Photoshop Smart Tips and Tricks

Adobe Photoshop, Making The Impossible Possible

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 17:38:00 +0000

Are you looking for a way to improve how you take your pictures? Even if you have that ultra expensive SLR camera, you just can\'t seem to do what the professional photographers do best, which is to take professional looking photographs. You have all the latest photography accessories and still you can\'t take high quality pictures. You need to remember that before professionals develop the photos they take, they first edit it using a photo editing software, such as Adobe Photoshop.

Today, Adobe Photoshop is one of the most popular photo editing software programs available today. It is very easy to use and it also provides all the necessary tools you need in order to edit your digital photos.

For example, if you want to make someone look a little bit younger, you can simply edit out the wrinkles and age spots using the smudge tool in the Adobe Photoshop. The liquefy gallery in Adobe Photoshop also has tools that will make someone fat look thinner and vice versa. This is only a sample of what this photo editing software can do.

In fact, even if you took pictures in bad lighting condition, you can easily edit the photo using Adobe Photoshop and make it look like as if it was taken with a very good lighting condition. As you can see, this is usually what professional photographers do. They are able to get the best lighting conditions because they make it so by using Adobe Photoshop.

There are quite a lot of tools that you can use in Adobe Photoshop. You can paste objects from another picture in to another picture. For example, if you want to be beside a celebrity, you can do it with Adobe Photoshop. By adjusting the lighting effects as well as doing a bit of erasing and editing, you can make it look like it was real.

In fact, you can even change the clothes of someone with Adobe Photoshop. It may require a bit of work, but it will produce great results. These are just some of the few things that you can do with Adobe Photoshop. There are so many effects that you can try with this software.

Another great effect is by turning old black and white photographs new again. If you have a scanner, you can scan the old black and white photographs and repair or restore it. In fact, some professional photographers can even make the black and white photographs in to colored photographs by just using this photo editing software.

There are so many possibilities that you can do with Adobe Photoshop. Although it may be hard to master especially when you are just a beginner in the world of photo editing, you will see that with experience, you will be able to get the hang of it and start converting your amateur looking photographs in to professional looking ones.

With the tools that Adobe Photoshop needs, you can be sure that any pictures you take will be able to become something magical. Whether you have a problem with the red eye phenomenon, or the bad lighting conditions, you can be sure that Adobe Photoshop will be there to rescue you.

So, the next time you take pictures with your SLR camera and you still can\'t get it right, just remember that with Adobe Photoshop, you can get everything right.About the Author:

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Making the Impossible Possible With Adobe Photoshop

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Adobe Releases Camera Raw 5.3 and Lightroom 2.3 GMs

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Thu, 07 May 2009 11:41:00 +0000

Adobe has released the final versions of Photoshop Lightroom 2.3 and Camera Raw 5.3, available immediately for download at www.adobe.com/downloads/updates/.

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Second Mac Trojan Attacks Pirated PhotoShop CS4

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Sun, 03 May 2009 23:38:00 +0000

Source: PC Magazine

Security firm Intego said this week that it has discovered a second version of the Trojan hiding within a pirated version of iLife ‘09. The new variant is being distributed via BitTorrentwithin Adobe Photoshop CS4 for the Mac.

According to Intego, the new Trojan is named OSX.Trojan.iServices.B. The PhotoShop installer being distributed is clean, Intego said; however, the accompanying serial-number generator contains the Trojan.

Read full article

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Photoshop CS4 and Bridge CS4

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 10:38:00 +0000

Photoshop CS4 wouldn't leave Bridge CS4 behind which in some ways still lacks the speed and ease of use of Lightroom 2. On the bright side we still found some improvements and innovations here.

Bridge CS4 brings back the collections panel and this time includes ‘Smart Collections’, which you can use to build collections based on selected criteria. There is also an Auto-Collect feature that can cleverly analyze photos in a folder and stack them according to whether they are candidate images for creating panoramas or Merge to HDR image sets. It does this by analyzing if the photos were shot within an 18 second time frame and whether they overlap a little or a lot. It can be a little slow, but it does work automatically.

Another new feature would be the one-click preview option designed for Bridge CS4, where you just click with the space bar, to make selected images appear full frame on the screen. You can then use the keyboard arrow keys to navigate through the selected images.

Photoshop CS4 still has a long way to go match the speed and functionality of the features it happens to share with Lightroom 2.

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Content-Aware Scaling in Photoshop CS4

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 13:12:00 +0000

Content-Aware Scaling has to be one of the main features in Photoshop CS4. Advertising and design photographers will appreciate the benefits of being able to adapt a single image to multiple layout designs.

To use the content-aware scale feature, you need an image that’s on a normal layer (not a Background layer) and you simply go to the Edit menu and choose Content-Aware Scale. You can then drag the handles that appear on the bounding box for the selected layer to scale the image, making it narrower/wider, or shorter/taller.

Another ground breaking tool brought to you by Adobe Photoshop CS4

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Photoshop CS4 New User Interface and Extras

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 19:47:00 +0000

With the new release some of the most noticeable changes are in the interface design and structure. The panels can be docked within an application frame as well as the ability to easily access different workspace settings from the new application bar at the top.

