120 THINGS YOU NEVER KNEW ABOUT PHOTOSHOP
Part of what makes Photoshop such an incredibly powerful and pleasurable program to use is its
well-thought out implementation: the interface is polished and uncluttered and easily
customizable (despite its vast arsenal of tools and commands). In fact, there is a surprising
amount of "hidden" functionality within Photoshop; so much so, that despite the number of years
you work with the program, you will undoubtedly keep discovering more and more about it. I
doubt anyone could claim that they know "everything" about Photoshop (except maybe Adobe's
software engineers ;-).
The 120 tips below should help you (whether you are a beginner or a seasoned expert) to
harness some of Photoshop's "hidden" functionality to streamline your work, perform complex
tasks more quickly or efficiently, or teach yourself something you had no idea Photoshop was
capable of!
For your convenience, the tips have been organized into the following ten categories:
Interface Tips [ 18 Tips ]
Tool Tips [ 11 Tips ]
Command Tips [ 21 Tips ]
Selection Tips [ 8 Tips ]
Layer Tips [ 14 Tips ]
Tips for Guides & Rulers [ 7 Tips ]
Navigation & HotKey Tips [ 7 Tips ]
Tips for Duplicating [ 10 Tips ]
Type Tips [ 10 Tips ]
ImageReady Tips [ 14 Tips ]
Here are a couple of notes before you begin:
• I tend to prefer hotkeys (e.g. [Ctrl+D] ), but I have provided equivalent alternatives (e.g.
Select » Deselect - which denotes a menu command) wherever possible
• Mac Users: Ctrl = Apple, Alt = Option (e.g. Ctrl+Alt+D = Apple·Option·D); right-click =
Option·click
INTERFACE TIPS
1. You probably knew that pressing the Tab key hides the toolbar and palettes, but you can also
press Shift+Tab to hide only the palettes (thereby leaving the toolbar visible).
2. Snap your palettes to the nearest screen edge by Shift-clicking on their titlebars.
3. Minimize palettes by double-clicking on their (names in the) palette tabs. Use the minimize
button on the palette titlebars to cycle between: compact mode (minimum number of options /
contents visible) and contents mode (view all palette options / contents).
Note: (Photoshop 6) You can also double-click the toolbar’s titlebar to minimize it.
4. Press Enter (or double-click on a tool icon in the toolbar) to reveal the Options palette for the
currently active tool; alternatively, you may choose Window » Show Options from the menus to
reveal the Options palette.
5. Use the Zoom field (in the bottom-left of the Photoshop window or Navigator palette) to quickly
enter an exact zoom level; press Shift+Enter after entering a value to have the field remain active.
6. To change the (document size) information displayed in the status bar (bottom of the screen –
Window » Show Status Bar), click on the > button and choose a new item from the pop-up menu.
Click on the status bar (to the left of the > button) to display the Print Size of the current
document. Alt-click to see the image dimensions and resolution. Ctrl-click for Tile information.
7. You can fill the (gray) canvas borders with the foreground color by Shift-clicking on it with the
Paint Bucket tool [K].
Note: To replace the default color, change the foreground color to 25% gray (R192,G192,B192)
and Shift-click on the canvas border again.
8. Hold down the Alt key to change any Cancel button into a Reset button (in any dialog box); this
allows you to easily restore values without having to Cancel and come back.
9. Use the Caps Lock key to turn Precise Cursors on / off.
Note: This does not work if Precise Cursors are already enabled in the Preferences [Ctrl+K,
Ctrl+3] (File » Preferences » Display & Cursors...).
10. Press "F" to cycle between three different Full Screen modes (or use the Mode buttons near
the bottom of the toolbar).
Tip: Press Shift+F to toggle the menus in Full Screen mode.
11. Double-clicking on Photoshop's background (the gray background) will summon the Open
command [Ctrl+O] (File » Open...).
12. Shift-click on the color ramp (on the Color palette [F6] (Window » Show Color)) to change the
spectrum. Alternatively, you may either right-click on the color ramp or open the Color palette
menu to select an alternate color mode.
13. Right-click on an image window's titlebar to quickly access features like Canvas Size, Image
Size and Duplicate.
14. Pausing the mouse pointer over an image window's titlebar will reveal (via a tool tip) the full
path of the current document.
15. Add a custom color to the Swatches palette (Window » Show Swatches) by clicking on any
empty (gray) area. Remove a color by Ctrl-clicking on it. Replace a color by Shift-clicking on it.
