Rangefinder Magazine
November 2004
Photoshop
CS by Dave Cross
Organize Images Using the CS File Browser
 The Photoshop CS File Browser is a
simple yet powerful tool to view and organize your images.
Using just a few clickable buttons it is easy to perform
functions such as rotating and deleting images, adding
(and removing) Flags, and conducting a Search. Additionally,
a series of menus offers you quick access to key functions
such as adding folders to your Favorites, Rotating images,
changing Preferences, Sorting images and much more.
Follow the simple directions below to organize your images
maximizing the CS File Browser’s functions.
Thumbnails
Now you don’t have to be satisfied with the built-in
sorting options; instead you can drag-and-drop thumbnails
like a slide on a light box to reorder images into your
preferred order. In addition, you can create thumbnails
in custom size up to 1024 pixels wide! (Seems a little
crazy to call them “thumbnails” at 1024 pixels
wide!) The custom thumbnail size is changed in the File
Browser Preferences, and then you simply choose Custom
Thumbnail Size from the View menu in the File Browser.
Batch
Renaming
You can choose the starting serial number when you batch
rename a series of files. (In Photoshop 7, there was
a trick to doing this, but now it’s a simple matter
of entering the number in the dialog box.)
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Thumbnails |
Batch Renaming |
Flags and Search
The capability to Flag files provides an easy and quick
way to mark images for later use. Simply select one
or more images and either click on the Flag button
or press Cmd ’ (apostrophe) (Ctrl ’ on
a PC). Once an image is flagged, you can choose to
show only the flagged files by selecting Flagged Files
from the pop-up menu at the top of the File Browser.
Using the Search capability, you can search through
multiple folders for all flagged files (by checking “Include
All Subfolders”). On the subject of the Search
capability, this robust new feature lets you search
for files based on name, size, date created or modified,
file type, flag, rank, keyword, caption, metadata,
or EXIF data. And if that’s not enough, you can
choose to search for up to 13 factors. In this example,
we searched based on File Name, Size and Flag.
  Metadata
and Keywords
In
Photoshop CS the metadata options offer more than
150 options including file properties, IPTC options
such as copyright and author, camera data (EXIF),
GPS data, Camera RAW, and edit history. You choose
the options you want to display by checking them
in the Metadata Display Options dialog box. Many
of these options can be changed in a batch process
by selecting a number of images and then changing
the settings. For example, if you have a number of
images for which you want to change the copyright
setting, simply select those images, change the copyright
information in the Metadata pane, and press Enter.
The new Keyword option (image bottom, left) is very
simple, yet effective: You add Sets (folders) and
individual Keywords to the list and then place a checkmark
beside that Keyword. Once the Keywords have been applied,
you can use the Search option to find images with these
Keywords.
Camera RAW Format
Camera RAW is built into Photoshop CS and is accessible
only from the File Browser. Simply double-click on
any image in RAW format and the Camera RAW options
open.
 Automate
Although they haven’t moved from under the File
menu, parts of the Automate menu can now be accessed
directly from the File Brow- ser. Picture Package, Contact
Sheet, and Web Photo Gallery have been joined by two
new Automate features: PDF Presentation and Photomerge.
Simply select multiple thumbnails and choose the Automate
feature you’d like to use, next tweak the settings
in the dialog box, and you’re all set. Just make
sure that you actually do select some images, or the
Automate feature you choose will apply to the entire
folder that you’re currently in.
 Dave Cross is Senior Developer, Education and Curriculum
for NAPP (National Association of Photoshop Professionals)
and co-author of three books: Photoshop 7 & Illustrator
10: Create Great Advanced Graphics, Photoshop 7 Trade
Secrets, and Adobe Illustrator Killer Tips. Dave is also
one of the lead instructors for NAPP’s Adobe Photoshop
Seminar Tour.
This is one of a series of Adobe® Photoshop® tutorials
sponsored by Adobe Systems and the National Association
of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP) to be reprinted in
Rangefinder taken from the Photoshop User magazine, the
official publication of NAPP (www.photoshopuser.com).
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