The use of keyboard shortcuts to select specific tools still plays a big role in Photoshop CS4, but if you hold the key down instead, you can temporarily switch to using the tool associated with that keyboard shortcut. Release the key and you can revert to working with the previously selected tool.

This is just the beginning...

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Photoshop CS4 New Features

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 19:00:00 +0000

A new version and new hopes are awaken. Photographers will be very pleased with some the new changes in this released. Photoshop now has a smart dark gray interface and adopted a task-based approach to image editing and this can be seen in the way image adjustments are now accessible within their own panel. When you combine this with the ability to non-destuctively edit a layer mask, you’ll discover that the Photoshop CS4 image editing system offers the most flexible yet for pixel image editing.

Some of the key features in Photoshop CS4 include:

The new CS4 interface
One key shortcuts
Adjustments panel
Color Range selections
Masks panel
Content-aware scaling
Depth of field blending
3D object and property editing

There are many more features and enhancements included in this new monster of image editing, but they're just too much to cover. I'll be going over some of these new features over the next following weeks.

Now I leave you with some information you might want to keep in mind before upgrading to Photoshop CS4.

System requirements:

Windows

1.8GHz or faster processor
Microsoft® Windows® XP with Service Pack 2 (Service Pack 3 recommended) or Windows Vista® Home Premium, Business, Ultimate, or Enterprise with Service Pack 1 (certified for 32-bit Windows XP and 32-bit and 64-bit Windows Vista)
512MB of RAM (1GB recommended)
1GB of available hard-disk space for installation; additional free space required during installation (cannot install on flash-based storage devices)
1,024x768 display (1,280x800 recommended) with 16-bit video card
Some GPU-accelerated features require graphics support for Shader Model 3.0 and OpenGL 2.0
DVD-ROM driveQuickTime 7.2 software required for multimedia features

Mac OS

PowerPC® G5 or multicore Intel® processor
Mac OS X v10.4.11-10.5.4
512MB of RAM (1GB recommended)
2GB of available hard-disk space for installation; additional free space required during installation (cannot install on a volume that uses a case-sensitive file system or on flash-based storage devices)
1,024x768 display (1,280x800 recommended) with 16-bit video card
Some GPU-accelerated features require graphics support for Shader Model 3.0 and OpenGL 2.0
DVD-ROM drive
QuickTime 7.2 software required for multimedia features

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Adobe Introduces Photoshop CS4 and Photoshop CS4 Extended

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 02:15:00 +0000

Adobe Systems Incorporated announced Adobe Photoshop CS4 and Photoshop CS4 Extended, which has become the professional industry standard software for digital imaging. Providing a fluid user experience, complete creative control and higher efficiency, Photoshop CS4 leverages the power of the latest hardware to extend imaging possibilities and offer faster, more flexible ways to accomplish core tasks like image adjustments and masks.

Photoshop CS4 software now makes impossible tasks, possible. Content-Aware Scaling adds a revolutionary technology that enables users to intelligently size and scale images with a simple drag of the mouse. New Auto-align and Auto-blend modes generate composites based on extended depth of field and 360 degree panoramas now with seamless tones and colors.

Finding, previewing and managing image assets jumps to a new level of power and convenience with Adobe Bridge CS4, beginning with fast start-up performance, right through to speedy transfer of images to Photoshop CS4. New path-bar navigation and workspace selection buttons across the top of the Bridge window let you instantly go to just the right display for every task. Also included are new Camera Import controls, visual folder navigation, and a Carousel View for larger image-group selections.

Photoshop CS4 Extended includes all the new features of Photoshop CS4 plus the ability to manipulate 3D imagery easier than ever before. Now, creativity knows no bounds, as users can paint directly on 3D models and surfaces, merge 2-D files onto 3D images and animate 3D objects. The 3D engine has been rebuilt from the ground up to provide faster performance, allow editing of properties like light and the ability to create more realistic renderings with a new high-quality ray-tracer. Video professionals have the ability to turn any 3D object into a video display zone and can animate 3D objects and properties with ease. In addition, the core motion graphics editing has been improved with more efficient single-key shortcuts.

Photoshop CS4 Extended software continues to challenge traditional use, allowing medical professionals to volume render multiple medical image scans (DICOM image stack) into a volume that can be viewed from all angles.

Adobe Photoshop CS4 and Photoshop CS4 Extended for Mac OS X on Intel® based and PowerPC® based systems and for Microsoft® Windows® XP and Windows Vista® platform are scheduled to ship October 2008 with availability through Adobe Authorized Resellers and the Adobe Store at www.adobe.com/go/gn_store . Estimated street price for Adobe Photoshop CS4 is US$699 and US$999 for Photoshop CS4 Extended. Upgrade pricing is available. For more detailed information about features, upgrade policies and pricing, please visit:www.adobe.com/photoshop.

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Adobe Releases Camera Raw 4.6 RC

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 02:08:00 +0000

To solve new camera compatibilities issues, Adobe has released a preliminary version of Camera Raw 4.6. In addition to Camera Raw 4.6, DNG Converter 4.6 has also been released. People who have new cameras and wish to import those images into Lightroom 2.0 will need to use the DNG Converter until Lightroom is also updated.

