Introduction to Photoshop
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Use crtl+f (on Win) to quickly search sections 0.0 - Introduction
0.1 - Your Window
1.0 - Basics of Photoshop: Layers
0.0 - Introduction
Chances are that if you're reading this, you really have no idea how to work Photoshop. At first, the program can be a bit daunting--especially if you've been working with very simple photo editors that only cover basic touchups. Well, Photoshop can do those simple touchups and a whole lot more--including image manipulation as well as many possibilities for creation.
0.1 - Your Window
Basically, your work area consists of your project, the standard menus, and a bunch of palettes, or smaller boxes with tools, colors, or just information. There are a variety of palettes, and you can select which ones you want to have sitting around by going to Window in the menu bar.
You will probably need the following palettes: Layers, Color, and Tools at the very least.
1.0 - Basics of Using Photoshop: Layers
Layers, layers, LAYERS! Unlike many other simple image editing tools, Photoshop makes great use of layers, which are exactly what they sound like. When working with layers, think of a stack of clear paper. Each layer can contain elements, and when you move one layer, all elements on that layer will move as well. For the most part, each image making up your composition will have it's own layer unless you decide to merge the layers (see 1.1). Text will also occupy different layers. It's up to you to decide how to split up the text into different layers, which is achieved by clicking on a new area with the text tool. If you want to add text to an existing layer of text, you'll have to click right on that text to make sure you're not adding a new layer. Also, when you're painting, you'll be painting on ONE layer unless you specifically click on a different layer. Similarly, if you grab the eraser and start erasing, you'll only be erasing off ONE layer, unless you set the option to erase from all layers.
When you're ready to save your project as an image file, such as .jpg or .bmp, your layers will be compressed. In other words, think of your stack of clear paper being melted together into one sheet.
1.1 - Working with Layers
There are several things you can do with layers.
Back to Photoshop Tutorials
Back to Tutorials Main
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Use crtl+f (on Win) to quickly search sections 0.0 - Introduction
0.1 - Your Window
1.0 - Basics of Photoshop: Layers
0.0 - Introduction
Chances are that if you're reading this, you really have no idea how to work Photoshop. At first, the program can be a bit daunting--especially if you've been working with very simple photo editors that only cover basic touchups. Well, Photoshop can do those simple touchups and a whole lot more--including image manipulation as well as many possibilities for creation.
0.1 - Your Window
Basically, your work area consists of your project, the standard menus, and a bunch of palettes, or smaller boxes with tools, colors, or just information. There are a variety of palettes, and you can select which ones you want to have sitting around by going to Window in the menu bar.
You will probably need the following palettes: Layers, Color, and Tools at the very least.
1.0 - Basics of Using Photoshop: Layers
Layers, layers, LAYERS! Unlike many other simple image editing tools, Photoshop makes great use of layers, which are exactly what they sound like. When working with layers, think of a stack of clear paper. Each layer can contain elements, and when you move one layer, all elements on that layer will move as well. For the most part, each image making up your composition will have it's own layer unless you decide to merge the layers (see 1.1). Text will also occupy different layers. It's up to you to decide how to split up the text into different layers, which is achieved by clicking on a new area with the text tool. If you want to add text to an existing layer of text, you'll have to click right on that text to make sure you're not adding a new layer. Also, when you're painting, you'll be painting on ONE layer unless you specifically click on a different layer. Similarly, if you grab the eraser and start erasing, you'll only be erasing off ONE layer, unless you set the option to erase from all layers.
When you're ready to save your project as an image file, such as .jpg or .bmp, your layers will be compressed. In other words, think of your stack of clear paper being melted together into one sheet.
1.1 - Working with Layers
There are several things you can do with layers.
Back to Photoshop Tutorials
Back to Tutorials Main
