Adobe Photoshop CS by Julieanne Kost
But Wait, There’s More…

OK, it’s time to take a tour of all of those little updates of Photoshop CS that might otherwise be overlooked—the ones that the engineering team has adjusted, tweaked, honed and shuffled to make Photoshop the incredible program it is, while making our lives so much easier. These are the features I live to demo for—they may not make you scream and jump out of your seat, but they’ll certainly make you smile as you realize how much time they’ll save. Trust me, it just doesn’t get any better than this!

In previous versions of Photoshop, when working with an image that is less than the width of the screen in full-screen mode (with or without the menu bar), Photoshop would simply center the document. In other words, you couldn’t pan a document that was smaller than the screen. This caused what I like to call, “the palette shuffle”—the constant relocating, hiding and showing your palettes to reveal the image below them. With Photoshop CS in full-screen mode, you can shift the location of your image regardless of the scale by clicking and dragging with the hand tool. Yes, this means you can slide your image out from under your palettes while in any zoom level! And, as a side benefit, you can work on any corner of your image in the center of your screen. Retouchers rejoice!

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While still on the topic of panning, if you have more than one image open, and select the Hand tool, you can check “Scroll All Windows” in the options bar to scroll all open documents and synchronize your navigation (Figure 1). Likewise, when selecting the Zoom tool, you can select “Zoom All Windows” (Figure 2). Both of these options can be temporarily accessed by holding down the Shift key with either tool. To synchronize the zoom level and position of multiple images, additional menu items for Match Zoom, Match Location and Match Zoom and Location can be found under Window > Arrange.

“Hot scrubbable text” sliders have found their way into Photoshop CS’s many dialog boxes (Figure 3), palettes and the options bar, enabling you to easily adjust numeric entries. In the Image Size dialog box, for example, placing your cursor over the words “Height” or “Width” will change the cursor to a hand with arrows pointing left and right. This indicates that if you click and drag on this area, you can change the numeric values without having to type them. (Essentially, you “scrub” numeric values.) If you hold down the Shift key, the values will change in larger increments (depending on the specific feature).

There are two new interpolation algorithms for resizing images. Both are based on bicubic interpolation, but focus on keeping the image smoother or sharper—hence their names: Bicubic Smoother and Bicubic Sharper (Figure 4). Of course you should try them both to see which one you prefer, but typically, Bicubic Smoother works better on images that you need to enlarge, and removes the need for intermediary interpolation, while Bicubic Sharper is better for downsampling images where you want to hold as much sharpness as possible (for example, creating thumbnails for the web from high-resolution print work). You might first notice this change in the Image Size dialog box, but you should also be aware that you can set your preference for which algorithm to use in the Preferences > General > Image Interpolation menu.

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While we’re on the subject of interpolation, if you’re working with Camera RAW files, you may want to resample to a rough approximation of your final size while in the Camera RAW dialog box. The reason for this is Camera RAW is working in a linear space while Photoshop is working in a gamma space. If you are upsizing, and you’re using a camera with non-square pixels, you should upsize at least one step in Camera RAW for highest quality, then, scale to your final size in Photoshop.

Another much desired addition to the image size dialog box is the ability to specify whether or not you’d like any applied layer effects to scale with the image. If scaling is not enabled, a 2-pixel drop shadow will remain that size no matter how much the image is scaled or in what direction, but with it enabled (Figure 5), the effects will keep their proportions to the objects they are applied to.

In dialog boxes referencing width and height (New, Image Size, Canvas Size, etc.) if you change units of measurement for one of the dimensions, Photoshop will automatically match the units for the other dimensions (i.e. if you select pixels as the units for width, Photoshop automatically changes the height to pixels). For those of you that prefer the old way, or need to enter in two different units of measurement, holding down the shift key will override this feature to allow different units for each value

Just in case you haven’t committed to memory all of the palette groupings, it’s now easier to find and show those palettes that you might have closed. Under the Window menu, palettes are now listed alphabetically (Figure 6)… imagine that! And all of those open documents that you’re playing with at one time—well if you need to see one that’s hidden behind others, simply select it from the list of open documents from the bottom of the Window menu. Yes, open documents are, once again, listed at the bottom of the menu. Hallelujah!

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For those Photoshop extremists that have run across Photoshop’s old 30,000x30,000 pixel limit, Photoshop CS now supports images 100X larger than before—up to 300,000x300,000 pixels. Of course, I seem to run out memory and disk space before I get much done, but that’s nothing I can’t solve with more RAM and hard disk space! Oh, and did I mention that you can now save up to 56 channels per image?