The downloads are available from Adobe Labs.

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7 Ways To Open The Gates To Creative Graphic Design

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 02:19:00 +0000

Many times novice designers are under the misconception that they have to be glued to the computer 24/7 to open the gates to creativity... They are wrong!

Creativity has no limits, but blocking the world will stop it on its tracks for sure. I have compiled a list to help unleash your creativity, so please follow my lucky number 7 before you lose your mind.

1- Visit different sites and blogs for inspiration.
OK, here comes the tricky part, I said inspiration not stealing. Make it a point to spend at least 10 to 20 minutes surfing the web every day to look at different sites. This time that you spend will help your weak and strong points as well as the do's and don'ts of graphic design.

2-Get out of the house
If you've had the same blank canvas in front of you for the past 30 minutes it means that it is time to take a break. Go to the mall, go get something to eat or to a friend's house to clear your mind.

3-Travel
A lot of times this is a little out of the budget, but the change of scenery often helps to expand horizons and creativity. Make it a point to put some money aside from time to time and keep an eye on cheap flights and take a trip anywhere.

4- Hit the books and tutorials every now and then.
This goes for both beginners and experienced designers. There are always new tools and techniques coming out and you have to keep yourself competitive. Sometimes these tutorials might be simple, perhaps even ridiculous, but you will be surprised how often a few tweaks here and there can turn these steps by steps into master piece creations.

5-To be or not to be open to constructive criticism?
Show your work to different people and listen to what they have to say. Remember that as a designer you design for others. If your work is not appealing to others it means that you will have to get back to the lab. Process and keep in mind the feedback that you receive for future projects or revision of current ones. Sometimes a simple suggestion will jump start your creativity, you will be surprised how far you can go.

6- Exercise!
In order to keep your mind sharp your body must be in a good condition as well. There are times when work loads are heavy, time is short and stress is overwhelming. Take 30 to 45 minutes to go for a jog or lift light weights. You will feel refresh and ready for anything.

7- Last but not least… A good night sleep
Draw the line and stop being a workaholic. You need to let your mind rest. Learn to value and cherish the 7 or 8 hours of sleep you are entitled to. If you don’t rest enough chances are you will have to do a lot of things over.

Well I hope these tips are helpful, what I’m trying to make you understand is that one thing is pushing and abusing yourself are two different things. So go ahead and give it a shot, you will see how much progress you make in less time.

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Adobe Photoshop Elements 7

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 00:43:00 +0000

Available for Windows®, Photoshop Elements 7 makes it quick and easy to organize, edit, create and share amazing photos with others by leveraging the editing power of Photoshop software, the professional standard for image editing. In addition, Adobe Premiere Elements 7 software comes with a complete video-editing solution which is available separately or together in a single retail bundle package, Adobe Photoshop Elements & Adobe Premiere Elements bundle give users the an easy and complete way to approach photo and video editing.

Adobe Photoshop Elements 7 and Adobe Premiere Elements 7 for Windows will be available in local retail outlets such as Best Buy, Circuit City, Costco (Photoshop Elements 7 only), Office Depot, Office Max and Staples in October 2008. Consumers can pre-order the products at www.adobe.com , www.amazon.com ,www.bestbuy.com and www.costco.com . The products will be available separately for US$99.99. Photoshop Elements 7 & Premiere Elements 7 bundle also will be available for US$149.99.

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Adobe Releases the GM Version of Camera Raw 4.5 and DNG Converter 4.5

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 14:16:00 +0000

Adobe has released the final version of Camera Raw 4.5 as well as the DNG Converter 4.5. The updates are available for download from the Camera Raw Product Page.

In addition to new camera support (now at over 180 cameras), Camera Raw 4.5 and DNG Converter 4.5 also adds support for rendering the newly released Lightroom 2 functionality.

The direct download pages are here; Macintosh, Windows

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Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 18:26:00 +0000

Adobe Systems Incorporated announced on July 29 the availability of Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® 2 software, the photographer’s essential toolbox for managing, adjusting and presenting large volumes of digital photographs. With new enhancements such as dual-monitor support, radical advances in non-destructive localized image correction, and streamlined search capabilities, Lightroom 2 is a compelling upgrade that simplifies photography from shoot to finish. As Adobe’s first application to support 64-bit for Mac OS X 10.5 Macintosh computers with Intel® processors and Microsoft® Windows® Vista® 64bit operating systems, Lightroom 2 also provides improved memory performance for dealing with large scale images.

Modules and Features:

•The enhanced Library module in Lightroom 2 helps streamline and accelerate photographers’ workflows.

•The Suggested Keywords feature helps photographers keyword their images by making intelligent suggestions based on their own previous efforts.

•New dual-monitor support allows users to expand their workspace, giving them flexibility to edit and organize images in a way that maximizes an additional display.

•In the Develop module, the new Local Adjustment Brush lets photographers fine-tune specific areas of an image to precisely adjust color, exposure and tonal range without affecting other areas of the image.