Insert a new swatch color (between two other colors) by Alt+Shift-clicking on either color.
16. Use the Hexadecimal Color Field ( # ) in the Color Picker to copy and paste color values from
one place in Photoshop to another (or even to another application that supports Hexadecimal
color values).
17. To increase / decrease the size of the Curves window [Ctrl+M] (Image » Adjust » Curves...),
click on the maximize / minimize button.
Note: Clicking the maximize / minimize button toggles the Curves grid between 171 pixels and
256 pixels wide. For greater accuracy, use the larger grid, since you have control over all 256
shades of gray in the image (compared to 171 shades by using the small grid).
Tip: Alt-click on the Curves window to increase the grid size.
Tip: Hold down the Alt key to change Auto button into an Options button (and the Cancel button
into a Reset button).
18. (Photoshop 6 and ImageReady) Alt-click on a triangle icon to expand or collapse all child
elements of an action, action step, layer style, or layer set.
TOOL TIPS
1. To draw a straight line with any paint tool, click on the image, move the mouse, and then Shiftclick
– Photoshop will join the two points with a straight line using the current tool.
2. Hold down the Ctrl key at any time to access the Move tool [V]. Use Ctrl+Alt to drag a duplicate
of the current layer or selection.
3. Press the Space Bar to access the Hand tool [H] at any time.
4. Access the Zoom tool [Z] at any time by holding Ctrl+Space to zoom in, and Alt+Space to
zoom out.
5. Zoom in and out by using Ctrl+Plus ( + ) and Ctrl+Minus ( - ), respectively: have the window
resize to fit by also holding down the Alt key (Ctrl+Alt+Plus and Ctrl+Alt+Minus). Very Useful!
Note: You may also have the document window zoom to fit while using the Zoom tool [Z] by
enabling "Resize Windows to Fit" in the Options palette.
6. Hold down the Alt key when selecting a color with the Eyedropper tool [ I ] to define a
background color.
7. Use the Color Sampler tool [Shift+I ] with the help of the Info palette [F8] (Window » Show Info)
to monitor color changes in the current image. The before / after color values are displayed next
to their respective color sampler number (i.e. # 1). Specify the sampler color mode via the pop-up
menu on the Info palette [F8] (Window » Show Info).
To add a new color sampler simply click anywhere on the canvas (with the Color Sampler tool
[Shift+I ]). Remove a sampler by Alt-clicking on it.
Note: You may only have a maximum of four color samplers per image.
Tip: To use the Color Sampler tool from within a dialog window (such as Levels, Curves, etc.),
hold down the Shift key. Alt+Shift-click on a sampler to delete it.
8. While the Measure tool [U] is pretty handy for measuring distances (especially on a diagonal),
you can also use it to measure angles (like a protractor). Make sure the Info palette [F8] (Window
» Show Info) is visible. Select the Measure tool [U]: click and drag to draw a line. Hold down the
Alt key and drag a second line out from one of the end nodes (note the angle and lengths of the
two lines in the Info palette).
Tip: Move a measure line by dragging it with the Measure tool [U] (you may even reposition the
endpoints independently). Delete a measure line (or protractor) by dragging it off the canvas.
9. Ctrl-click a tool icon in the toolbar to reset the tool to its default settings.
10. Increase / decrease the brush size for the current paint tool using the left / right square
bracket keys ( [ / ] ), respectively.
11. The Eyedropper tool [ I ] (in Photoshop 6) allows you to copy the hexadecimal value of a color
to the Clipboard. Simply right-click over the desired color (in the image window) and choose Copy
Color as HTML from the context menu. You may then paste the color value into your favorite
editor.
COMMAND TIPS
1. To reapply the last filter, use Filter » Last Filter [Ctrl+F]. To reapply a filter with new settings,
add the Alt key (Ctrl+Alt+F or Alt + Filter » Last Filter).
Tip: Fade the effects (and change the blending mode) of the last filter (or adjustment), by
pressing Ctrl+Shift+F (Filter » Fade Filter…).
2. If you have recently copied an image to the Clipboard, Photoshop will automatically insert the
dimensions of the Clipboard image when you create a New Document [Ctrl+N] (File » New...). To
bypass this feature and recall the last settings, hold down the Alt key [Ctrl+Alt+N] (Alt + File »
New...).
Tip: To insert the dimensions of any open document into the New Document window [Ctrl+N]
(File » New...), choose its name from the bottom of the Window menu.
