Re: Selection tool problem in Photoshop Elements 8

1. On the Selection brush tool's options bar, set hardness to 100%.
2. When you make the selection, make certain that the border of the selection outline is precise and does not extend beyond the object to be selected. If it does, subtract from the selection. If the selection falls short, add to it. This is critical and operator dependent.
3. Once you have created the selection to the best of your ability, place it on a new layer (CTRL+J)
4. In the layers palette, press CTRL on the keyboard and left click on the layer thumbnail of the selection created in step #3 to make the selection active (should see "marching ants" again) Click on the thumbnail, not the name.
5. Go to Select>refine edge and use the sliders to fine-tune the selection
6. Go to Edit>fill selection with foreground color

Let us know if this works for you.