Photoshop CC Top 100 Simplified Tips and Tricks

1 Take Control of Photoshop

#1 Set the Color Scheme for Your Photoshop Workspace 4

#2 Select the Color Settings for Editing 6

#3 Customize the Preferences for the Way You Work 8

#4 Create a Custom Workspace 10

#5 Add a Keyboard Shortcut to Open an Image as a Smart Object 12

#6 Change Your Window Views 14

#7 Create a Custom Action for Repetitive Tasks 16

#8 Reset Color Swatches with Photographic Filter Colors 18

#9 Make Photoshop Remember Your Enhancement Steps 20

#10 Profile Your Monitor for Accurate Color 22

#11 Increase the Power of Photoshop with a Pen Tablet 24

2 Manage Photos with Adobe Bridge and Mini Bridge

#12 Set the Color Theme for Your Bridge Workspaces 28

#13 Change Your Workspace View 30

#14 Import Photos and Videos from a Camera or Camera Card 32

#15 Apply Keywords to Find Photos Later 34

#16 Review and Rate Images 38

#17 Select Images Using Mini Bridge 40

#18 Open Images in Photoshop Using Mini Bridge 42

3 Process Photos in Camera Raw

#19 Set Preferences in Camera Raw 46

#20 Auto-Correct with One Click 47

#21 Adjust Overall White Balance Three Ways 48

#22 Recover Highlight and Shadow Information Using Camera Raw 52

#23 Correct Lens Aberrations Automatically or Manually 56

#24 Retouch Portraits Nondestructively 60

#25 Visually Adjust the Tone Curve with the Targeted Adjustment Tool 62

#26 Improve a Sky with the Graduated Filter 64

#27 Brush on Local Adjustments 66

#28 Apply Adjustments to Multiple Photos 68

#29 Quiet a Noisy Photo 70

#30 Export Images to Photoshop 72

4 Fix Common Problems

#31 Remove Spots and Skin Blemishes Two Ways 76

#32 Retouch Wrinkles with the Healing Brush and Patch Tools 80

#33 Slim a Portrait by Removing the Weight the Camera Adds 82

#34 Remove Reflections in Eyeglasses 84

#35 Lighten a Subject in Deep Shadow 86

#36 Make a Perfect Group Shot 88

#37 Remove Unwanted Objects in Photos 90

#38 Reposition the Subject without Leaving a Hole 92

#39 Brighten the Eyes Using Curves and Layers 94

#40 Enhance a Boring Sky by Adding Clouds 98

#41 Remove Camera Shake with a Filter 100

5 Adjust Photos with Layers, Selections, and Masks

#42 Make a Selection with the Quick Selection Tool 104

#43 Improve the Edges of a Selection with Refine Edge 106

#44 Adjust Part of an Image with an Automatic Layer Mask 108

#45 Select Areas of Similar Color with the Magic Wand Tool 110

#46 Select Only Skin Tones and Adjust 112

#47 Mask Hair with a Selection and Refine Edge 116

#48 Add Layers as Smart Objects for Flexibility 120

#49 Select a Complex Background with the Color Range Command 122

#50 Add a Texture Using Blending Modes 124

#51 Compose and Adjust Images Using a Layer Mask 126

#52 Adjust Exposure Locally with a Dodge and Burn Layer 130

#53 Apply a Drop Shadow to Multiple Type Layers 132

6 Modify Photos with Transform, Straighten, Crop, and Resize

#54 Extend the Background without Distorting the Subject 136

#55 Add a Tattoo Painlessly with Free Transform 138

#56 Level a Tilted Horizon Two Ways 142

#57 Preserve Details when Resizing 144

#58 Crop without Cropping the Original 146

#59 Correct Wide-Angle Distortion Using the Adaptive Wide Angle Filter 148

#60 Dieting with Liquify 150

#61 Tilt a Portrait with Puppet Warp 152

#62 Create a Virtual Billboard with Transforms 154

7 Create Stunning Black-and-White Photos

#63 Convert a Color Photo to Black and White with a Black-and-White Adjustment Layer 158

#64 Add a Spot of Color to a Black-and-White Photo with a Layer Mask 160

#65 Simulate an Infrared Look 162

#66 Use Sepia Toning for a Classic Look 164

#67 Apply Custom Split Toning with a Gradient Map 166

#68 Create a Grungy Black-and-White Portrait in Camera Raw 168

#69 Colorize a Black-and-White Photo 170

#70 Use Quadtoning for the Richest Black-and-White Look 172

8 Create Unique Images with Filters and Special Effects

#71 Add a Custom Vignette 176

#72 Change the Mood with a Photo Filter 178

#73 Create a Desaturated Portrait 180

#74 Create an Instagram Look 182

#75 Merge Multiple Exposures into a High Dynamic Range Photo 186

#76 Create a Panorama with Photomerge 188

#77 Increase Depth of Field with the Auto-Blend Command 192

#78 Decrease Depth of Field with Iris Blur 196

#79 Create a Reflection Beneath an Object 198

#80 Simulate an Oil Painting with One Click 200

#81 Create a Miniature Effect 202

#82 Create a Movie-Like Day-for-Night Look with Color Lookup 204

#83 Create a Dreamlike Landscape by Sharpening and Blurring 206

9 Prepare Images for Output

#84 Create an E-Mail Announcement from Your Photo 212

#85 Add Your Signature to Your Artwork 216

#86 Create a Custom Watermark for Your Images 218

#87 Sharpen Photos with Smart Sharpen 220

#88 Create a Sloppy Border Around Your Image 222

#89 Add a Simple Border and Mat to Your Image 224

#90 Output a Photo as a Gallery Print 226

#91 Set the Correct Options for Inkjet Printing 230

#92 Create a Contact Sheet 232

#93 Create an Action to Resize Images for an iPad 234

10 Edit Video in Photoshop

#94 Open Video Clips Two Ways 240

#95 Trim a Video Clip 244

#96 Add a Transition Between Clips 246

#97 Add Fade Ins and Fade Outs 247

#98 Convert a Video Clip to Black and White 248

#99 Adjust the White Balance of a Video Clip 250

#100 Sharpen a Video Clip with Unsharp Masking 251

#101 Add Background Music to a Video 252

#102 Add Text to a Video 256

#103 Add Motion to a Still Image with Video 258

#104 Output Completed Video to YouTube or Vimeo 260

11 Use Plug-ins to Extend Photoshop

#105 Create Lightning with Alien Skin Eye Candy 7 264

#106 Retouch a Portrait with Anthropics Portrait Studio Plus 11 266

#107 Add Realistic Star Bursts with Topaz Star Effects 268