•The new Graduated Filter expands the toolbox in Lightroom, allowing for edits to larger areas by applying gradually diminishing or increasing adjustment effects such as exposure, clarity, and saturation, alone, or in any combination.

•Lightroom 2 also helps photographers print more efficiently by quickly arranging photos of multiple sizes on one or many pages with flexible and customizable templates to maximize paper and ink.

New raw technology gives photographers access to flexible camera profiles. Camera profiles are the visual starting point for the raw processing workflow, but image preferences vary for every photographer. Camera profiles are available for immediate download on Adobe Labs for use with Lightroom 2 and Camera Raw 4.5, along with the DNG Profile Editor for the community to test and create their own profiles.

The Adobe Camera Raw 4.5 plug-in and DNG Converter 4.5 are also now available on Adobe.com and support over 190 camera models including the Olympus E 420 and E 520 models.

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 is available now through the Adobe Store at www.adobe.com/store in English, French and German with the Japanese language version planned to be released at a future date. The estimated street price is USD$299 for new users with an upgrade price of USD$99 for registered users of qualifying Lightroom customers. Recommended system requirements are Macintosh OSX 10.4, 10.5 1 GHz PowerPC G4 or G5 or Intel® based processor, or Microsoft Windows® XP SP2 or Windows Vista Home Premium, Business, Ultimate, or Enterprise, Intel Pentium 4® processor, 1 GB RAM and a 1024×768 resolution screen. Additional information on product features, upgrade policies, pricing, and language versions is available on www.adobe.com/products/photoshoplightroom/.

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Digital Art: Explore Illustration

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Fri, 30 May 2008 15:51:00 +0000

Author: Rich Goldman

Digital illustration is big business these days. A quick look at roadside billboards, club flyers or magazine covers should be enough to convince anyone that the art of the digital designer has never been in higher demand, and its popularity just keeps on growing.

But defining exactly what digital illustration is proves tricky. We all know what the words mean, yet the myriad of ways in which illustration can be applied makes it one of the most versatile of the creative arts and as such, it's pretty difficult to pin down.

With a strong creative vision and the right software, concepts can be articulated in limitless ways; each style opening new doors for expression. The one crucial skill that ties it all together is the need for some innate artistic ability. You don't need to be a virtuoso with a pencil to be good at computer art, but there's no doubt that most professional illustrators are proficient with traditional art techniques.

The basics of image structure are the same across mediums, after all, and with software increasingly able to mimic traditional drawing methods, the transition to digital has become almost seamless. Let's take a closer look at the main branches of digital illustration and discover a little more about how the experts put them together.

Vector art: It's no great accident that vector illustration is currently one of the trendiest and easily recognisable of the digital art disciplines. The signature flat colours and clean lines are easy to spot and quick to grab attention, which of course makes the style hugely popular with advertisers looking to catch the eye of potential consumers. In addition, their reduced colour palettes and scalable technology means they are perfect when it comes to artwork for the Web.

Created with precision by manipulating Bezier paths, the mechanics of vectors are based on mathematic principles that make them infinitely scalable without suffering degradation. This trait is extremely attractive to illustrators because it means images can be shrunk to a stamp or stretched to a billboard, without having to be redone. Paths are also easy to edit at a later stage, making vector images quick to tweak and rearrange if need be.

Vector shapes are often produced with photographs or hand drawn scans as templates, digitally tracing as much of the outline and detail as needed. Programs such as Flash can even create vectors automatically by tracing over photographic or pre sketched material, allowing picture elements to be created quickly and with little effort. However, the real artistry comes when choosing which elements to take to the digital image, and knowing how to colour and arrange the final illustration.

Keeping up to date is crucial and, since digital artists typically spend hours in front of a screen involved in their masterpieces, it's all too easy to become isolated from what's going on around you. Styles ace constantly changing and trends can come and go at great speed, so keeping your finger on the industry pulse is vital. Not only does it make good commercial sense, but it can also act as a rich muse from which to draw ideas

Mixing media: While vector art focuses on clean shapes, simple forms and bold chunks of colour, other digital illustration techniques take things in the opposite direction. Since the arrival of Photoshop in 1990, artists have been able to digitally manipulate photographic material and combine it with other visual ingredients, and when layers arrived with Photoshop 3.0 five years later, the stage was set for a new form of digital image. In 1995, digital photo illustration was born.

Based on the traditional method of using scissors and glue to cut and paste photos and artwork together in new arrangements, it's a technique that has always been popular with children but has now become the favoured strategy of many an adult illustrator. This is primarily due to Photoshop's specialised, yet accessible and intuitive, toolset, but also reflects the success the strategy can have when attempting to convey a complicated collection of ideas.

Sketching toons: While everyone knows that Photoshop is the king of detailed mixed media illustration, less well known is the fact that it's also astonishingly good at producing line and comic style artwork. Deftly sidestepping the need to use intricate filters and effects, the hand drawn, hand coloured look is gaining favour with artists and art directors alike.