3. Use Ctrl+Alt+Z and Ctrl+Shift+Z to step backward and forward though the history states (or use
the History palette menu to access the step commands); use these keys in conjunction with Undo
[Ctrl+Z] (Edit » Undo) to cycle between a specific history state and the current state.
4. Use Alt+Backspace and Ctrl+Backspace to Fill (Edit » Fill...) with the foreground and
background colors, respectively; also, use Shift+Backspace to open the Fill dialog box. Very
useful!
Tip: Use Alt+Shift+Backspace and Ctrl+Shift+Backspace to fill only existing pixels (Preserve
Transparency) with the foreground and background colors, respectively.
5. Perform a Free Transform [Ctrl+T] (Edit » Free Transform) on a duplicate (of the current
selection) by holding down the Alt key (Ctrl+Alt+T or Alt + Edit » Free Transform).
Tip: Repeat the last Transformation by pressing Ctrl+Shift+T (Edit » Transform » Again). Repeat
the last Transformation on a duplicate by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Shift+T (Alt + Edit » Transform »
Again).
6. To stop the Crop tool [C] from snapping to the image borders, hold down the Ctrl key while you
are dragging the crop handles.
7. To straighten a crooked image, use the Measure tool [U] to draw a line along what should be a
horizontal or vertical line (the edge of the image, a doorframe, across the eyes of a person in a
portrait, etc.), and then choose Image » Rotate Canvas » Arbitrary...; the correct Angle and
Direction will appear, just hit OK.
Note: You can also use the Crop tool [C] to rotate and crop an image in one step. Select the Crop
tool [C] and draw a rectangular region. Use the crop handle to scale the marquee, and drag
outside the marquee to rotate it; hit Enter to crop the image.
Tip: The angle of the Measure tool [U] is also entered automatically into the Transform Numeric
dialog box (Edit » Transform » Numeric).
8. To perform a Copy & Paste or Cut & Paste in one step, use the Layer Via Copy [Ctrl+J] (Layer
» New » Layer Via Copy) or Layer Via Cut [Ctrl+Shift+J] (Layer » New » Layer Via Cut)
commands.
Note: The Layer Via Copy (or Cut) commands also paste into the same location from which they
were copied (or cut), whereas the Copy (or Cut) & Paste method pastes into the center of the
canvas (or selection if one exists).
9. If you Crop your image (using the Crop tool [C] or Edit » Crop), you will lose all pixels outside
the crop boundaries. To crop your image without losing any data, use Canvas Size (Image »
Canvas Size) instead. Photoshop will warn you that some clipping will occur, but for some reason
it does not: all "cropped" data will be preserved outside the canvas boundaries!
Tip: ImageReady's Crop command (Image » Crop) will ask if you want cropped areas to be
hidden or deleted.
Note: This does not work in Indexed mode (i.e. you will lose any pixels outside the canvas
boundaries when using Canvas Size in Indexed mode).
10. Merge a copy of all visible layers into the current layer by holding down the Alt key while
selecting Merge Visible [Ctrl+Alt+Shift+E] (Alt + Layer » Merge Visible).
Tip: You may also merge a copy of the current layer into the previous layer by selecting Alt +
Layer » Merge Down. There is no equivalent hotkey associated with this command – Ctrl+Alt+E
does not work.
11. An alternative to deleting unwanted plugin folders is to prefix the folder name with a tilde (~).
Photoshop will ignore any folders beginning with a tilde (~).
Example: To disable the “Digimarc” plugins, rename the folder to “~Digimarc”.
12. Holding the Ctrl and Alt keys while launching Photoshop will allow you to change Photoshop's
Scratch Disk Preferences before it loads.
13. To reset all preferences to their defaults, press and hold Ctrl+Alt+Shift immediately after
launching Photoshop (or ImageReady).
14. You may customize the "Jump to..." and "Preview in..." menus with Photoshop / ImageReady
by creating shortcuts to your favorite applications within the Helpers folder:
C:\Program Files\Adobe\Photoshop 6.0\Helpers\
Note: The above path assumes a default installation (for Windows).
To add your own HTML editor to ImageReady's "Jump to..." menu, create a shortcut to the
desired application within the "Jump To HTML Editor" folder.
To include your preferred browser(s) in ImageReady's "Preview in..." menu, create a shortcut
within the "Preview In" folder.
To assign the default graphics application for ImageReady's “Jump To” button [Ctrl+Shift+M],
create a shortcut in the "Jump To Graphics Editor" folder. Place brackets “[ ]” around the name of
the application - the brackets will not be displayed.
