If you can imagine it, you can Photoshop it. What that doesn’t tell you is where you’re going to get your ideas from and how easy (or not) it’s going to be. That’s a key point with Photoshop – it’s extremely good at what it does, but there’s a lot that it doesn’t do.
It’s exceptionally good at detailed, technical adjustments on single images, but it doesn’t have any integrated image organisational tools to speak of (that’s Lightroom’s job), and it doesn’t offer any ideas, inspiration or preset image effects to get you started. Photoshop can do pretty well anything, but you have to bring your own ideas and inspiration, and you’ll need to know your way around Photoshop’s powerful and extensive tool set to bring them to life. You can subscribe to Photoshop on its own via an Adobe single app subscription, but that’s the expensive way of doing it.
Adobe offers three Photography Plans which are much more cost effective. Lightroom CC plan This includes Lightroom CC and 1TB of cloud storage for £9.98/$9.99 per month when bought as an annual subscription. This does not include Photoshop, so don’t get this one.
Photography plan This includes Photoshop CC, Lightroom CC, Lightroom Classic CC and 20GB of cloud storage for £9.98/$9.99 per month and really is very good value for money. Photography plan with 1TB of cloud storage This is the same as the Photography Plan above, but adds 1TB of cloud storage, primarily for Lightroom CC.
This costs £19.97/$19.99 per month, but only makes sense if you want to go with Adobe’s cloud-based Lightroom CC rather than the desktop Classic version (a whole different discussion). Photoshop excels at technical corrections and adjustments. You can use its Adaptive Wide Angle filter to correct distortion in architectural shots, for example Features It’s pretty difficult to sum up every feature in Photoshop without writing a book about it, but it is possible to explain broadly how it works and some of its most interesting tools. Photoshop works directly on the pixels in your images, so it’s not a fully ‘non-destructive’ editor that lets you wind back your changes at any time. By using its system of layers intelligently you can backtrack if you need to, but only at the cost of massive image files in the proprietary PSD file format. Layers are the backbone of Photoshop’s capabilities. You can use non-destructive ‘adjustment layers’ to modify your image’s appearance without changing the underlying pixels (so it can be non-destructive in that sense), but you can also combine image layers to produce sophisticated montages built from two or more images and blended with layer masks and blend modes.
Adjustment layers, image layers, masks and blend modes are the bedrock of Photoshop’s image editing abilities You can also add vector-based ‘shape’ layers that can be edited later, and re-editable ’type’ (text) layers, though both these features are more relevant to designers than photographers. Photoshop isn’t just designed for photographers. It’s also made for designers, illustrators and artists, so there’s a lot here that’s not directly relevant to photography.
Photoshop’s selection and masking tools are second to none, though you do need to learn which to use for particular types of subject and how to get the most from them. There’s a good deal of skill in making masks and selections, though Photoshop can get you off to a good start with its quick and simple Selection Brush or its relatively recent Select Subject command, which can automatically select the main subject in your pictures. The Select Subject option can identify and select the main subject in your picture automatically You’ll almost certain need to modify tricky selections to hide or blend rough edges, but there’s a dedicated Select and Mask workspace for that.Photoshop also has some of the best tools in the business for retouching, cloning and ‘content aware’ object removal, and Photoshop CC 2019 brings a dedicated workspace for choosing source pixels and outputting the results on to a new layer for more effective editing and blending.
The new Content Aware Fill workspace gives you much more control over removing unwanted objects from your pictures Photoshop CC is typically updated a couple of times a year (it’s all part of your subscription, of course), but the number of updates directly relevant to photographers does seem to have slowed. The latest October 15 2018 update brought the new Content Aware Fill workspace, a redesigned homepage with access to recent files, training materials and Lightroom CC profiles, live previews of blend mode changes and not a whole lot else.