Because of the time saving tools that Photoshop offers, professional comic book artists are beginning to use the software to colour their hand drawn sketches and are taking digital art into previously unexplored areas. Using a mixture of both hand drawn and digital painting, new styles are surfacing that are making a massive impact on the established illustration industry.

Realer than real? But for many artists, the Holy Grail of computer art is realism. Recent advances in graphics technology have enabled software developers to accurately simulate

Real world drawing and painting tools by modelling how inks, chalks, oils and paints behave when they are applied to different surfaces. Using random particles to create natural looking strokes on simulated materials, you can now produce painted images that are all but indistinguishable from their hand made equivalents.

Since you can also grab a graphics tablet and paint directly onto your digital canvas, digital painting is less a description of an illustration style and more a literal possibility. As well as further mimicking the traditional within the digital arena, it's also easy to pick up and get started. To this end, having some experience with real world painting is a definite advantage.

Because the technology behind natural media is so intricate, there are only a handful of programs that can actually achieve believable results. The most specialised is Corel Painter, which takes the possibilities to extremes by providing an array of simulated traditional drawing and painting tools. It even goes so far as to model the way that watercolour Paints behave when wet, with drips, runs and splashes. However, with some crafty brush creation and expert manipulation of layers, equally exciting effects can be replicated in your humble copy of Photoshop.

Pixel power: But although illustration software is advancing, it would be a mistake to think that the industry is focussing purely on pushing the undiscovered boundaries of digital imaging. In among the simulated paintings, clean vectors and intricate photo collages, a resurgence of old school pixel techniques is proudly celebrating the humble beginnings of computer art.

Pixel illustration is arguably where the whole digital illustration shebang began, back in the days when computer screens could only display a small number of colours at a low resolution. But, like so many limitations, this situation forced creativity and produced a unique style that's now being snapped up in an industry that's constantly on the lookout for something different.

Because low resolutions mean large pixel sizes, pixel art uses geometric rules that ensure perspectives are correctly maintained . A by product of this is the familiar isometric view that's so common in this style of illustration, yet it does lend itself surprisingly well to conceptual art.

Pixel art continues to gain momentum, with increasing numbers of advertising and editorial commissioners looking to capitalise on its retro style designs. The bold use of colour and scrutinising detail also make it ideal for clients wishing to attract close attention and its popularity shows no signs of slowing.

Make it yours: With so many creative styles to work with, there are many entry points into the world of digital illustration. If you already own an imaging package, then you've got all the tools you need to get started. The disciplines we've delved into cover the majority of styles that are suited to computer art, but who knows what some hot new illustrator will come up with tomorrow. The range of software available combined with the sheer diversity of human experience, means that there is unlimited opportunity for individual expression.

So if you think you could be the next big thing then don't delay because, whatever your style, now is your chance. The hipness of digital illustration is just beginning to break into the consciousness of the mainstream and there's never been a better time to explore your creative potential.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/programming-articles/digital-art-explore-illustration-185720.html

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Getting The Upper Hand With Photoshop Layer Sets

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Wed, 21 May 2008 21:18:00 +0000

Author: David Peters

Anyone who plans on spending any length of time wandering the halls of Photoshop should consider learning how Photoshop layer sets work.

Layers are crucial to the entire mechanism of Photoshop design and enhancement.

The Photoshop "Layers" palette maintains a precise history of all your keystrokes... so you don't have to remember anything.

Layers can be likened to your command post, so it behooves you to spend some time in there. Let's take a brief look around right now.

Hmm, looks complicated, doesn't it? Well, unlike a lot of other functions inside Photoshop, Layers really is pretty simple.

Basically, it isolates different sections or transformations so you can work on them without affecting the rest of the image.

Which really comes in handy when you find yourself up against the wall and need to start that particular enhancement over: just throw that layer away.

Your Photoshop Layers box will automatically create a new layer for you for some changes, but you can also create a new yourself.

On your top menu bar, click "Layer," then "New." You'll see a brand new, empty layer appear inside your Layers box. Notice that it has been highlited and the "background," or original, layer is not.

The highlighted layer is the active layer, meaning that's the one you're presently working on. To activate a different layer, simply click on it, and Photoshop highlights (activates) it for you.

Becoming aware of this one function is essential for successfully working in layers.

(Note: Photoshop CS2 and above lets you activate multiple layers.)

Once you have a few layers inside your Layers dialog box, try clicking the eyeballs next to each one.

You'll see that in this way you can visually isolate layers so you can tell exactly what it is you're working on.

At times, you will find yourself creating many, many layers for a single image. When that happens, it gets difficult to find the layer you want to affect.

The solution to this problem lies in creating groups, or "layer sets." Grouping layers allows you to place them into a folder. (In Photoshop CS, first link the layers, then choose "New Set from Linked" on the side menu of the Layers box.)

In Photoshop 7, you create a group by choosing each one, then clicking "Group with Previous" inside your Layer option in the top menu. Or you can click the tiny folder icon at the bottom of the

Layers palette and drag the layers into that layer when it appears, then click the collapse arrow to the left of the set folder to hide the layers inside the folder.

If you want to get rid of the set folder later, highlight it, then click Layer, Delete, Set, then choose either "Set and Contents" or "Set Only."