You can now specify the color to be used if you are extending the canvas on an image that contains a background. In the Canvas size dialog box select Other from the Canvas Extension Color drop-down menu (Figure 7), or click on the color swatch (to the right of the menu) to choose a color from the Color Picker. Since previous versions of Photoshop would simply fill the extended canvas on the Background layer with the background color selected in the tool bar, this is the default extension color in the canvas size dialog box. Note: If you are working on a file that doesn’t contain a background layer, this option is unavailable since Photoshop will fill the extended canvas area with transparency.

Figure 9

Have you ever forgotten to choose the correct foreground color before you selected Edit > Fill? No need to worry any longer. While in the Contents area of the Fill Dialog box, select Use > Color (Figure 8). This automatically displays the color picker, where you simply select your color and click OK. Your layer or selection will be filled with that color.

An additional blend mode has been added to Photoshop CS called Hard Mix Blend mode. In general, the results when blending two layers together are: lighter colors lighten the result, darker colors darken the result, lowering the fill opacity creates less posterization/thresholding. Hard Mix blending a blurred version of an image, for example, with itself will sharpen the image with Fill opacity (on the Layers palette) controlling the sharpening strength.

Extracting difficult objects from their backgrounds just became a whole lot easier with Photoshop CS. Yes, the Extract feature (Filter > Extract) has been updated to rescue you in difficult situations where the foreground and background share common colors, but each has unique textures or patterns. For example, if you have someone wearing a brown shirt in front of a predominantly brown, but patterned background, check the Textured Image option. Photoshop will look at colors and textures in the image to help you separate the person from the background (Figure 9).

Have you ever wanted to find the average color of a bunch of pixels? You know, as if they were different types of ice cream and you melted them together to find the average taste? Ok, well not exactly like that, but using Filter > Blur > Average, Photoshop will take all of the colors in your image, find the average and fill the selection (or entire image) with that color (Figure 10). This tool can be handy if you want to replace parts of an image that uses dithering with a solid color equivalent, and this will probably be more tasty than the ice cream experiment.

Figure 11: Varying fiber renderings

If you need to create an organic fiber texture, Photoshop CS will now render it for you automatically. Select Filter > Render > Fibers to generate unique fiber patterns (Figure 11). You can control both the variance and strength of the “weave” as well as randomize the result until you find the perfect texture. This filter uses the foreground and background colors selected in the tool box, so choose your colors before choosing the filter.

In Photoshop CS, you can now lock particular attributes of a brush (Figure 12). This means if you have a preferred set of dynamics you like to use, you can set them up once, lock them, and then, even if you select a different preset brush, those particular attributes will carry over. For example, when I’m using my Wacom tablet, I prefer that the opacity of the brush remains pressure-sensitive regardless of the brush I’m using. With Photoshop CS, I can now click on Other Dynamics icon in the Brushes palette, set the Control option to Pen Pressure, lock the Other Dynamics, and then switch brushes to my heart’s content, retaining opacity/sensitivity throughout my work.

Photoshop CS installs scripts (File > Scripts) that enable you to export multiple layers in one document to files of their own. In addition, you can export Layer Comps to Files, Layer Comps to PDF, and Layer Comps to Web Photo Gallery. Exporting multiple layers into files of their own makes the integration with video compositing tools much easier. The Web Photo Gallery is great when you want to try out several versions of a design using Layer Comps and then share them with clients. It’s particularly cool that you can do several designs in one document and then make a Web Photo Gallery that features a client review tool so that you can conduct a Web-based review quickly. In the Photoshop Folder is a guide to scripting with information on JavaScript, AppleScript and VisualBasic as well as sample scripts if you’re so inclined to make your own.

For the really advanced Photoshop gurus, Layer Sets can now be “nested” up to five layers deep (Figure 13)! Yes, that’s right, you can have a set in a set in a set in a set in a set! Imagine the complex blending opportunities!

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Also having to do with multiple layers, Clipping Groups have been renamed “Clipping Masks” for clarity of their purpose (both in the layers menu as well as when adding a new layer, adjustment layer or fill layer). As the bottom layer defines the visibility of the clipped layers, clipping masks more clearly describe their function. That, paired with the addition of multiple layer selections and grouping of objects in ImageReady, was a much needed redefinition.

