Selective Content Aware Scale and Content Aware Fill – Terry White
Terry White demos ways to make Content Aware Scale and Content Aware Fill more selective. Both new miracle features usually succeed or fail epically. When either fails, try these two techniques.
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Get More From Smart Objects
“Any “object” that needs the ability to adjust size and rotation without the normal limitations of layered images is an excellent candidate for Smart Objects … When doing a traditional multilayer composite, the resizing and rotation of a layer can cause image degradation. Positioning and sizing an object has to be a precise operation because if you use Free Transform to make a layer smaller and then find out you actually need it back at the original size (or bigger), you basically have to start over. The way to deal with this situation when doing a complex composite is to make those layers into Smart Objects. Smart Objects are embedded image objects that allow resizing, rotation and other select editing without changing the pixels in the object. The image layers are actually treated as a separate file embedded within the master file. You can’t do all editing on the Smart Object, but you can open the original layers as a temporary file and do pixel-level editing there and then save the changes back into the Smart Object; the changes will auto-update in the image in which the objects are embedded.” – Jeff Schewe
Read more about Smart Objects at Digital Photo Pro.
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Adobe CS5.5 and Photoshop Touch Apps Available Now
Watch the first video to learn how to update and install these updates.
Editing Smart Objects With Adobe Camera Raw – Russell Brown
Russell Brown presents a super advanced script will convert a standard layer in Photoshop CS5, into a Smart Object that can be edited with the Adobe Camera Raw tools. This is definitely for advanced users only.
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Use Screenshots For Complex Notes In Photoshop
Adopt a non-destructive workflow. When you can’t, take notes.
Non-destructive Photoshop workflows do more than let you change edits to a file in perpetuity, they also create a record of what you’ve done to an image. For instance, when you reopen a Smart Object, you can simply check the interface to see any and all of the Adobe Camera Raw settings currently being applied. So, if you’re not sure whether the latest detail rendering and noise reduction algorithms are being used for a given file, all you have to do is open the Smart Object to verify this. Or, when you click on an adjustment layer you can see those settings in the Adjustments panel. So, if you’re not sure whether an adjustment layer caused clipping, you can toggle it on and off to verify this; if it is you reset the values; if it’s not you find the real source for the clipping.
Despite Photoshop’s increasingly flexible interface, there are still many times when you need to work destructively. Not all edits can be applied as Smart Objects, Smart Filters, or adjustment layers. Many filters still can’t be applied as Smart Filters. HDR merge settings can’t be applied non-destructively. Adjustments from third-party plug-ins, such as noise reduction with Noiseware or Tonal Contrast from NIK’s Viveza can’t be applied non-destructively. But you can create records of the settings you use with destructive edits, making it easier to see what you did later and helping make future refinements faster and more precisely.
How? Take notes in Photoshop. There are many ways to take notes in Photoshop. There’s the Note tool. You can use a Text layer. You can record information in the title of a layer. For complex settings, all of these can be more abstract and time-consuming than necessary, reducing the likelihood that you’ll actually make them.
There is an easy way to make notes of complex interfaces. Use screenshots. A screenshot takes a picture of your screen, either entirely or partially. Store images of the destructive edit settings inside the file you used them on and you’ll have excellent notes for future reference. Doing this only takes a few seconds. Read More
Stack Mode Magic – Russell Brown
Russell Brown goes deep into Photoshop Stacks.
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Smart Object Basics – Russell Brown
Russell Brown covers the basics of Smart Object. It’s must know info.
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Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom Keyboard Shortcuts
Looking for Adobe keyboard shortcuts?
Check out Julianne Kost’s blog.
Use the search function to find the keyboard shortcut you’re looking for.
Customize Your Adobe Photoshop Keyboard Shortcuts
In Photoshop you can find all the current keyboard shortcuts under …
Window, Workspace, Keyboard Shortcuts & Menus …
You can change them (add new ones or customize them) simply by double clicking a field and typing in your preferred keystrokes.
Save your settings to retrieve or share them in another copy or future version.