Photoshop Essentials.com Latest Tutorials

Film Strip Photo Collage in Photoshop - Part 2: Creating The Collage

Mon, 09 Nov 2009 00:00 EST

In the first of this two-part Photoshop tutorial, we created a film strip shape to use as a photo frame. In this second part of the tutorial, we'll use multiple copies of that film strip to create our photo collage!

Film Strip Photo Collage in Photoshop - Part 1: Drawing The Film Strip

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00 EST

In this two-part Photoshop tutorial, learn how to create a fun photo collage using a film strip as a photo frame for multiple images. In this first part of the tutorial, we'll see how Photoshop's various shape tools make it easy to draw the actual film strip itself, which we'll then use in Part Two to create the photo collage!

Creating Photo Borders With Photoshop Brushes

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 00:00 EST

Learn how easy it is to create interesting photo border effects using Photoshop's brushes, including how to load additional brush sets and combine multiple brush strokes with different tools, like the Eraser Tool, for virtually endless creative possibilities!

Photoshop Selections - The Magnetic Lasso Tool

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 00:00 EST

The Magnetic Lasso Tool is one of the best selection tools in Photoshop, giving us much better results than what the standard Lasso Tool offers in less time and with less effort and frustration. In fact, with a little practice, you may find yourself hopelessly attracted to it!

Photoshop Selections - The Polygonal Lasso Tool

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 00:00 EST

The Polygonal Lasso Tool, another of Photoshop's basic selection tools, is perfect for selecting objects in a photo with many straight, flat surfaces or sides, allowing us to draw as many sides as we need in any direction with just the click of a mouse!

Photoshop Selections - The Lasso Tool

Sun, 04 Oct 2009 00:00 EST

Photoshop's Lasso Tool is probably the easiest of the selection tools to use, allowing us to draw freehand selections around objects in a photo as if we were outlining them on paper with a pen or pencil. While it may not be considered a professional level selection tool, we'll learn how to combine it with Photoshop's ability to add and remove areas of a selection to fix up problem areas and dramatically improve your results!

Photoshop Selections - The Elliptical Marquee Tool

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 00:00 EST

The Rectangular Marquee Tool may be one of the easiest Photoshop selection tools to use, but it isn't much help to us when we need to draw oval or circular selections. That's where the Elliptical Marquee Tool comes in, and it's every bit as simple. In fact, the Elliptical Marquee Tool is really just the Rectangular Marquee Tool with extremely rounded corners!

Photoshop Selections - The Rectangular Marquee Tool

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 00:00 EST

Being able to select objects or areas in a photo is one of the most important Photoshop skills you need, but not all selections need to be complex or time consuming. In this tutorial, we look at one of Photoshop's most basic and easy to use selection tools, the Rectangular Marquee Tool, perfect for making selections based on simple geometric shapes.

Photoshop Selections - Why Do We Need Selections?

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 00:00 EST

There's lots of ways to make selections in Photoshop, some simple, some advanced, but having lots of ways to do something doesn't explain why we need to do it in the first place, so in this tutorial, we'll look at why we need to make selections in Photoshop at all and why Photoshop doesn't see things like we do.

Add A High Key Glow Effect To Your Photos In Photoshop

Mon, 24 Aug 2009 00:00 EST

In this Photoshop photo effects tutorial, learn how to give your images a romantic, magical look by adding a glow effect to just the highlights in the photo, an easy effect to create thanks to Photoshop's Color Range command.

Create A Portrait From Text In Photoshop

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 00:00 EST

In this Photoshop photo effects tutorial, learn how to create the illusion that a portrait photo is actually being created by multiple lines of text.

Create An Easy Halftone Pattern Photo Border In Photoshop

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 00:00 EST

Learn how to create a fun and simple halftone pattern photo border in Photoshop! We'll use Smart Filters in Photoshop CS3 and CS4 to keep the effect fully editable even after it's completed, but this photo border can be easily created with any version of Photoshop, including Photoshop Elements!

Dual View Photo Editing In Photoshop

Mon, 27 Jul 2009 00:00 EST

If it's true that two heads are better than one, it's also true that two views of the same image are better than one, especially when it comes to photo editing. Learn how to keep a constant eye on your overall image in Photoshop no matter how far you've zoomed in with this dual view editing technique!

High Speed Motion Trail Photo Effect

Mon, 20 Jul 2009 00:00 EST

In this Photoshop tutorial, we'll learn how to add a sense of speed to an object using an easy to create motion blur effect! This "speed trail" effect is very popular in sports photography since it's a great way to add motion, direction and excitement to an image, creating the illusion that an athlete, for example, is blazing past the competition at super human speed. Of course, this effect works just as well with a photo of your kids running in the backyard, or people dancing at a party, or any image where the subject should appear to be moving.

Photo Effects With The Dissolve Blend Mode In Photoshop

Mon, 13 Jul 2009 00:00 EST

Learn how the Dissolve layer blend mode in Photoshop can be used to add more interest to your photo effects, as well as how to easily create a speckled photo border!

