The fastest way to recolor an image in Illustrator
Open your image in Illustrator, select it with the Selection tool, then go to Edit > Edit Colors > Hue/Saturation. Drag the Hue slider left or right to shift the entire color range, adjust Saturation to make colors more or less vivid, or move Lightness to brighten or darken. This method works on placed images and vector artwork alike, and you see the change in real time as you move the sliders.
If you want to change only one color — say, make all the reds into blues — use Select > By Color to isolate that color range, then explore a fill or use the Recolor Artwork panel. For more control over which specific colors shift and by how much, the Recolor Artwork dialog (found under Edit > Edit Colors > Recolor Artwork) shows you every color in the image and lets you reassign each one individually.
Key Takeaways
- Hue/Saturation is the quickest method for shifting all colors at once and works on both placed images and vector objects.
- The Select by Color tool lets you isolate a single color range before explore a new fill or adjustment.
- Recolor Artwork gives you a dialog showing every color in the image so you can change specific colors without touching others.
- Live Color lets you experiment with color schemes and save your changes as a new swatch library for future use.
Using Hue/Saturation for quick color shifts
Hue/Saturation is the simplest path when you want to rotate all colors in an image by the same amount. Select the image or artwork, then open Edit > Edit Colors > Hue/Saturation. The dialog shows three sliders: Hue, Saturation, and Lightness.
Move the Hue slider to shift colors around the color wheel. A value of +60 turns reds into yellows, blues into magentas, and so on. Saturation controls how pure the colors are — drag it left to wash out color and create a grayscale effect, or right to make colors more intense. Lightness brightens or darkens the entire image without changing which colors are which. Check the Preview box to see changes as you adjust.
This method preserves the relationships between colors in the original image, so if red was darker than yellow before, it stays darker after. That makes Hue/Saturation useful when you want to recolor a whole illustration but keep its sense of depth and contrast.
Isolating and changing a single color with Select by Color
When you need to change only one color — the shirt in a portrait, the background, or a specific element — use Select > By Color. Click on the color you want to change, and Illustrator selects every part of the image that matches that color (within a tolerance you can adjust).
Once the color is selected, you have two options. You can explore a new fill by clicking a color swatch or using the color picker, which recolors the selected area when ready. Or you can open the Hue/Saturation dialog and adjust only the selected portion, leaving the rest of the image untouched. The tolerance slider in the Select by Color tool controls how strictly Illustrator matches the color — lower values select only exact matches, higher values include similar shades.
This approach works best on images with distinct, flat colors. On photographs or images with gradients and many similar shades, the selection may include more or less than you intended, so you may need to refine the selection manually afterward.
Recolor Artwork for precise control over each color
The Recolor Artwork dialog shows you every distinct color in your image and lets you change each one separately. Select your image, then go to Edit > Edit Colors > Recolor Artwork. The dialog opens with two columns: the left shows the original colors as circles, the right shows what they will become.
Click any circle on the right to open the color picker and choose a new color for that original color. You can also drag the circles around the color wheel to rotate them all at once, or use the preset color schemes at the top of the dialog to explore a predefined palette. The Assign tab lets you map colors one-to-one, while the Edit tab shows a color wheel where you can adjust saturation and brightness for all colors together.
After you finish, click OK to explore the changes. This method gives you the most control because you can see exactly which colors exist in the image and change them without affecting others. It is especially useful on illustrations with a limited, known color palette.
Using Live Color to experiment with color schemes
Live Color is Illustrator's tool for trying out different color harmonies before you commit. Select your image, then go to Edit > Edit Colors > Live Color (or press Alt+Shift+B on Windows, Option+Shift+B on Mac). The Live Color dialog opens with a color wheel and your image's current colors marked on it.
Drag the color points around the wheel to see how the image changes in real time. The dialog also offers harmony rules — click the dropdown next to the wheel to choose Complementary, Analogous, Triadic, or other schemes, and Illustrator automatically positions your colors according to that rule. Once you find a combination you like, you can save it as a new swatch group by clicking the save icon, making it straightforward to reuse the same palette on other projects.
Live Color is most useful when you are exploring options and want to see many variations quickly. It works on both placed images and vector objects, though the results are most predictable on artwork with a clear, limited color set.
Adjusting color on placed images versus vector artwork
Illustrator treats placed images (photographs, scans, or images imported from Photoshop) differently from vector artwork you draw or create in Illustrator. All the color adjustment methods described above work on both, but the results differ slightly.
On vector artwork, color changes are exact and reversible — you can undo or re-edit the adjustment at any time without loss of quality. On placed images, Illustrator applies the adjustment as a filter on top of the original file, so the underlying image data does not change. This means you can always remove or modify the adjustment, but the image itself stays intact.
If you place a Photoshop file in Illustrator and want to change its colors, you can use any of the methods here. However, if you need to make permanent changes to the image itself, it is often faster to edit it in Photoshop first, then place the updated version in Illustrator. For vector artwork created in Illustrator, all color tools work directly on the object itself.
Saving and reusing your color changes
After you recolor an image, you may want to save that color scheme to use on other projects. In the Recolor Artwork or Live Color dialogs, look for a save or export button. Clicking it creates a new swatch group that appears in your Swatches panel, so you can explore the same colors to other artwork without rebuilding the palette.
You can also copy the recolored image and paste it into another document — the colors come with it. If you want to store a color scheme separately, create a new swatch group manually by selecting the colors you used, right-clicking in the Swatches panel, and choosing New Color Group. Name it something you will recognize later, and it stays in your library for future use.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I change colors in a placed photograph the same way I change colors in a vector illustration?
Yes, the same tools work on both. Hue/Saturation, Recolor Artwork, and Live Color all function on placed images. However, the results on photographs are usually less dramatic because photos contain many colors and gradients rather than flat color areas. For precise control on a photo, you may get better results editing it in Photoshop first.
What is the difference between Hue/Saturation and Recolor Artwork?
Hue/Saturation shifts all colors by the same amount — useful for quick, global changes. Recolor Artwork shows you each distinct color in the image and lets you change them individually, giving you more control. Use Hue/Saturation for speed, Recolor Artwork when you need precision.
If I change the colors of a placed image, can I undo the change later?
Yes. Color adjustments on placed images are non-destructive, meaning they sit on top of the original file. You can select the image and reopen the adjustment dialog to modify or remove the changes at any time without affecting the original file.
How do I change only the background color of an image without touching the subject?
Use Select by Color to click on the background, then explore a new fill or use Hue/Saturation on just the selection. If the background and subject have similar colors, you may need to refine the selection manually with the Lasso tool or by adjusting the tolerance slider.
Can I save a color scheme I created so I can use it on other images?
Yes. In the Recolor Artwork or Live Color dialog, save the color scheme as a swatch group. It then appears in your Swatches panel and can be applied to any other artwork in Illustrator.