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The Photoshop Blog offers the latest Photoshop news and software updates, Photoshop tips and tutorials, and random thoughts from graphic artist and Photoshop expert Jennifer Apple.




December 22, 2006

This edition is filled with posts from just one source, as it looks like John Nack has gotten bitten by the blog bug real bad. He has stopped eating and sleeping and seems to have turned into a virtual vending machine of Adobe goodies. In response huge crowds are flocking to his blog and the blog post comments are growing in leaps and bounds.

Reading through the comments reveals a real world look at how people are reacting to the Photoshop CS3 beta release, and to the decision by Adobe to preview a set of CS3 icons that may create more backlash than anticipated. And in the middle of all this turbulence, the wired and inspired John Nack is also producing Photoshop CS3 tutorials. Ok, now he's scaring me! So here are the links to all the good stuff...

Is Photoshop CS3 a 64-bit app?
Photoshop co-architect Scott Byer has posted a lucid, readable overview of 64-bit computing & where Photoshop stands relative to this transition. Given a great number of factors, we elected not to make the change in this cycle. That said, Photoshop does take advantage of some aspects of 64-bit chips, and as Scott notes, "It's a when, not an if" we'll make the move. His info should help cut through some of the hype & set reasonable expectations about the future.

Handy new script for Photoshop CS3
By now you've probably seen how the Photoshop CS3 beta's Auto-Align Layers command can snap images together. If not, check out my 90-second overview, or this somewhat more in-depth version from Russell Brown. The command relies on selecting multiple layers to align, so it's handy to suck multiple images into Photoshop & stack them up as layers in a PSD file. To accomplish that easily, we created a Load Files Into Stack script, but time didn't permit it to get into the beta. So, if you're interested in pulling in multiple files as layers, you can grab the script here (zipped to avoid any server weirdness). Unzip the file and stick it into the "Adobe Photoshop CS3/Presets/Scripts" folder to make it appear under File->Scripts when you launch Photoshop, or just browse to it via File->Scripts->Browse.

Now showing: The rest of the CS3 icons
Some folks have expressed curiosity about the other icons planned for the CS3 generation of Adobe applications, especially given our goal of having them work well as a complete system. So, with the blessing of Michael Gough, Adobe's VP of Product Experience*, here they are.

Lightroom Podcast #24: Thomas Knoll, Mark Hamburg, and Zalman Stern
The Lightroom podcast series continues to draw a great response, and in the latest installment, George Jardine sits down with raw processing heavy hitters Mark Hamburg, Zalman Stern, and Thomas Knoll. They talk about what's new (and yet to come) in Lightroom and Camera Raw, analytical vs. visual techniques, Bridge vs. Lightroom, skin tone protection in Vibrance--oh, and their desire for groupies.

Exploring the new Photoshop interface
The newly refined user interface in the Photoshop CS3 beta represents a bit of a departure from the past several versions of the application. I've created a quick, 45-second video overview, and you can see it in much more detail elsewhere (e.g. Deke McClelland's video, which was viewed some 28,000 times in its first day on YouTube). To provide some more detail on the new UI and insight into the thinking behind it, I asked Ken Moore (Sr. Interaction Designer, Creative Suite) and Mike Talvensaari (Product Manager, Creative Suite User Experience), to provide a guest entry. Their Q&A follows in the extended entry.

What does the new Auto Enhance option do?
Author Ben Long recently asked what, exactly, the Auto Enhance option does when enabled for Photoshop CS3's new Quick Selection tool. Gregg Wilensky, one of the engineers behind the tool, kindly provided some details:

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Photoshop CS3 Upgrade Options And Bundles From The Adobe Store

Photoshop CS3 Extended is ideal for film, video, and multimedia pros and for graphic and web designers using 3D and motion. Get the full version for US $999, or upgrade for US $349. The standard version of Photoshop CS3 is available for US $649, or as an upgrade for US $199. See all upgrade options at the Adobe Store. See our CS3 Resource Center for free Photoshop CS3 tutorials.

Photoshop Extended is also available as part of Adobe Creative Suite 3 Design Premium, which combines all-new CS3 versions of Photoshop, Flash Pro, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, InDesign and Acrobat 8 Pro. Upgrade options for customers in Europe, the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Asia can be found at the Adobe International Store.

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Available At The Adobe Store

There are tons of new features in Adobe Lightroom 1.0 that you won't find in the beta version. From Clone and Healing functionality to metadata browsing, you'll be able to free-up post-processing time like never before. Get it now at the Adobe Store. Customers in Europe, the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Asia can find special pricing and offers at the Adobe International Store. For free Lightroom tutorials see our Lightroom tutorials page.



Special Offer - Fluid Mask - Photoshop Masking Plugin

Fluid Mask is based on breakthrough segmentation technology inspired by the way the eye, optic nerve and brain perform visual processing. When an image is loaded, Fluid Mask's segmentation engine analyses the distribution of colors, finding the natural groups within the image. Together with information calculated about edges, gradients and textures, a model is constructed which divides the images into objects.

Vertus Software is offering Fluid Mask at the special 'friends and partner' discounted rate. This is an exclusive offer to visitors of PhotoshopSupport.com. To qualify, visit the Fluid Mask Discount Price page. Find out more about Fluid Mask on our special Fluid Mask Page.

SiteGrinder Photoshop Plugin - Create Websites Instantly

There often seems to be a strict division of labor within the world of web design and development. Creative professionals tend to stick to the Photoshop domain, while those well-versed in scripting are left to the task of implementing their work. Indeed, the two realms are quite different from each other, to which any of us even vaguely familiar with either can easily attest.

Essentially, Photoshop is a no-holds-barred design studio, offering the artist a seemingly endless array of creative options. On the other hand, HTML, CSS, Java and the like follow strict rules of engagement, requiring the developer to take any number of esoteric concerns into consideration in order to ensure that designs are properly displayed on the web.

Turn Photoshop Into A Complete Web Design Tool
SiteGrinder seeks to bridge this gap between design and development. Basically, this program turns Photoshop into an easy-to-use and fully functional web design tool. With SiteGrinder, designers will now have the freedom to totally let their creativity loose and then, without skipping a beat, transfer their designs to the web. Bringing esthetic concerns together with more practical considerations, this program is an amazingly powerful tool that would make a fantastic addition to any web designer's bag of tricks.

Generate Your Web Pages Directly From Photoshop
By generating web pages directly from Photoshop, you'll be able to spend much more time on the creative end of the spectrum, since you'll know right off the bat how well particular designs will translate to the web. No more going back to the Photoshop drawing board after getting a phone call from your development team, telling you that what you had envisioned doesn't have a chance of being displayed on the web. You can immediately visually and interactively test your designs, which permits you to then make changes to either esthetics or functions while it's still relatively early on in the design process.

Pricing and Availability
Mac OS X and Windows versions of the SiteGrinder unlockable demo are available now via download. SiteGrinder can be ordered from Media Lab's online store.

Photoshop CS3 Book - CS3 Essential Skills - By Mark Galer And Philip Andrews

Brimming with beautiful pictures, Photoshop CS3 Essential Skills guides you through a project-based, progressive curriculum so that you can build all the essential skills to enhance photographs creatively and professionally with Photoshop CS3. If you are an aspiring professional, enthusiastic amateur photographer, or a student learning photography, digital imaging, art and design, or design graphics, you'll be amazed at the stunning results you can achieve. A DVD is included free.