Create A Painterly Glow Effect With Motion Blurs And Smart Filters In Photoshop CS3

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 00:00 EST

Learn how to blend multiple motion blurs together to create an interesting painting/glow photo effect, and discover why Smart Filters, first introduced in Photoshop CS3, are one of the best new features Adobe has added to Photoshop in years!

Photoshop CS4 New Features - Multi Document Layouts

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:00 EST

Photoshop CS4 makes viewing and comparing multiple images easier than ever thanks to the new Arrange Documents feature and a bunch of new multi document layouts! Learn how to use them and even how to zoom and pan all of the images in a layout at once!

Photoshop CS4 New Features - Tabbed Document Windows

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 00:00 EST

If you've been wishing for a better way to work with multiple images open at once in Photoshop, one that doesn't involve endlessly dragging document windows around on the screen, check out the new Tabbed Document Windows feature in Photoshop CS4! Switching between multiple images has never been easier!

Photoshop CS4 Interface Features Quick Tour

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 00:00 EST

New to Photoshop or upgraded from an earlier version? Check out our quick tour of all the features in Photoshop CS4's user interface, the most streamlined, efficient and user friendly interface so far! Learn what's what, what's new and where it all is, including a look at the brand new Application Bar and Application Frame!

Perspective Correction In Photoshop - Repairing Keystoning

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 00:00 EST

Tired of the buildings in your photos looking like they're leaning backwards? That's a common perspective problem known as keystoning, but Photoshop's powerful Lens Correction filter, first introduced in Photoshop CS2, makes it easy to fix! We can even take care of a few other potential image problems along the way, all with the same filter!

Create Stunning Cinematic Panoramas With Adobe Bridge And Photoshop CS4

Mon, 01 Jun 2009 00:00 EST

Photoshop has been somewhat capable of creating panoramas for quite a while now, but it wasn't until Photoshop CS3 came along with its dramatically improved Photomerge command that its ability to stitch photos together really began to shine. Photoshop CS4 takes things even further with some additional new features, including the ability to remove vignetting, making it easier than ever to combine multiple photos into seamless cinematic panoramas!

Add A Texture To Text In Photoshop

Sat, 16 May 2009 00:00 EST

Learn how to create an interesting effect by adding a texture to text in Photoshop, using nothing more than a photo for the texture, a layer mask, a simple image adjustment, and of course, some text! Includes a trick for pasting an image directly into a layer mask in Photoshop!

New And Improved Curves In Photoshop CS3

Wed, 13 May 2009 00:00 EST

The Curves image adjustment is widely considered to be the most powerful and versatile photo editing tool in the entire program. While the basics of Curves may not have changed in Photoshop CS3, the Curves dialog box has received a major upgrade with new features and some welcome improvements!

Comparing The Levels And Curves Image Adjustments In Photoshop

Mon, 11 May 2009 00:00 EST

Photoshop's Curves adjustment can seem less like an image editing tool and more like something from a science lab, but in this tutorial, we compare it with the Levels adjustment to see just how simple Curves really is, and why Curves goes far beyond anything you could hope for with Levels!

Bringing Out Hidden Shadow And Highlight Detail In An Image

Fri, 01 May 2009 04:00 EST

The Shadow/Highlight adjustment is one of the most popular and useful image editing tools in all of Photoshop thanks to its amazing ability to bring out hidden detail in the shadows and highlights of a photo. In this tutorial, we tap in to the real power of the Shadow/Highlight command by exploring its advanced options!

Improving Image Tone With Levels

Fri, 24 Apr 2009 13:15 EST

The first step in a good photo editing workflow is to correct any overall tonal problems in the image, brightening highlights, darkening shadows and adjusting the midtones. Photoshop's Levels adjustment not only makes tonal correction fast and easy, it's what the pros use for accurate, professional quality results!

Better Brightness And Contrast In Photoshop CS3

Fri, 17 Apr 2009 16:15 EST

Over the years, many unsuspecting photographers and photo retouchers have destroyed their images with the Brightness/Contrast command. Thankfully, those days are over! The improved Brightness/Contrast command in Photoshop CS3 may be all you need to add life to dull, flat images, and it doesn't get much easier than this!

How To Read An Image Histogram In Photoshop

Wed, 08 Apr 2009 16:15 EST

Histograms are one of the most valuable tools we have when editing or restoring images, and knowing how to read a histogram is an essential skill for anyone who's serious about the quality of their photos. Learn what histograms can tell us about our images and how to use them to easily spot potential problems.

Easy Color To Black And White Conversions In Photoshop CS3

Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:15 EST

Tired of having no control when converting your color photos to black and white or being forced to think like a computer? Then you'll definitely want to check out the Black and White adjustment in Photoshop CS3, a tool so easy and natural, if you can click and drag your mouse, you have all the skills you need!

Reducing Photoshop File Sizes with Adjustment Layers

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 16:15 EST

Photoshop file sizes getting out of control? Learn how Photoshop's adjustment layers can help keep them to a minimum and keep you, your computer and Photoshop running smoothly!