Photoshop is a sort of neverending story: just when you think you know all its features and tricks, you discover something new. This great video highlights ten such features you might not be aware of.
Even if you've proficient with Photoshop, chances are there's a more efficient or effective way to do some things that you might not have heard of. For example, I only learned about calculations in the last few years and have found them especially useful for dealing with complex selections of hair (my eternal nemesis). Further features like color decontaminate and rotating the clone stamp tool can simply make it easier to take full control of your work to achieve cleaner results in less time. For me personally, learning to use color LUTs has saved me a ton of time in my landscape work and has also increased the consistency between my images, an important aspect of developing a recognizable personal style. My favorite trick, though, was the hidden sharpening view, which makes it very easy to quickly see just how much sharpening you're applying and to take more granular control of the process.
Do you have any favorite Photoshop features or tricks? Share them in the comments!
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Overall, there was some very good information in this video. I've been using Adobe Photoshop since 1994 so my desire to watch another Photoshop tutorial has diminished a great deal over time. This video does a good job of informing me of new techniques I can use to do a better job. Now, I have to remember them so I don't fall back into the rut of my previous experience.
" dealing with complex selections of hair (my eternal nemesis)"
You are not alone.
Definitely some good points in the video, but I was a bit disappointed with the Calculations demo. There was still red fringing all over the model's hair and I never saw the mask get to a point where it would be usable for a professional-level composite unless the destination background happened to be red. It looks like a valuable tool, but I kept wondering, "what's next" to refine the selection further.