fastest way to select in batch processing

[ScottWhittle]

Hi All -  I have about 5500 images (illustrations) that have white backgrounds and some text around the central image.  I've already managed to batch remove the backgrounds from them all to create PNG transparencies.  Now I need to create a version of each that doesn't have text (just the central image).  I don't think I can automate this, unless theres a way to recognize text, or to select only the largest object in the image, so I'm thinking I have to actually manually do the selection for each.  This means a very fast gesture with a pen just lassoing the image.  Can anyone suggest the fastest workflow?  The sequence of events is: open image, I make a manual selection, invert selection, delete content, deselect, then save as a new file (something like OriginalFileName_ImageOnly), then open the next image.  Any and all help is apprectiated, and if anyone has a way to select the black text and remove it automatically, I'm all ears!

[JJMack]

If you have a raster image that has text even if you can recognize the text and perfectly select all of it. What are you going to replace the text with.  Content aware can do just so much.  You do not have the images information  required to replace the text with.  That information was lost when the text overlaid  the images data. That was a destructive edit.

[Stephen Marsh]

Sample images would help.

P.S. were the original illustrations scanned/photographed – or were they vector files such as Adobe Illustrator Documents or PDF documents?

[Bojan Živković]

Please provide few examples.It is desired to have some pattern in your images to autmate things easier. What pattern? Pattern like all images are same dimensions and text is always in the same relative position and so on...

[ScottWhittle · Accepted solution]

Looks like I figured it out with a photoshop feature I didn't know - "Select Subject" - I do that and it does a good job of finding the bird - I then run a few Grow commands to be safe, expand selection by 10px to be extra safe, and then oila!  I have just the bird selected.  Thanks for everyone's help!

  

[ScottWhittle]

One other quick thing - if I magic wand the text (tolerance 20, noncontiguous)  it selects only the text!  But if I try the same thing with the color selection tool, I can't get it to select the text only - it always winds up including some of the black in the image.  Not sure if I can finesse that to make it work in my favor.  Thanks!

[Bojan Živković]

I am more on side of Photoshop actions. Using Photoshop actions it is tough stuff that you can do something although it is not impossible but I do not have clear idea at the moment.

[JJMack]

Yes if your original images are like you described a subject on a white  background  With text outside the subject in the whited background a simple select subject action may do a good job.   Flatten, convert background to normal layer, select subject, invert selection , Clear, Image trim or crop to the selection bounds, Batch with image processor pro you can use its resize the subjects to fit into a common size area and saved as png. The script give you much better saving options for destination and file naming than a save in the action.

[Bojan Živković]

I am also testing that feature and it works fine. After running Select Subject use Select > Inverse to inverse selection then Delete and lastly you can use Deselect. I am instructing you to record action which will delete text and everything else beside bird or birds if that is desired result.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

You have been asked to provide samples. 

Why haven’t you done that so far? 

[Bojan Živković]

He did then but later samples disapeared. Anyway, I will mark his own reply as correct since he has found solution.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

Personally I think posting examples in the original post might have been a prudent approach.