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Photoshop CS4 And NVIDIA Graphics Cards - Photoshop CS4 Uses GPU Power For Better Performance Speed
September 24, 2008
NVIDIA has partnered with Adobe and to improve image rotation, zooming, panning, image display, and brush resizing features in Photoshop CS4. Here is a brief overview of the features:
Adobe Photoshop CS4 allows digital artists of all kinds to work in a more intuitive way by taking basic Photoshop tasks and accelerating them with the power of NVIDIA graphics. Enabling a whole new way of interacting with the canvas in real-time, this new version automatically detects the presence of a NVIDIA GeForce or NVIDIA Quadro GPU to turn on accelerated features for speedy, smooth operations:
- Image rotation – By using the dedicated graphics memory, the new Rotate View tool is instant, fast, and smooth. Great for tablet sketch artists, this feature matches the natural arrangement of pencil and paper - simply grab and spin to any orientation you want without extended conversion wait-times.
- Zooming – No stuttering or preview lags – just speedy zooming in and out of all file sizes, big and small. The new Pixel Grid has also been added for pinpoint accuracy of highly magnified images.
- Panning – “Toss” images across the screen with the Hand tool for a natural, real-time pan in any direction.
- Image display – Whether adding text or objects in real-time, jagged edges become a thing of the past.
- Brush resizing – Simply drag your mouse to resize brushes, preview brush strokes before you make them, and experience higher precision tablet tracking.
Wanting more details, I sent an Email Q&A to an NVIDIA technician and here's what was returned:
Are you the only graphics card that can be “recognized”?
Graphics cards that meet the minimum requirements defined by Adobe should be detected and will allow users to experience the GPU enabled functions.
What are the noticeable, real world improvements of these cards for a Photoshop CS4 user over not having these cards?
Adobe Photoshop CS4 uses NVIDIA Quadro or GeForce GPUs to create a digital canvas that is interactive in ways that are simply not possible without a GPU. NVIDIA GPUs enable real-time image rotation, zooming, and panning, and make changes to the view instantaneous and smooth. Adobe Photoshop CS4 also taps the GPU for 2D and 3D compositing and high-quality antialiasing, making jagged edges of text and objects a thing of the past. Brush resizing and brushstroke preview, 3D movement, high-dynamic-range tone mapping, and color conversion are also accelerated by the GPU.
Lets take a look at a common workflow. Many users uprez an image before printing, so that they can apply aggressive image sharpening prior to printing. So lets say that I have a 10MP image that I have uprezzed 4x to approximately 10000x16000 to apply my final sharpening to before printing. Now I want to rotate my canvas 90 degrees to match my printer output. Using the new GPU enabled canvas rotation feature, I can accomplish that in about one to two seconds. Now to do the same 90 degree rotation on the same image using the non-GPU enabled method will take over 30 seconds on a high end workstation.
These new GPU enabled features allow the end user to have a more fluid experience working within Photoshop so they can focus on the image, rather than the interface. The end users interaction with the image is now completely smooth and interactive, allowing for smooth, real-time zooming, panning, rotation etc., without having to navigate menu options or side panels to accomplish these tasks. If a user wants to zoom in to a specific area they just activate the zoom tool and hold down the mouse. The image will zoom smoothly and allow the user to zoom to the exact zoom level they wish without having to zoom in pre-defined increments.
Will these cards help in 3D work as well? Are there improvements in Photoshop CS4 and graphic cards in that area as well?
Thanks to the new GPU support Photoshop CS4 now allows 3D objects to be imported into the application and become part of the production workflow. So you can incorporate 3D objects into your 2D images and by using SmartObjects interact and manipulate the original 3D Object in Photoshop and have the results reflected in you 2D image.
Or, you can use Photoshop’s painting tools to actually paint on 3D Objects. So if you’re a 3D modeler, you can now bring your objects into Photoshop to draw your texture detail directly onto your models.
Please tell me more about how the card helps when using brushes.
Using the new dynamic brush tip resizing function in PS CS4 users can now visualize in real time the effects of changing the brush size and hardness, by seeing a visual representation of the brush stroke before they do any painting. This allows users to eliminate the trial and error associated with changing brush settings.
If I were to purchase a new graphics card to take advantage of these features, how would I choose from the various models?
