Questions and Revisions

I found the first Photoshop assignment to be quite a challenge. While I understood the assignment and had a vision in mind, the tools and procedures where confusing and frustrating. I was happy with my final product, but I wasn't completely satisfied. I wish that I knew how to use the magic wand tool. I thought that I'd have the ability to select an image free of a white background using the tool, but, ultimately, the only thing I got was a weird shape with some dotted lines floating around it. I guess that the problem was that I didn't understand the idea of selecting the inverse. My plan was to actually collage photographic images one on top of the other, overlapping, but I wasn't able to succeed in this venture. In addition, I also didn't understand why I couldn't just click on an image and adjust its size or change its hue or color. I also would have liked to create a more interesting background, perhaps using an interesting pattern or image found on the internet.