best way to extract image

what's the best way to extract images from a complex background?
I tried the old fashioned erase the borders procedure
and the extract function but none seeems to work that great.

plz give any pointers or a link

thanks much

Two words....

"Pen Tool"

become friends with the Pen Tool and you'll get what you are looking for.

Becoming intimately good friends with the Pen Tools is most definitely a good thing.

But without seeing the image, it's hard to say what route to take to clear out the background. What may seem like a horribly complex job to you may not seem so to another user who just may have some techniques that would speed the process.

Having said that, there are simply some extractions that may only happen through hours of hard work, using a varienty of tools and methodologies. I know of a few jobs where I literally spent days getting it just right.

thanks for the help