To assign the default graphics application for Photoshop's “Jump To” button [Ctrl+Shift+M],
create a shortcut in the "Jump To Graphics Editor" folder. Place braces “{ }” around the name of
the application - the braces will not be displayed.
15. To free up memory you may choose choosing Edit » Purge » Histories, but be warned that
this will clears the history states of ALL open documents.
Note: To purge the history states of the active document (only), hold the Alt key and choose
Clear History from the History palette menu to purge all history states without changing the
image.
Warning! This above commands cannot be undone.
16. (Photoshop 6) In the Liquify dialog box [Ctrl+Shift+X] (Image » Liquify…), hold the Shift key
while clicking the OK button to temporarily save the current mesh (to a file called
C:\Temp\Liquify.tmp). To (re)load the mesh file (with your image), hold the Shift while launching
the Liquify command.
Note: The C:\Temp\ folder must already exist on your system to take advantage of this feature.
17. Press Ctrl+Alt and choose Save Actions... from the Action palette menu to save all actions to
a text file. This is very useful for reviewing or printing the contents of an action.
Note: The text file cannot be reloaded into Photoshop.
18. To improve the performance of batch processes (File » Automate » Batch…), reduce the
number of saved history states (in the General Preferences [Ctrl+K] (Edit » Preferences »
General...)) and deselect the Automatically Create First Snapshot option in the History Options
(History palette menu » History Options...).
19. To batch-process multiple folders in a single batch, enable the Include All Subfolders option,
and create shortcuts within the source folder to all folders you would like to have processed.
20. To batch-process multiple actions, create a new action and record the batch for each action
that you would like to process. Then run a batch-process using the newly created action.
Tip: You may also use this technique in conjunction with Command Tip 19 (above).
21. One really powerful aspect of actions is the ability to have them play other actions (even from
different action sets). This feature is ideal for actions that contain repetitive command segments
that could be segregated into action “subroutines” (thereby making the action easier to edit and
maintain). While recording an action, choose another action and press the play button: the play
command is recorded as an action step (Play action “Name” of Set “Name”) in the current action.
SELECTION TIPS
1. When using the Marquee tools [M], use the Shift key to create perfect circles or squares: use
the Alt key to draw them from their center.
2. Use the Reselect command [Ctrl+Shift+D] (Select » Reselect) to load / restore your previous
selection.
3. You may alternate between Polygonal and Freehand Lasso [L], while you are creating a
selection, by holding down the Alt key.
4. Use the Space Bar to move a selection while drawing it.
5. Holding the Shift or Alt keys to add or subtract from a selection is fairly common knowledge,
but did you know that you could hold down Shift and Alt together to intersect two selections?
Tip: Ctrl-click on a layer thumbnail (in the Layers palette - to load its transparency channel) and
then Ctrl+Alt+Shift-click a second layer to intersect the two layers' transparency masks.
6. Retain your selections while scaling or duplicating an image by first switching to Quick Mask
mode [Q] (or click on the Quick Mask icon near the bottom of the toolbar).
7. Alt-click the Quick Mask button to toggle between masked or selected areas.
8. After editing a selection in Quick Mask mode, Alt-click the Standard mode (Quick Mask off)
button to invert the current selection.
LAYER TIPS
1. You can cycle through layer blending modes by using Shift+Plus ( + ) (cycle forward) and
Shift+Minus ( - ) (cycle backward). Also try Alt+Shift+Letter (where Letter is one of letters listed
below) to quickly change the blending mode.
N = Normal
I = Dissolve
M = Multiply
S = Screen
O = Overlay
F = Soft Light
H = Hard Light
D = Color Dodge
B = Color Burn
K = Darken
G = Lighten
E = Difference
X = Exclusion
U = Hue
T = Saturation
C = Color
Y = Luminosity
Q = Behind 1
L = Threshold 2
R = Clear 3
W = Shadows 4
V = Midtones 4
Z = Highlights 4
Only applicable to: 1. Paint tools 2. Indexed mode 3. Dodge and Burn tools [O] 4. Line [N] and
Bucket [K] tools on multi-layered images
Note: The above hotkeys also affect the blending mode of the currently active paint tool, so if you
wish to change the blending mode of the active layer, be sure to switch to the Move tool [V] or
one of the selection tools first.
2. Change the opacity of the currently active tool or layer by using the number keys (on the
keyboard or on the number pad). Press "1" for 10% Opacity, "5" for 50%, and so on; use "0" for
100% Opacity. Numbers pressed in succession such as "85" will result in an opacity of 85%.
