61 JUST™ Creative Comments

• Puneet Pugalia June 26, 2008 at 10:54 pm Reply

  Just one i didnt know! was a tight bet :P

• Ian Moss June 26, 2008 at 11:20 pm Reply

  What about “scrubby sliders” click where it says the word opacity, say on the layers panel – and drag to the left or right to adjust… Works on most elements where a slider can be changed, ie text size, crop sizes, transform measures etc enjoy! Add the shift key to go in increments of 10

• Jeremy June 27, 2008 at 2:07 am Reply

  Nice article, especially for someone just starting to really dive into photoshop and its’ capabilities. Oh and I really enjoyed the rainbow banner in the 15 signs post. Jeremys last blog post..WordPress and Custom Blogging Solutions

• Mo June 27, 2008 at 4:25 am Reply

  Fantastic. You’ve given more information than most. Thanks.

• Steve O June 27, 2008 at 4:59 am Reply

  I take offence to the ‘Probably’ Jacob! ;) I’m far from an expert, but I knew all those. How about a quicker shortcut for Opacity than Ian’s? (Sorry Ian!) Whatever tool you’re in, hit ‘v’ to switch to the Move Tool then just type the percentage of opacity you want using the number keys. Two tips that are essential for a file with a large number of layers: name all layers appropriately (e.g. logo, background fade) and use folders to group related layers or different versions within one file. Saves you and anyone else using the file a lot of fiddling!

• Brian Yerkes June 27, 2008 at 5:47 am Reply

  Some good tips for the students! I think the best way to learn all of the “hidden” tools in photoshop is to practice, practice, and more practice. The more you play with it, the more you will find new tools….etc.. I posted something similar back in May, have a look. It will add to this post well. http://www.brianyerkes.com/5-ways-to-work-faster-in-photoshop/

• Randa Clay June 27, 2008 at 5:52 am Reply

  I agree – tutorials are the best way to learn. Wish I had time to do more of them. Photoshop is so deep, with so many options- I love it! Randa Clays last blog post..Where to go for help

• Jeffrey Way June 27, 2008 at 8:28 am Reply

  Great article…but I disagree about the filters menu. If you use them correctly and tastefully, they can add quite a bit to your designs.

• Melek June 27, 2008 at 2:16 pm Reply

  great tips. my 2 favs: when working in Pshop, at any time you can hit the letter D and your color palette on the tool bar will return to the black/white default. to quickly group a bunch of layers in your layers palette, shift click the ones to group, then hit Alt + G (on a Mac), and a group folder will be created and all those selected layers will be put into it. awesome time saver.

• lise June 27, 2008 at 4:50 pm Reply

  Thanks for the article. But ..can you confirm that 1 and 2 exist in CS3 only?…:-(!

• Jack June 27, 2008 at 9:32 pm Reply

  Some of the most useful little things in Photoshop. I knew these but there are so many tiny arrows and tick boxes I’m yet to discover. I have been using Photoshop professionally for 3 years and I only just noticed ‘smart objects’ and the ‘extract’ filter! Tis so very vast. Thanks for putting this together. Jacks last blog post..Wanted

• Nina June 28, 2008 at 2:19 am Reply

  Best one I ever learnt: Use ruler tool to draw along a line in the image you wish to be perfectly straight horizontally/vertically. Then Image>Rotate Canvas>Arbitrary – Photoshop automatically works out the exact angle you need to rotate. It’s fantastic for aligning things!

• Shelley June 28, 2008 at 4:01 am Reply

  I knew all of these =), but they’re good tips for beginners to Photoshop. An easier way to reach your blending options is just to double click the layer.

• Doug C. June 28, 2008 at 7:57 am Reply

  When using a mask on a layer that already has a layer style applied (especially one with a bevel of any kind) I found that the style stops at the edges of the mask. If you go to Blending Options and check mark the box for “Layer Mask Hides Effects” this will not happen. And yes, I do use filters sometimes. Filter effects can be applied and then tweaked to enhance your work. It’s not so much that people shouldn’t use them, but that they shouldn’t rely on them solely for the effects of their work. When I was first learning to use Photoshop I would download a layer style (often Al Ward’s) and dissect it, to see how it was put together. I would experiment with the different effects that person used in making my own layer styles.

