the transparency value to the current background color." Ensure that your chosen color is shown as the background color. Click "OK." Click "Image," then "Palette" and then "View Palette Transparency" to see the transparent background.
  
  

Create a New Image with a Transparent Background

• 1). Click "File," and then "New." Choose whether the dimensions of the new image should be in pixels, inches or centimeters, and then set the dimensions in the fields provided. Select the resolution of the new image. Choose whether the picture should have a raster or vector background. Select "16 Million Colors (24 bit)" by "Color depth."
  
  
• 2). Select the check box beside "Transparent," under "Color." Click "OK" to create the new image.
  
  
• 3). Open an image you would like to place on the transparent background. Select the image subject using the "Selection" tool. Resize the source image by clicking "Image" and "Resize" if it's significantly larger than the new destination image. Click "Edit" and "Copy" from the Paint Shop Pro menu. Select the new image you just created. Click "Edit," then "Paste" and "Paste as New Selection." You can also draw or paint directly over the transparent background, if you prefer.