Note: The above hotkeys also affect the opacity of the currently active paint tool, so if you wish to
change the opacity of the active layer, be sure to switch to the Move tool [V] or one of the
selection tools first.
3. Increase / decrease slider bars by 1% using the left and right arrow keys. Add Shift to increase
/ decrease by 10% increments.
4. Hide / Reveal all layers by Alt-clicking on the visibility icon (the eyeball) of the desired layer.
5. Unlink all layers from the current layer by Alt-clicking on the current layer's paintbrush icon.
6. To clear (remove) all layer effects from a particular layer, hold the Alt key and double-click on
the layer's effect icon ( f ); or from the menus, choose Layer » Effects » Clear Effects.
Tip: To disable an individual effect, hold down the Alt key and select it by name from the Layer »
Effects submenu. Alternatively, you may uncheck its Apply flag in the effects dialog box.
7. Alt-click between layers (in the Layers palette) to group them together. This is handy when
several layers are linked together, and you only want to group specific layers together (since
Group [Ctrl+G] (Layer » Group with Previous) changes into Group Linked [Ctrl+G] (Layer » Group
Linked) when the current layer is linked to other layers).
8. Here is a real time-saver for adding adjustment layers (Layer » New » Adjustment Layer...):
simply Ctrl-click on the New Layer icon (at the bottom of the Layers palette) and select the type of
adjustment layer you wish to add!
9. Alt-click on the Trash icon (at the bottom of the Layers palette) to quickly delete layers (without
confirmation); also works with channels and paths.
10. Instead of going to the Channels palette (Window » Show Channels) to edit a layer mask,
simply Alt-click on the mask's thumbnail in the Layers palette [F7] (Window » Show Layers) to
reveal it; Shift-click layer mask thumbnails to disable / enable them (a red X indicates a disabled
mask). Alt+Shift-click a layer mask to view it in rubylith color (or press backslash [ \ ] ). Ctrl-click
on a mask's thumbnail to load its Transparency Selection (or press Ctrl+Alt+ \ ).
Tip: Press Ctrl+ \ to switch the focus from the current layer (image) to its mask.
11. Click the Add Layer Mask button (at the bottom of the Layers palette [F7]) to add a mask
which reveals the current selection (Layer » Add Layer Mask » Reveal All). Alt-click on the Add
Layer Mask button to add a mask which hides the current selection (Layer » Add Layer Mask »
Hide All).
12. Turn off all paths easily by clicking on the empty area of the Paths palette (under the path
layers).
Tip: Toggle paths on / off by pressing Ctrl+Shift+H (View » Show/Hide Path).
13. Alt-click on the Fill Path, Stroke Path, and Load Path as Selection icons (bottom of the Paths
palette) to see a list of available tools and / or options.
14. With the Move tool [V] as the current tool (or while holding down the Ctrl key), right-click
anywhere on the canvas for a list of the layers under the mouse pointer (ordered from top-most to
bottom-most): select a layer-name from the list to make it the active layer.
Tip: Add the Alt key (Alt-right-click) to automatically choose the top-most layer under the pointer.
Alternatively, you may turn on the Auto Select Layer option in the Move tool [V] Options palette.
Tip: Add the Shift key (Alt+Shift-right-click) to link / unlink the top-most layer that intersects with
the current layer.
TIPS FOR GUIDES & RULERS
1. While dragging guides, hold down the Alt key to switch between vertical and horizontal guides.
Alt-click on an existing vertical guide to change it into a horizontal guide, and vice versa.
Note: Guides are created by dragging them out from the document rulers, so ensure that the
rulers are turned on [Ctrl+R] (View » Show Rulers).
2. Dragging guides with the Shift key held down will force them to snap to the ruler increments
(markings).
3. Double-click on guides to open the Guides & Grid Preferences [Ctrl+K, Ctrl+6] (File »
Preferences » Guides & Grid...).
4. Double-click on the rulers [Ctrl+R] to open the Units & Rulers Preferences [Ctrl+K, Ctrl+5] (File
» Preferences » Units & Rulers...).
Tip: You can also select a new unit of measurement from the Cursor Coordinates pop-up menu
on the Info palette [F8] (Window » Show Info).
5. Center the ruler origin anywhere on the canvas by dragging from the top-left corner (where the
Rulers [Ctrl+R] meet); reset the origin to its default position by double clicking on the top-left
corner.
6. Use paths to create curved or diagonal guides. Simply draw a path using the Pen tool [P] and
use it as a guide while drawing or painting (the path will remain visible).
