Is there a way to delete content on a non-square object?

[Ayemav]

I know that I can delete certain areas – say, a background – by highlighting it with the rectangle select tool. I’m also aware that I can use the magic wand or eraser. If it has square edges, I can just use the rectangle select tool with no issues.
 

But what if the angle or edge is non-square? Like a trapezoid. I’ve tried to rotate the layer and use the rectangle select tool again, but it’s a little more challenging than I expected. Is there a better way to do this other than just manually cropping it out? 

[Tactilis]

The magic wand tool may be your best option depending on the differences in colour between the background and the 'object' you are selecting.

Could you post a couple of example images so that people can give you appropriate advice.

 

[Pixey]

Hello @Ayemav and welcome to the forum  

 

The magic wand is good for things like this:

 

 

 

 Also, if you wanted to delete the background instead, same method but Ctrl + I (to invert), then hit delete.

 

 

[BlastOfBN]

I didn’t even realize that CTRL + I was a feature until now actually. I knew how to invert colors on an image, but not a selection.

 

Oh, and I do kind of wish that the magic wand had more smooth edges, similar to the antialiased lasso selection, but I’m not sure how much time that would take to put into Paint.NET.

[Tactilis]

On 2/9/2023 at 8:14 PM, BlastOfBN said:

I didn’t even realize that CTRL + I was a feature until now actually.

 

Then it would pay dividends to systematically explore all the menus...

 

 

...and work your way page by page through the excellent documentation here https://www.getpaint.net/doc/latest/index.html

(click the icon at the top right, or just press F1).

 

 

 

 

[Ego Eram Reputo]

6 hours ago, Ayemav said:

But what if the angle or edge is non-square? Like a trapezoid.

 

As @Pixey suggested, put the shape you want to delete on a new layer. Select it with the magic wand, activate the deletion layer and press Delete.