If you are using Photoshop only, then either a Quadro or GeForce card will work.
If you are using any other Adobe Creative Suite 4 application, Quadro is certified and recommended. NVIDIA offers a complete line up of Quadro and GeForce GPUs to fit in to any budget. Determine your budget and purchase the GeForce or Quadro card that is right for you.
Thanks!
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Photoshop CS4 & Photoshop CS4 Extended - Best Deals From Adobe
Photoshop CS4 and Photoshop CS4 Extended feature a newly refined, tab-based interface in a single, integrated window, with self-adjusting panels arranged in docked groups. Automatically keeping tools well organized and away from your work area means you get greater efficiency, less clutter, and better results, faster than before.
Delivering all the features of Adobe Photoshop CS4 software, including the new Adjustments and Masks panels, Adobe Photoshop CS4 Extended also provides breakthrough 3D editing and compositing power to paint directly on 3D models, create 3D animations, convert 2D images to 3D objects, and more; richer motion graphics editing; and more powerful and flexible image analysis and tracking. Learn more on our Photoshop CS4 Tutorials Page. To download the free trial, see details on our Photoshop CS4 Free Trial Download Page.
Find upgrade options and package deals at the Adobe USA Store. Teachers and students get special pricing at the Adobe Education Store. You can also buy in your country currency and language at the following Adobe International Stores:
Adobe United Kingdom | Adobe Germany | Adobe France | Adobe Eastern Europe
Adobe Creative Suite 4 Design Premium - Complete CS4 Bundle
Adobe Creative Suite 4 Design Premium software is the designer's dream toolkit for print, web, and mobile publishing. Creativity is rarely confined to one medium, so put your vector illustrations in motion, moving fluidly between Adobe Illustrator CS4 and Adobe Flash CS4 Professional. And use Adobe Photoshop CS4 Extended to design and slice a web page for publishing with Adobe Dreamweaver CS4.
Adobe Creative Suite 4 Design Premium combines essential tools for producing everything from professional page layouts to rich interactive experiences in a unified, intuitive environment. Also includes Adobe Acrobat 9 Pro, Adobe InDesign CS4, plus Adobe Fireworks CS4.
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Enter our exclusive discount coupon code - PSSPPT06 - during the checkout process at onOne Software for an instant 10% discount on any onOne product. This includes Genuine Fractals and their amazing Photoshop Plug-In Suite.
onOne Software's Plug-In Suite combines full versions of six essential software tools — Genuine Fractals Print Pro, PhotoTools Pro, PhotoFrame Pro, Mask Pro, PhotoTune and FocalPoint — an affordable combination that includes everything a photographer needs to make their images look their best.
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Plugins for Photoshop allow you to either do something that you cannot do with the features included in Photoshop or they allow you to do something easier, faster or better than you could do in Photoshop without the plug-in. Whether it is color correction, resizing, masking or creating an effect, you can find a Photoshop plug-in that can help you be more efficient with your time.
Photoshop CS4 Book - Photoshop CS4 Essential Skills - By Mark Galer And Philip Andrews
Brimming with beautiful pictures, Photoshop CS4 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 CS4. If you are an aspiring professional or a student learning photography, digital imaging, or design graphics, you'll be amazed at the stunning results you can achieve. A DVD is included free.
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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.
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Available At The Adobe Store
Adobe has announced the immediate 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, Photoshop Lightroom 2 is a compelling upgrade that simplifies photography from shoot to finish. Visit the Adobe site to download a free 30 day Photoshop Lightroom trial free download.
As Adobe’s first application to support 64-bit for Mac OS X 10.5 Macintosh computers with Intel processors and Microsoft Windows Vista 64-bit operating systems, Lightroom 2 also provides improved memory performance for dealing with large scale images. Find the latest Lightroom 2 tutorials on our Photoshop Lightroom 2 Tutorials page.
Photoshop CS3 Book - CS3 Essential Skills - By Mark Galer And Philip Andrews
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The Essential Skills Photography Series from Focal Press uniquely offers a structured learning experience for photographers of all ages, with both the underlying theory and loads of invaluable 'how to' and real-life practice projects - all from the most talented photography practitioners/educators in the world.
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Adjusting Exposure in Adobe Camera Raw CS3
Photoshop CS3 Tutorial High Dynamic Range
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