Tip: Use the Hide Path command [Ctrl+Shift+H] (View » Hide Path) to toggle the visibility of a
path.
7. Guides snap not only to the edges (left, right, top and bottom) of the active layer or selection,
but also to the vertical and horizontal center (of the current layer or selection). The opposite is
also true: you may snap a selection or layer to an existing guide (either by edge or center).
Note: Guides do not snap to the Background layer. Also, be sure that Snap To Guides
[Ctrl+Shift+ ; ] (View » Snap To Guides) is turned on for the above tip to work!
Tip: Find the center of the canvas by filling [Shift+Backspace] (Edit » Fill...) a New Layer
[Ctrl+Shift+N] (Layer » New Layer...) and snapping a guide to the vertical and horizontal centers.
NAVIGATION & HOTKEY TIPS
1. Sometimes it is quicker to navigate with the keyboard than to reach for the mouse. Here are
some useful navigation keys:
HotKey Result
Home / End go to top-left / bottom-right corner of the canvas
PageUp / PageDown scroll canvas up /down one page
Ctrl+PageUp / Ctrl+PageDown scroll canvas left right one page
Shift+PageUp / Shift+PageDown scroll canvas up / down 10 pixels
Ctrl+Shift+PageUp / Ctrl+Shift+PageDown scroll canvas left / right 10 pixels
2. Use Ctrl+Tab / Ctrl+F6 to switch between documents (or, alternatively, use the Window menu).
Very handy!
3. Use the Revert command [F12] (File » Revert) to restore the current document to its previously
saved state.
Warning! In Photoshop 5 (only), the Revert command will also clear your History! This means
that you will lose all changes made since the last save! Photoshop 5.5 corrects this behaviour.
4. By default, channels have hotkeys associated with them. This makes it very quick and easy to
add, subtract and intersect selections / masks which have been saved as channels. Here are the
hotkeys corresponding to some common color modes:
RGB Mode: CYMK Mode: Index Mode:
Ctrl+Tilde ( ~ ) = RGB
Ctrl+1 = Red
Ctrl+2 = Green
Ctrl+3 = Blue
Ctrl+4 = Other Channel
:
Ctrl+9 = Other Channel
Ctrl+Tilde ( ~ ) = CYMK
Ctrl+1 = Cyan
Ctrl+2 = Yellow
Ctrl+3 = Magenta
Ctrl+4 = Black
Ctrl+5 = Other Channel
:
Ctrl+9 = Other Channel
Ctrl+1 = Index
Ctrl+2 = Other Channel
:
Ctrl+9 = Other Channel
Example: To create a selection that represents the intersection of channels 7 and 9, press
Ctrl+Alt+7 (to load channel 7 as a selection) followed by Ctrl+Alt+Shift+9 (to intersect with
channel 9).
5. Ctrl-drag inside of the Proxy Preview Area (in the Navigation palette (Window » Show
Navigator)) to specify a new view area within the current document.
Tip: Shift-drag within the Proxy Preview Area to move the highlight vertically and horizontally.
Tip: Change the color of the Proxy View highlight by selecting Palette Options… from the palette
menu.
6. To play just one step within an action, choose the step and Ctrl-click on the Play button (at the
bottom of the Actions palette (Window » Show Actions)).
Note: To change the parameters of a particular command step, double-click on the step to reveal
the associated dialog box: any new values entered will automatically be recorded.
7. To begin playback from a specific step of an action, simply choose the desired step and press
the Play button (at the bottom of the Actions palette).
TIPS FOR DUPLICATING
1. You can use the Marquee tool [M] (or Polygonal Lasso [L]) to drag a selection outline from one
document into another.
Tip: Hold the Shift key down (after initiating the drag - after clicking with the left mouse button) to
have the selection centered in the destination document.
2. When dragging selections or layers from one document to another, hold down the Shift to have
them centered on the destination canvas.
Note: If the source and destination documents are the same size (dimensions), the dragged
elements are placed in the same relative position as they were in the original document (instead
of being placed in the center of the canvas).
Note: If the destination canvas contains a selection, the dragged item will be placed into the
center of the selection.
3. To drag multiple layers between documents, first link them together, then use the Move tool [V]
to drag them from one document window into the other.
Note: You cannot drag multiple layers from the Layers palette [F7] (Window » Show Layers) into
another document (even if they are linked together) - this will only move the selected layer.
4. A fast way to combine several layers into a group is to first link them together, then select
Group Linked [Ctrl+G] (Layer » Group Linked). You may then unlink the layers if you wish.
