See our Photoshop CS3 Tutorials Page for free Photoshop 10 video clips.
Get all your Photoshop upgrade options and the best prices at the Adobe Store.
Photoshop Tips & Tricks — Variety Pack Volume 3
Here is a collection of useful tips and tricks to improve your Photoshop skills.
The Amazing File Browser
Photoshop CS has an excellent file browser built into the application. You can access it from the File menu or by pressing Apple(Cmd)-Shift-O. It can do all a regular functions Finder does and much more.
Many don't realize that you can actually delete/rename and move images, create/delete folders, etc. in this mini application with the benefit of having really big preview icons for your images to help your navigation.
But don't you miss the old times, when you could mark the transparencies on your lightbox and easily arrange them for a selection?
Well, in file browser you still can do that. You can annotate and than sort your images by enabling Show Rank under the View Menu. Just under the images you will have a Rank field that can be used to annotate your images. Then, you can just sort the images by rank if you select the Sort menu and select Rank. Very powerful if you have to sort through hundreds of images.
Finding The Correct Layer Blending Mode
Most of the time when I'm trying to find a specific desired effect I would go through several layer blending modes.
This can mean a lot of clicking if done from the tiny drop down menu. I would have to focus to the menu to remember where I was.
The fastest and most convenient way to cycle through all the options without touching the drop down menu is by pressing Shift-Alt and + or -. To instantly jump back to normal I'd press Shift-Alt-N (Shift-Option-N). This way I can focus on the image and pay no attention to the drop down menu.
Radial Blur Center Adjustment
Radial blur is a great tool in Photoshop to dramatize speed, but what if your subject matter is not in the center of your image? If you apply the radial blur filter the speed lines will be incorrect (left image).
You may have noticed the little window in the Radial blur options panel, which demonstrates the type and amount of Radial Blur.
You may however never tried to click and drag the center of the effect in this window.
Just today a colleague of mine showed this feature to me, so I thought I'll share it with you
Shift Drag A Layer
In Photoshop you can drag a layer from one document's layer palette to another document window. However it will land in an accidental position. If you hold shift while dragging it will do two different things depending on the document size.
If the source and target document sizes are the same shift dragging will make sure your new layer in the target document is positioned in the same place as it was in the source. See the window in the middle as an example for dragging the Fleur De Lis symbol.
If the source and target document sizes are different the same operation will make your new layer positioned right in the middle of your target document. The right window demonstrates it.
Quick Layer Effect Duplication
We already talked about how to copy sets of layer effects from one layer to several other layers.
But, what if you want to copy just one carefully composed layer effect to another layer without affecting the existing layer effects on the source (Layer 1 copy) or target layers (Layer 1)?
Simply drag the layer effect name from the source layer to just under the target layer.
The effect of this operation is not moving the layer effect as dragging without Alt (Option) would suggest, but instead it creates a copy.
Switch Horizontal And Vertical Guides
We've talked about how to make guides snap. Here is another quick bit to remember about guides. When you drag a guide and want to change it from horizontal to vertical or vice versa you can press the Option key (Windows= Start/Alt Option) to alternate between them.
Expand Canvas With The Crop Tool
Hold the Command key to prevent the Crop tool from snapping to the edge of your document.
Turn on full screen mode (by typing "F") and then pull the cropping rectangle beyond the edge of your image to add space to your document (it will be filled with the current background color).
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.
Photoshop Extended is also available as part of Adobe Creative Suite 3 Design Premium ($1,799/$440), which combines all-new CS3 versions of Photoshop, Flash Pro, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, InDesign and Acrobat 8 Pro. International options are available at Adobe's UK Store, Europe Store, and Australia Store.
SiteGrinder Photoshop Plugin - CSS Web Tool
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 2 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 2, 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. Read our review of SiteGrinder.
Exclusive Special Offer - Fluid Mask 2.0 - $189
Fluid Mask 2.0 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 of just $189 - PLUS free upgrades for the next 6 months.
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.
Exclusive 10% Discount On All onOne Products
Enter discount coupon code PSSPPT06 during the checkout process at onOne Software for an instant 10% discount on any onOne Software product. This is a special offer exclusively for PhotoshopSupport.com visitors. Vist our onOne Software Page for summaries and reviews of PhotoFrame Pro, Genuine Fractals, Mask Pro, Nik Sharpener, and The Photoshop Plugin Suite.
From the PhotoFrame Pro Review by Jennifer Apple: "PhotoFrame Pro offers an upgraded batch of new features, making this plug-in even more of a valuable asset for the professional graphic designer or amateur digital photographer alike! The folks at onOne software have compiled what is arguably the most comprehensive collection of border and edge effects available on the plugin market right now. You can treat your digital images to the thousands of new frames offered in PhotoFrame Pro, ranging from crisp black and white to brilliant RGB color — from abstract edging effects to realistic frame-and-matte simulations."
Read the full PhotoFrame Pro review.
Exclusive 20% Discount On Select Total Training Products & Bundles
To redeem our exclusive discount coupon, use promotion code save20pss in your shopping cart. You could save hundreds of dollars. Use this special link to see the full offer.
Total Training for Adobe Photoshop
Learn Adobe Photoshop with 21 hours of interactive Adobe Photoshop tutorials. This is training for real-world situations and includes additional tips and techniques used by the pros.
Regular Price: $299.99 (take 20% off with coupon)