Some versions of Photoshop require you to choose your layers and then "Shift-Click" on the bottom folder icon to create a set folder. In Photoshop CS2, you can align layers by choosing View > Show > Smart Guides.

Like all the other fabulous Photoshop functions, Layers offers almost limitless ways to affect your photos and the way you maneuver around inside Photoshop itself.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/computers-articles/getting-the-upper-hand-with-photoshop-layer-sets-104858.html

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Additional Tools To Enhance Your Photoshop

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Sat, 17 May 2008 17:56:00 +0000

Author: David H. Urmann

Other software programmers created plug-ins and additional tools so that Photoshop can do more and create more.

Adobe Photoshop is a program that is used for graphic design and editing. This means that users can create or alter digital images. It works by being able to create layers of images as well as putting the layers together. Users can also build on existing images by placing layers over them or adding elements directly to the image.

The Photoshop program is the leading product of the Adobe Systems Incorporated. Adobe specializes in digital imaging software. In its recent incarnations, the Photoshop application has been merged with other Adobe programs under the Creative Suite enterprise. The most recent version of the Adobe Photoshop is CS3, meaning that it is the third version of Photoshop since it was included in the Creative Suite umbrella of software.

Like most digital imaging applications, Photoshop has several plug-ins/add-ons or additional tools that can be used in creating and editing digital images. Aside from the standard cut, paste, select, draw and color fill tools; additional options and effects can be loaded as well. Once the add-ons and plug-ins are added, they can be used to enhance the creations that can be made using the programs.

Several software programmers and designers have also taken the time and effort to build on the existing Photoshop program to enhance its capabilities. These downloadable plug-ins and add-ons are often available for free from a number of online sources. What's important is to make sure the program being downloaded as a Photoshop add-on is compatible with the Photoshop program version you already have installed as well as the safety and security of the file.

Most Photoshop add-ons focus on certain functionalities such as layer styles, actions, scripts, brushes, patterns, gradients, frames, textures and displacement maps. These are made to add to Photoshop's existing library of tools.

One example of a widely available Photoshop download is Harry's Filters which is a free downloadable add-in that was created by Harald Heim. The latest released version of the application is version 3.01. What the application does is it allows users to create effects for images by using its own menu box separately from Photoshop. The program has 69 filters available and ready for use once it is downloaded to accompany the Adobe Photoshop. The Harry's Filters program can then be used to create several image effects, particularly some very realistic ones.

Another useful tool to add to Photoshop would be one that removes the red-eye effect in pictures. The red-eye effect happens when light is reflected by a subject's eye as a photo is being taken. It is one of the most common things that happen when you are taking a picture of a person in the relative darkness.

The program to remove the red-eye effect is called RedEye Pro developed by Andromeda Software. The plug-in removes the redness of the eyes while retaining the original eye color and the shiny and reflective surface of a typical eye. It does the adjustment without making it look as if the eye has been retouched. The RedEye Pro application also works on eyes that are not perfectly circular such as animal eyes. It is available for free download from selected sources.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/computers-articles/additional-tools-to-enhance-your-photoshop-407252.html

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noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Tue, 13 May 2008 10:42:00 +0000

Easy to use plug-in for Adobe Photoshop and Photoshop Elements helps photographers selectively blur and/or vignette areas of an image!

This new plug-in provides both professional and advanced amateur photographers with additional creative options when editing their images in Photoshop.

The new onOne Software FocalPoint plug-in, which is now available for download, gives photographers total control over how they apply creative focusing effects to their image after the image has been shot.It’s just like having a lens inside of Photoshop. Users set the location of their ‘sweet spot’ of focus directly on their image and then control the amount, kind of blur used and even lighten or darken the edges quickly and easily.

FocalPoint is designed for use with Adobe Photoshop and Photoshop Elements and supports Adobe Photoshop CS2 and CS3 and Elements versions 4.0.1, 5, 6 and higher. It is compatible with Microsoft Windows XP and Vista and Mac OS X 10.4.10 and 10.5 and higher. onOne Software’s FocalPoint plug-in is available now for $159.95 from onOne Software authorized distributors and resellers, or direct from onOne Software at www.onOnesoftware.com.

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Recent Photoshop Support Center Issues.

New Adobe TV Programming Comes Online.

Photoshop Disasters Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Fri, 09 May 2008 13:33:00 +0000

For those of you with a bit of time on your hands check out Photoshop Disasters and pay attention to what you are not supposed to do in Photoshop.

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The Art of Coloring

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Tue, 06 May 2008 14:00:00 +0000

There's a lot of things you can do with Photoshop and one of them is coloring! I often read Japanese mangas which are pretty much the same as American comic books. These mangas also have a strong fan base in the US and a lot of digital artist are part of it.

The reason why i bring this up is because I have seen some fan art that is just breath taking, just beautiful. A lot of these master piece come from teenagers who never had any type of instruction or guidance on how to use the software, I guess that's what you label as talent.

A really good place to take a look and learn the art of coloring in photoshop would be Manga Helpers, one of the biggest manga communities. I invite you to visit Manga Helpers and appreciate these master piece, they deserve it.