Note: You can also Merge [Ctrl+E] (Layer » Merge Down) multiple visible layers using the same
technique (because, the Merge Down command becomes Merge Linked [Ctrl+E] (Layer » Merge
Linked) when the current layer is linked to other layers).
5. Here is a slick way to rearrange (reorder) multiple layers simultaneously (within the Layers
palette): Group [Ctrl+G] (Layer » Group with Previous) the desired layers together, drag the group
(up or down) into its new position within the Layers palette, and then UnGroup [Ctrl+Shift+G]
(Layer » Ungroup) them again.
6. To create a duplicate image of the currently selected history state or snapshot (Window »
Show History):
• click the New Document button
• choose New Document from the History palette menu
• drag-and-drop the current state (or snapshot) onto the New Document button
• right-click on the desired state (or snapshot) and select New Document from the context
menu
7. Drag a history state from the History palette (Window » Show History) of the current image into
any other image window to replace the contents of the destination image.
8. Alt-click on any history state (other than the current, most recent state), to duplicate it. The
duplicated state becomes the current (most recent) state.
9. Alt-drag an action step to create a duplicate.
10. To duplicate the current document without being prompted for a name (and have "copy"
automatically appended to the filename), hold the Alt key and choose Image » Duplicate.
TYPE TIPS
1. Here is a very useful tip for achieving added control (beyond the available anti-aliasing
settings) over the rendering of extremely small type. First, scale the type to (for example) 200%:
then, scale it to 50% (essentially bringing it back to its original size). Open the type dialog window
(by double clicking on the type layer). While the type window is open, moving the text in the
image window will cause the anti-aliasing to shift / rerender. Close the type window and reposition
the type as desired – with the type window closed, you may move the type without affecting the
anti-aliasing.
2. Use the Enter key on the numeric keypad (on the right side of the keyboard), or Ctrl+Enter (on
the main keyboard) to commit text changes in the type dialog box.
Note: (Photoshop 6) You may also use the Commit Changes (checkmark) button in the Options
palette (Window » Show Options).
3. (Photoshop 6) Use the View » Show Extras [Ctrl+H] command to hide a text selection. This
undocumented feature is really useful!
4. (Photoshop 6) Hold the Alt key as you click or drag a Text Box to display a Paragraph Text
Size dialog box. The dialog box will display the current Text Box dimensions: enter the desired
values for the Width and Height.
Note: Another alternative is to simply watch the Width (W) and Height (H) values in the Info
palette [F8] (Window » Show Info) as you draw the Text Box.
Note: If you continue to hold Alt key down after the mouse button has been depressed (and you
begin to drag), the Text Box will be draw from the center. Upon releasing the mouse button, the
Text Box Size dialog box will appear.
5. To modify the properties of several type layers simultaneously (i.e. font, color, size, etc.), link
the desired type layers together and hold the Shift key while changing the type properties.
Note: This feature applies to changes performed in the Options palette (Window » Show
Options), the Character palette (Window » Show Character), and / or Paragraph palette (Window
» Show Paragraph).
6. Anti-aliased type may be rendered inconsistently at small size (or low resolutions). To reduce
this inconsistency, turn off the Fractional Widths option (in the Character palette menu).
7. Using the Type tool [T]: double-click a word to select it; triple-click a line to select it; quadrupleclick
a paragraph to select it; and quintuple-click to select all characters in a bounding box.
Tip: While in text selection mode, use Ctrl+A to select all type on the active layer.
8. To restrict the use of certain fonts to Adobe applications, place them in C:\Program
Files\Common Files\Adobe\Fonts\
9. Despite the fact that both the Edit » Fill... command and the Paint Bucket tool [G] are disabled
for type layers, Alt+Backspace (fill with foreground color) and Ctrl+Backspace (fill with
background color) still work!
