The Clone Stamp Tool / Clone Tool, as it is known being used in many digital image editing softwares to replace information for one part of a picture with information from another part. In some image editing software, its equivalent is sometimes called a rubber stamp tool or a clone brush.

A typical use for the tool is in removing or duplicating objects.

If a part of an image is removed simply by cutting it out, then a hole is left in the background. The Clone tool can fill in this hole convincingly with a copy of the existing background.

A common usage is in retouching skin, particularly in portraits; in this way one can remove blemishes (pimples, moles, or scars), and make skin tones more even. Cloning can also be used to remove other unwanted elements, such as telephone wires, an unwanted bird in the sky, and the like.

The Clone Stamp tool is the most useful in image fixing. It paints one part of an image over another part of the same image. It is useful for duplicating objects or removing a defect in an image.

To use the Clone Stamp tool, you set a sampling point on the area you want to copy (clone) the pixels from and paint over another area. Then drag over the area of the image you want to copy the sampled pixels to.

You can use pen options(radius, hardness and opacity), which gives you precise control over the size of the clone area and how paint will be applied to the cloned area.

• Run Clone Stamp Tool from the desktop or start-menu.
  
• Set pen options for the radius, hardness and opacity in the options bar.
  
• Set the sampling point by positioning the pointer in any open image and Alt-clicking
  
• Drag over the area of the image you want to correct.