Before and after

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Advanced Photoshop Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 14:14:00 +0000

Author: David Peters

If you've gotten a good handle on the basics of Adobe Photoshop and just want to take a few tutorials to learn some advanced speedy little tricks here are some neat online Photoshop tutorials to try.

The very newest of the Photoshop tutorials is the lesson on replacing color. This will teach you not only how to replace color throughout the image, but how to go about replacing a series of the same color in various shades with the same kind of color gradient in a different color.

You can take part in this Photoshop tutorial from the vendor's Web site or can download it as a PDF and read it at your leisure.

Should you have no Adobe Acrobat reader installed on your computer you'll need that to use the PDF but it's easily downloaded from the site at no charge in just a few quick seconds.

Another of the clever Photoshop tutorial lessons is the means to form your Photoshop text in a circle. This circular text formatting has traditionally called for a vector but the version 5 lets you create your circular text with much more ease, and no vector.

This Photoshop tutorial, as with the other advanced training programs, can be read online or with a downloadable PDF.

For those of you who like the creative effect of a curling page you can learn how to do this with a Photoshop tutorial as well. In the same lessons you can learn to use Adobe paths and to create gradients of your own.

One whimsical little Adobe Photoshop trick taught through tutorials is called flag in the wind. Created at the request of several Photoshop users who logged onto Usenets, the technique teaches photographers how to use Photoshop's displace filter to create the look of a breezy movement.

Once the above techniques have been mastered additional advanced Photoshop tutorials teaching things like custom interfaces, and the quick photo effects of masking. One of the fun uses for this tactic is to take one head and place it on the body of another person. Everyone needs that technique right?

Some of the Photoshop tutorials are specific to materials and fabric. Tutorial number nine, for example, teaches the use of Adobe Photoshop with metal, while the next lesson number ten teaches the use of wood as a Photoshop material.

Textured spheres and round buttons can be designed with Photoshop with any material once you've taken the basic materials lessons.

Wood texture tutorials teach bevel and button creations, while metal textures can be used for interfaces as well.

GIF lessons are important additions to your Photoshop basic tutorials. GIFs are not that easy to master, but their transparency is the reason they're still important.

You can tackle runny text lessons in advanced tutorials too. Just in case you have a bent for the bloody, say at Halloween time, you can learn this point and click technique with Photoshop classes.

Other advanced Photoshop tutorials teach gold and raised text creation, soft text with a beveled look and an alien skin, chrome and textured 3-D text, and layered masking.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/computers-articles/advanced-photoshop-fun-87565.html

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Using Online Tutorials To Learn Adobe Photoshop.

Learning The Basic Photoshop Tools .

New Adobe TV Programming Comes Online

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 13:01:00 +0000

Unique Creative Suite 3 Video Content Available Via Adobe Media Player and New Web Destination

Press Release: SAN JOSE, Calif. — April 9, 2007 — Adobe Systems Incorporated announced Adobe® TV, a free online video resource for expert instruction and inspiration about Adobe products, including the company’s Creative Suite 3 family of world-class creative tools. With multiple channels, original series programming, and content from Adobe, leading training organizations and the world’s leading subject matter experts, Adobe TV delivers a virtual library of entertaining and instructional videos. Designers, photographers, video professionals, and developers will find product deep-dives, innovative tips, techniques from luminaries, and behind-the-scenes tours of the hottest creative shops and Adobe product teams.

Designed to educate, inspire, and entertain the creative community, Adobe TV is immediately available online from the Adobe Web site at http://tv.adobe.com/ , or as a network with multiple shows in the new Adobe® Media Player 1.0 software, also announced the same day. Adobe Media Player offers a broad range of television programming and entertaining video content from major television broadcasters and leading content publishers, including CBS, MTV Networks, Universal Music Group, PBS, CondéNet, and Scripps Networks.

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Recent Photoshop Support Center Issues

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 13:54:00 +0000

The following issues have been recently listed on the Photoshop Support Center.

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Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 1.4.1 and Camera Raw 4.4.1 Updates

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 06:36:00 +0000

Adobe has released updates to the Photoshop Lightroom and Photoshop Camera Raw plug-in to correct for issues found in Lightroom 1.4 and Camera Raw 4.4.

The Lightroom 1.4.1 and Camera Raw 1.4.1 updates are available immediately as free downloads at http://www.adobe.com/downloads. Senior Photoshop Lightroom Product Manager, Tom Hogarty, has included a complete list of the corrections on his blog at http://blogs.adobe.com/lightroomjournal.

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Photoshop for Photographers: ACR 4.1 update.

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Learning The Basic Photoshop Tools

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 13:35:00 +0000

OK, so I guess you can call this one a follow up on the previews articles, I know a lot of you guys were interested in the previews post, so this one elaborates more on the basics of Photoshop. Always remember that Photoshop is an awesome application if you give it a chance.

Author: David Peters

Adobe has its own Photoshop tutorials that run the gamut of instruction.