10. Below is a table of hotkeys that are applicable when working with type layers:
HotKey Result
Ctrl+A select all type
Ctrl+Shift+Right Arrow / Ctrl+Shift+Left Arrow select word to left / right
Ctrl+Shift+Greater Than ( > ) /
Ctrl+Shift+Less Than ( < )
increase / decrease type by 2 px (pt)
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+Greater Than ( > ) /
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+ Less Than ( < )
increase / decrease type by 10 px (pt)
Alt+Down Arrow / Alt+Up Arrow increase / decrease leading by 2 px
Ctrl+Alt+Down Arrow / Ctrl+Alt+Up Arrow increase / decrease leading by 10 px
Alt+Right Arrow / Alt+Left Arrow increase / decrease kerning by 2/100 em
Ctrl+Alt+Left Arrow / Ctrl+Alt+Right Arrow increase / decrease kerning by 1/10 em
Alt+Shift+Up Arrow / Alt+Shift+Down Arrow raise / lower baseline by 2 px
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+Up Arrow / Ctrl+Alt+Shift+Down Arrow raise / lower baseline by 10 px
Ctrl+Shift+C center-align type
Ctrl+Shift+L left-align type
Ctrl+Shift+R right-align type
IMAGEREADY TIPS
1. Drag any document view tab (e.g. Original, Optimized, 2-Up, or 4-Up) away from the document
window to create a New View of the current image.
Note: Alternatively, you may select View » New View from the menus.
2. To duplicate the current document, hold the Alt key and drag the Original view tab away from
the document window (or choose Image » Duplicate).
3. Hold the Alt key and press the right / left arrow (cursor) keys to move to the next / previous
frame, respectively.
Note: Using these hotkeys in conjunction with one of the following tools may produce undesirable
results: Move tool [V] (will duplicate the pixels in the current layer or selection), Image Map Select
tool [P] (will duplicate the active image map - or cause an error if none are selected), Slice Select
tool [K] (will duplicate the active slice).
4. When creating an action that includes styles (layer effects), each setting is recorded as a
separate action step. To record the style in a single step, drag the style from the Layers palette
[F7] (Window » Show Layers) into the Action palette [F9] (Window » Show Actions).
5. Use the Eyedropper tool [ I ] to select a color from anywhere on the screen. Click inside the
current image window, hold the mouse button down, and drag anywhere on the desktop (or even
over another application window): release the mouse button to select the desired color.
Note: This feature only works provided that the ImageReady application remains active (i.e. in
the foreground).
6. ImageReady allows you to select colors based on a selection marquee. Make a selection in the
current image and choose Select All From Selection from the Color Table palette menu (Window
» Show Color Table).
7. To view the occurrence(s) of a color in the Optimized Image window [Ctrl+Y] (View » Show
Optimized), click and hold the mouse button over a color in the Color Table palette (Window »
Show Color Table). The selected color will remain temporarily inverted (until you release the
mouse button).
Tip: This also works for multiple selected colors! To view a contiguous group of colors, select a
color and Shift-click and hold another color. For non-contiguous colors, Ctrl-click to select
additional colors, then hold the mouse button to temporarily inverted the selected colors.
8. (ImageReady 3) To copy the hexadecimal value of a color to the Clipboard, choose a color with
the Eyedropper tool [ I ], then right-click over the image window and choose Copy Foreground
Color as HTML from the context menu. You may then paste the color value into your favorite
editor.
Note: You may also choose Edit » Copy Foreground Color as HTML from the menus.
9. Drag a droplet onto the Actions palette [F9] (Window » Show Actions) to create an action step
(containing all the optimization settings of the droplet). Alternatively, you can select Insert Set
Optimization Settings to Image Format from the Actions palette menu.
Tip: You can also drag a droplet onto a slice to apply the optimization settings to the slice.
10. Drag a command from the History palette (Window » Show History) to the Actions palette [F9]
(Window » Show Actions) to create an action step (with or without pressing the Record button).
11. When creating / saving animations, enable the Transparency option in the Optimize palette
[F10] (Window » Show Optimize) to see what effect it has on the file size – even if your animation
does not contain any transparent regions. By combining transparency, frame disposal (see
below), and the Optimize Animation options (see below), it is possible to significantly decrease
the file size of the animation.
Note: Ensure that the disposal method is set to Automatic or Restore to Background. To set the
disposal method, right-click on a frame (in the Animation palette) and choose an option from the
context menu.
Note: The above technique only works if Bounding Box and /or Redundant Pixel Removal are
enabled (from Animation palette menu » Optimize Animation…).
12. Click the inverted arrow icon in the status bar (at the bottom of each document window) to
choose from a list of information options.
Note: In 2-Up and 4-Up view modes, an additional Zoom Level icon is added.
13. To see what your image / animation will look like on a PC / Mac, use the View » Preview
submenu (and choose a display type).
Note: To permanently adjust your image / animation, use Image » Adjust » Gamma…
14. To center the current layer on the canvas, choose Layer » Set Layer Position and enter
Horizontal: Center, 0 pixels and Vertical: Center, 0 pixels. You may also use the Set Layer
Position command to align the current layer to any canvas edge or corner.