• Abhisek June 28, 2008 at 11:07 am Reply

  Sorry, but i knew four of them. the last one was the best indeed.

• hanzo June 30, 2008 at 2:19 am Reply

  just one I didn’t know here too :) Anyway, the don’t-use-lensflarse thing is one of those things that cannot be sayd often enough!!! You might check this one out btw: http://www.psdtuts.com hanzos last blog post..Dog Show characters

• LaurenMarie - Creative Curio June 30, 2008 at 4:05 pm Reply

  How about don’t ever apply a stroke to type in Photoshop ;) I have yet to try out the Refine Edge, but I remember you pointing it out to me a while ago. It’s new to CS3. And you can control the opacity of a layer with the number keys (while in Move Tool) and the number keys will control the opacity of your art brushes (brush, dodge/burn, etc) if you have them selected. It’s also great to discover the contextual menus for things. Whenever you have the chance, experiment with right-clicking while in different tools–a very handy menu! LaurenMarie – Creative Curios last blog post..Communication Arts Illustration Annual 49

• Ladynoe July 2, 2008 at 1:45 pm Reply

  duh~ i knew all of them. It sounds really stuck up when u said; “I bet” OMG.

• Learnphotoshop July 26, 2008 at 12:09 pm Reply

  Thanks for the photoshop tutorial. I love how there is such a wide array of tutorials on photoshop, word, excel, access….couldn’t survive without them.

• Steve Constable February 15, 2009 at 4:19 am Reply

  Lady Noe perhaps this thread wasn’t built for you since you already know everything?

• DWO March 31, 2009 at 8:33 am Reply

  Completely disagree with the suggestion to not use filter effects.

• zenaire September 1, 2009 at 9:52 pm Reply

  I do agree with you cause u have mentioned this is for the beginners..They really mess up with their work with adding too much filters and flairs..And about the 6 tips and tricks they are really useful.. Thanks

• SEO Specialist September 19, 2009 at 11:13 pm Reply

  thanks for sharing nice tricks on Photoshop, i have learned 2 new technique. Keep it up.

• Derek Kimball October 3, 2009 at 2:49 pm Reply

  Thanks for the tips Jacob, but already knew all of these. I’m sure they are helpful to a lot of people starting out though.

• seo pune November 9, 2009 at 9:16 pm Reply

  Nice tips.. i will try this.

• Miracle Studios May 6, 2010 at 6:34 pm Reply

  @ seo pune Where are you from?

• PSD web templates June 18, 2010 at 10:29 am Reply

  i knew all of them. It sounds really stuck up when u said; “I bet” and believe me I read the other article too (the bad designer one) n I almost made it.thnx a lot for sharing ur talent with us.

• Raja Waqar October 22, 2010 at 3:16 am Reply

  thanks for the nice tips

• Mohammed Alssaidi March 13, 2011 at 7:39 am Reply

  I Know all of them actually :D :D

• sac ekim April 6, 2011 at 5:18 pm Reply

  Lady Noe perhaps this thread wasn’t built for you since you already know everything? tr.

• Logo Designs August 13, 2011 at 3:38 am Reply

  Practice, practice and practice until you succeed…hmmm, quite true indeed. I’ve been using more Blending options lately when am trying to come up with something quickly and something good too.

• AntoxaGray September 25, 2011 at 7:18 am Reply

  Don’t say filters are evil, some might be useful, if used mild. Most of them useless, but some are good (ocean ripple, find edges and mosaic).

• Web Designer - Ray Creations December 18, 2011 at 7:39 am Reply

  Nice tutorial. Thanks.

• Chippu April 25, 2012 at 10:49 pm Reply

  Mhmmm….I already knw evry thingggg…:D

• Andy Eaton May 10, 2012 at 4:11 pm Reply

  Great tips for any newbies and defo ones they will use a lot.