The excitement that comes from downloading your digital photos can dissipate quickly when you uncover the shots you took are not so excellent all things considered. But then, that’s what Photoshop is good for.
But if you haven’t mastered this powerful digital image editing software yet, you enter for a bumpy or even totally frustrating ride ahead. With so many options to pick from in Photoshop and procedures that require one to follow “the rules”, you can get lost. It’s easy to spend hours tweaking and re-tweaking your photo to find you have to scrap the entire project anyway when you just cannot discover how to do what you would like to accomplish.
So where could you turn for help:
Google: I think at this stage with time, Google is everyone’s first choice after they need to find information. Simply type into their search box whatever you decide and are trying to complete, by way of example: “photoshop the best way to remove red-eye”. I just tried that phrase but happened to be 380,000 possible ways to remove red-eye plus it only took .22 seconds. The only problem with this is, I will spend the next hour simply clicking and seeking different ways. One sure thing about Photoshop, if you ask 10 people HOW to perform something, you will most probably get 10 different answers.
YouTube: The greatest thing about YouTube is that you take a look at someone go about doing what you need to complete. They have a search result there, so again I enter, “photoshop how you can remove red-eye”. This time I get 51 possible choices. 51 videos to look at and learn and try for me. Again, the same problem because original Google search only with fewer options to try. With all the several versions of Photoshop and many types of the several skill sets displayed on YouTube, I know I can flourish in taking out the red-eye, nevertheless, it could still take quite a while to observe 51, 5-minute videos.
Online Courses: Many online “gurus” are providing programs to teach you Photoshop. You buy their books on PDF, follow together with their videos, or receive their CD or DVD inside the mail. While it beats sitting via an adult learning course at the local school, you’ll still be investing lots of time and funds in mastering “stuff” you might never use. Why endure the price and time needed to practice a lot, once you can get just what you need more simply? Ultimately, without good notes, you continue to won’t discover the important information, when it’s needed, even though you know you might have it somewhere.
Local Library: Your local library can no doubt contain several books on mastering Photoshop. Only trouble is, you’ll have to read and return the novel. Photoshop is among those actions where if you don’t apply it, you lose it. It’s hard to recollect all the steps and procedures should you exclusively use them infrequently. You could buy the book in the bookstore, yet, how many times can we open the Sunday paper nowadays for reference?
Forums: There are millions of photographers on earth. One thing for many is because they all need to know what everyone else is doing. We’re constant learners, always searching for that next great tip to create our shots easier or maybe more creative. A quick Google search of “photoshop forums” nets me 494,000 possible forums to look at for techniques to previously asked questions. While I might meet a small grouping of photogs I’d like to hang with long-term, it’s likely you’ll find better places to get my photo fixed before bedtime tonight.
Professional Associations: Would you feel that aftermarket sales of Photoshop support materials are larger than sales from the Photoshop product itself? It’s true! Imagine, an application that’s so powerful and complex it spawned an entire industry of folks and products to inform you HOW to apply it. Incredible. So take heart, individuals are with your frustration. There is a professional association, NAPP, the National Association of Photoshop Professionals which provides great resources for its members, including everything as listed above, ie. video tutorials, books, forums, an internet search engine, and more. It’s an excellent investment, at around $99 each year for membership, but again, one can wander off all day in the “distraction” of experiencing much information available.
Tip Cards: Tip cards are my personal favorite resource with regards to getting fast results. For hundreds of years, folks have used recipe cards to change a bunch of kitchen ingredients right into a delicious finished product. Isn’t that essentially what we’re trying to do with Photoshop? Aren’t we trying to take a bunch of computer commands and turn them into a great finished photograph? Yes, we are! The great thing about these tip cards, or “photoshop recipe cards” is they sit right beside your personal computer for quick reference. You know what you look for to accomplish, you pull those cards through the deck and have to function. In just minutes you’re finished. No 380,000 brings about click-through, no 51, 5-minute videos to observe, just one single well known, step-by-step method that works. Photoshop tip cards are my surprising favorite, low-tech method to master the high-tech Photoshop software.
Nothing beats the sensation you’ve got when you finally rescue your hum-drum photograph from Dullsville and turn it into something great. Having the right Photoshop tools and tips for your disposal could make the difference between photographs that proudly wait on your wall or pictures that never get printed in any way.