6 Photoshop Tips to Excel Your Image Editing Skills
Adobe Photoshop is one of the extensively used image editing tools that give you the flexibility to add creativity to digital images. New users sometimes feel overwhelmed with the tools, icons, panels, and other items that display on the screen. Not to mention, it gives access to plenty of features and options that you can use the way you want.
Here we discuss some valuable Photoshop tips and tricks that you can use to maximize your image editing experience.
Learn Keyboard Shortcuts
If you know an experienced Photoshop professional, the way they use their keyboard to do even the most complex tasks must have impressed you. Keyboard shortcuts are one of the proven ways to make computer-related tasks easier, no matter what application you are using. They allow you to edit any image quickly and even add the details precisely.
Rather than navigating to the menus and submenus, learning keyboard shortcuts allows you to do your tasks directly. Moreover, you don’t have to juggle between the mouse and the keyboard as your fingers automatically reach the keys you want to use. Keyboard shortcuts provide you with ease; the more you use them, the more you become familiar.
Ensure Sufficient RAM Is Available
While working with Photoshop, you might come across scratch disk errors that act as an interruption in your smooth workflow. Scratch disks are the temporary storage space on the hard drive that Photoshop uses as virtual memory for saving temp project files on detecting low RAM on your computer.
By assigning multiple scratch disks, Photoshop assures flawless editing tasks; however, the scratch disk itself starts suffocating with temp files. That’s when Photoshop starts displaying ‘scratch disk full error’. You can resolve your scratch disk problem easily by caring for the Photoshop cache, deleting temporary files, and disabling resource-consuming programs, which will automatically help claim more RAM space.
Perform Major Edits on a New Layer
Working on a new layer means you are not changing the original picture or the previous edits. The destructive edits you make to your image will exist as a different file, and if anything goes wrong, you can revert back to the previous stage. When you open a picture to edit in Photoshop, it appears as a Background layer.
You can edit the Background layer the way you want, but no changes will be made to the original copy. So, you still have the original version to move to as it remains untouched. However, it’s a good practice to create a copy of the images before opening them in Photoshop or back up all your files to be on the safer side.
Use Layer Masks to Hide a Portion
Layer Mask reveals or conceals various elements of the image to allow the users to edit any layer as well as make reversible changes. The tool is used majorly to change the visibility of the layer, hide specific areas of the layer, or make other areas of the layer visible. The purpose is to tweak the transparency and opacity of the selected layer.
The gray area that you see on the layer mask thumbnail displays the areas between full transparency and full opacity. For example, when you want to brighten the eyes while editing a portrait, a layer mask will allow you to select the area to make the required changes. You may also want to tweak the hair color, for which you will need to add a second layer mask.
Save Photoshop Files in a Correct Format
Mistakes do happen, and even the most skilled Photoshoppers experience saving images in the wrong format. This makes them work with the flattened jpeg to make even a minor change to the layer. Saving the photoshop files as PSD saves you from the chores of other file formats.
The PSD file format saves each layer separately so that you can easily use them for your future image editing projects. Also, it’s worth mentioning that PSD files consume more space than JPEGs, so make sure you have enough storage space available on the hard drive to store and process these files seamlessly.
Follow Photoshop Tutorial to Learn New Hacks
Develop your Photoshop skills by watching online tutorials and connecting with the online community. You can gain access to helpful Photoshop lessons by visiting their official website or other reliable online resources. When you reach a certain level, learning other tools such as Corel Painter will become easier.
Keep in mind that Photoshop gives you countless ways to get a job done. There is no single path to edit a picture, and you can experience new hacks to become a pro. Photoshop tutorials can provide extensive knowledge about using the tools in different ways; you have to identify what works best for you.