If you have a file with multiple layers and some are visible and some aren’t, in previous versions of Photoshop, Option (ALT)-clicking an eyeball would turn off all layers except the current one, and Option (ALT)-clicking it again would turn on all layers. However, if you didn’t want the previously hidden layers to be visible, you were out of luck. Now in Photoshop CS the first Option-click turns off all layers but the clicked one, and the second Option-click turns on only the layers that were previously on. Now, if you want to turn on all layers like you could before, simply use the “Show/Hide all others layers” command by right-clicking/Ctrl-clicking the eyeball next to a layer. Option-clicking an eyeball is now smarter than it was, and you can still turn on all layers with (at most) two clicks.

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In Photoshop 7.0, the Healing Brush required that you use the same layer for the source and destination (unless you were “healing” between documents). This meant you had to paint on “original” data in your image, or duplicate a layer and use that with the healing brush. Now, you can use the Healing Brush and paint to an empty layer (just like the Clone Stamp tool). This option will make a huge difference in the way I work—allowing more experimentation and flexibility in editing because I’m not altering the original data nor having to work with large, duplicate files (Figure 14).

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The Patch tool has also been enhanced. Now, when you’re using the patch tool to patch a source area, you get a live preview of the area you’re going to replace. This gives you more control over how the patched area will align with the existing data. Also note that the Patch tool has a new “Transparent” check box (Figure 15) on the options bar that lets the tool ignore areas of relatively flat color when blending. It’s magical when duplicating or moving objects such as glass that have transparency.

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If you need to swap the width and height entered in the crop tool options bar, click on the arrows icon between them (Figure 16). This option is also available for the marquee tool when the option for Style is set to Fixed Size or Fixed Ratio.

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To quickly navigate to a folder in the File Browser that you have open on your hard drive, drag and drop the folder from the OS to the navigational area that lists most recent and favorite folders (Figure 17). And while we’re talking about the File Browser, another really cool feature is the ability to preview InDesign CS, Acrobat Professional and Illustrator CS files. In the File Browser, select View > Unreadable Files. Legacy InDesign files may only display the generic InDesign Icon, however, if you check the Save Document Preview Image in the File Handling Preferences in InDesign, and resave the file, then you will see a thumbnail preview. If you check the preference to Render Vector Files and parse AMP Metadata from Non-image Files, you’ll not only be able to see thumbnails for Acrobat PDF as well as Illustrator CS files but also see any metadata that is saved with the file. Once you’ve identified the images you want to work with using the File Browser, you can open images from the File Browser directly into Photoshop CS, ImageReady CS, or even into Adobe Illustrator CS, InDesign CS, or GoLive CS by using the context-sensitive menu. Just add a shortcut to the desired application to: Photoshop/Helpers/Jump to Graphics Editor or Jump To HTML Editor.

The new Welcome Screen that appears when you first launch Photoshop CS provides many tutorials, tips and tricks and information regarding Color management. This is a great resource of instructional material that can help bring you quickly up to speed. You can close the box when you no longer need it, but it remains available at any time by selecting Help > Welcome Screen…

If you would like to hook into Online services directly from Photoshop, select File > Online services. Photoshop will automatically search for online partner services and list them in the Online Services Window. Use the Wizard to upload files for printing and sharing. Additional online services will be listed as they become available.

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Photoshop CS ships with 50 of the most common technical support questions answered, all accessible from the help menu. In fact, the help menu has been expanded to allow you to create your own custom help files and include them as part of the HowTo help system. Of course, these HTML files can contain links, movies, audio, etc. so you can create your own training or style guides that determine workflow or best-practice tips. The custom HowTo help files can then be copied into the Help folder in Photoshop, which automatically installs them for an entire team to reference.

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The Replace Color adjustment now has an additional color swatch in the dialog box enabling you to select a specific color (by numeric value) as your source color to replace using the Hue, Saturation and Lightness sliders (Figure 19).

File > Import WIA supports certain digital cameras. When you use WIA, Photoshop works with Windows (ME or XP only) and your digital camera or scanner software to import images directly into Photoshop.

A few camera manufacturers had placed incorrect color space data in the EXIF tag, which can now be overwritten by selecting Edit > Preferences > File Handling > Ignore EXIF profile tags.

Also in the File Handling Preferences, you’ll find the option to Enable Vision Cue Workgroup File Management (Figure 18). When working with Version Cue, this options enables “check in” and “check out” functionality (as well as access to versions).

After joining Adobe Systems in 1993, Julieanne Kost currently serves as the Graphic Arts Evangelist, educating graphic designers, photographers, educators and fine artists. She is a master of both Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator and has used them extensively in graphic design, print, and photography as well as cross-media for online and multimedia productions. Visit adobeevangelists.com/.