You can find Photoshop tutorials on the Adobe site on abstracts, automation, animation, the basics of using Photoshop, buttons and brushes, using color effectively, digital art, drawing, creating desired effects with drawing or photos, retouching photos, photography in general, scripting, textual effects, Photoshop patterns and textures, graphics for the Web, and layouts for the Web.

One of the most basic of Photoshop tutorials is a complete explanation of all you'll find on the Photoshop toolbar.

You'll learn lessons that include the use of the marquee tools. There are several: the elliptical, the single row, the single column and the rectangular.

The rectangular and elliptical marquee tools lets you expand or reduce an area that is shaped as the tools indicate. You can use a tool to size one row or one column with the appropriate marquee tool.

These basic will be taught in this Photoshop tutorial, along with the use of the move tool which lets you create movement of a layer, the lasso tool which lets you capture a specific area, and the magnetic lasso tools, which lets you change the location of images with varying colors.

The polygonal lasso tool, in contrast, will go from point to point in a straight line or lines. You'll even learn how to use a magic want with Adobe Photoshop tutorials. This magic want tool lets you click inside a one color area and move only that area.

The Photoshop crop tool, part of this tutorial, lets you delete parts of a photo.

Wit h this Photoshop tutorial you'll learn other basic tools such as the spot healing tool, the healing brush tool, the red eye tool, the patch tool, the brush tool, the pencil tool, and the color replacement tool.

With the clone stamp tool, you'll learn how to use Photoshop to copy only parts of a particular image, while the pattern stamp tool will teach you how to take an image and brush a pattern on to it.

The Photoshop tutorial will teach you the mechanics of history brush tool use, how it is used to undo what you've created by simply brushing over the image you've altered and taking it back to the image it was before.

It has an even more advance use, though, in that, you can actually undo the image change in only the specific parts from which you wish to remove your latest alteration.

The art history brush, another tool taught in Photoshop tutorials, is much the same as the history brush except that it also lets you style at the same time.

Photoshop tutorials teach three eraser tools - the standard eraser, the background eraser and the magic eraser tool. With the first you can do just as its name suggests - erase part of the image you've created with Photoshop.

With the background version you can erase only the image background, while the magic eraser which lets you make even more varied choices of what to eliminate from the image.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/internet-articles/learning-the-basic-photoshop-tools-85873.html

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3 Great Tips for Photoshop Novices.

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Basic Photo Corrections In Photoshop CS3

noreply@blogger.com (Carlos) — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 00:00:00 +0000

This is a little article I thought would be good to share with those who aren't to familiar with Photoshop, but would like to learn a little more. I know this is an intimidating application, but once you get to know Photoshop, you'll be glad you got your hands on it.

In the year 2008 digital photography finds itself relying more and more on many of the tools photoshop provides, but guess what? you don't have to be a Photoshop Guru to be ale to use some of these tools.

Check out this little article and let me know what you think.

Author: David Peters

Welcome to the cadillac of photo-enhancers: Photoshop CS3!

Retouching in Photoshop can be a breeze... but not until you learn how. The Photoshop CS3 program is such a powerful application you could spend years just mastering the basics.

Most of us, however, don't really need a Masters in Photoshop. What most of us want is the flexibility, integrity and vast array of choices that Photoshop provides.

Let's look briefly at some of the most basic photo corrections in Photoshop CS3, the ones you'll really need. Here are the first steps recommended by the experts, and they represent the process they apply to every photograph:

1- First and foremost, duplicate your original and work only on the copy.

That way, if something goes wrong, you'll always have the original. This is a great habit to get into.

2- Next, assure the correct resolution. There are two basic categories of "resolution" in computer graphics: the monitor resolution and the image resolution.

Image resolution varies from low (about 72 pixels per inch, or "ppi") to high (anything 300 ppi or larger). Of course, the higher the resolution, the bigger the file.

To change the resolution of your photo, click "Image," then "Image Size." On the bottom left of the box that comes up, type in the ppi you want, for example, 300 ppi. (You will probably want to change the size at this point. That's fine, you will still retain the ppi you chose.)

3- Use your Crop tool ( ) from the toolbox to shape your picture the way you want it.

Many people don't notice the width and height options underneath the top menu, but it's a very handy feature.

At times you have an exact measurement you need to fill; rather than fiddling with the numbers after you crop, the proper way is to insert the width and height immediately after clicking the Crop tool, and then making the crop, dragging down diagonally with your mouse. You will notice the exact measurements appear without a struggle.

4- Experiment with your automatically adjusting features. Click on "Image" in your top menu, then "Adjustments." You will see options for automatic levels, contrast and color. After you've tried them, you can go ahead and hone in to polish, if you like.

You can also try Image> Adjustments> Shadow/Highlight (or "Variations"). You'll be astonished at the variety of preset options there.

As you can imagine, there are endless variations on the themes represented by these basic steps and the choices made therein.

But Photoshop expands past them and out into the great beyond, offering an unlimited palette and a universe of options.

Your only problem will be how to tear yourself away.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/internet-articles/basic-photo-corrections-in-photoshop-cs-102292.html

I hope you guys enjoyed this article on basic photo correction in Photoshop CS3.