The clever new Select Subject option arrived in January 2018, together with a slider to control decontamination around selection edges (whoop!), and before that in October 2018 Adobe introduced 360 editing tools, depth map support for HEIF files and smattering of other enhancements and improvements. In fairness to Adobe, it’s hard to see how much more can be added to Photoshop to make it genuinely better, but the pace of change is underwhelming nevertheless. Interface and ease of use For a program with such enormous power, sophistication and control, Photoshop has a remarkably clean and simple interface. Most photo-editing software looks much messier than this, and while you do have to learn where to find the tools you need and how to use them, you have a wonderfully uncluttered space to work in. Down the left hand side of the screen is a narrow vertical toolbar with fly-out menus for sub-options like different brush types and cloning tools. Across the top of the screen is a slim and fuss-free options bar which displays settings for the currently selected tool. Over on the right is the real tour de force – a system of stacked, tabbed, collapsible palettes for everything from layers to channels, actions and adjustments.
The Content Aware Crop setting has extended the width of the sky so effectively that you would never know it had been faked In fact, if you’re using Photoshop for photo enhancement, you’ll probably find the Layers palette is the only one you need for much of your work. This is stripped back interface design at its best.
But then Photoshop does have a bit of an easy ride compared to most rivals. It doesn’t have to make space for displaying effects and presets because there aren’t any, and it doesn’t need to display an image browser because that’s Lightroom’s job.The Photoshop interface is a beautifully direct and simple place to work, and there are now handy animated ‘tooltips’ for its key tools. Photoshop has a reputation for being daunting, but that’s actually not fair – you just have to be prepared to learn some basic principles. Performance and results Photoshop feels very fast on the 2017 iMac with 16GB RAM used for testing. Some processes will slow it down, and one of the key selling points of Affinity Photo, its keen rival, is sheer speed, but for most everyday operations, Photoshop’s speed was not an issue, even with the 50MP images from a Fujifilm GFX 50R that we were using. As for image quality, that’s down to user skill and judgement.
When you’re familiar with Photoshop you can make it do pretty much anything you like with your raw materials, and if you judge your adjustments badly it’s down to you, not the software. Photoshop relies on the separate Adobe Camera Raw tool to open and process raw files, but this is now so powerful it’s practically an image editor in its own right With one exception. If you’re starting from a raw file you’ll be using either Adobe Camera Raw or Lightroom (both use the same raw processing engine) to prepare your image file for Photoshop. They’re good, but not quite the best, especially when it comes to balancing image noise and detail. If you’re obsessed with raw files and image quality, Capture One and DxO PhotoLab are out in front. Adobe’s raw conversions are very good, but slightly behind.
It’s a tiny compromise you have to accept when you buy into the Adobe Photography Plan ecosystem. Verdict Don’t get Photoshop just because it’s ‘the best’. The best at what? It’s the most powerful photo editor in the world at in-depth image manipulation, but for all the other things you might want to do – photo organising, raw processing, effects and presets – it hands you off to other programs and plug-ins. Photoshop is practically a must-have tool for professional photographers and artists, if only as a kind of career qualification, but while its abilities are very deep indeed, they’re also pretty narrow. Photoshop CC is only available with a Creative Cloud subscription, which will put some people off straight away, but Adobe’s Photography Plans start at £9.98/$9.99 per month, and that includes Lightroom. For novices and enthusiasts there are smarter (non-subscription) alternatives to Photoshop, but for photography pros, Photoshop is practically a required skill.
It’s slick, it’s efficient and it’s still the premier photo editor for experts.
I’ve assembled some Q & A around updating/upgrading to the 2014 release of Photoshop CC below. If you don’t see your question answered below, let me know in the comments section and I will try and answer. Updating/Upgrading to the 2014 release of Photoshop CC FAQ. How do I install the 2014 release of Photoshop CC update? From Photoshop CS6, choose HelpUpdates to launch the Adobe Application Manager. A new version of the Adobe Application Manager will start to download. After it’s downloaded, it will relaunch and the new CC applications will show up when you sign-in.
(Note: If the Adobe Application Manager is already open, quit it and relaunch it to get it to self-update). Note: By default, the Creative Cloud app is a menu item on Mac:. If you want it to show up in the OS X Dock and show up in list of open applications when you Cmd + Tab to switch applications, 1.
Click on the Creative Cloud icon in the menu, and then 2. Choose “Open as Window” from the gear menu: Note: Adobe Creative Cloud desktop app is supported on Mac OS X 10.7 or later, and Windows 7 or later.
If you’re downloading an App on an older operating system, Adobe Application Manager is used to download and install your app. How do Install Extension Manager 7.2 to support CC 2014 applications? After Installing Photoshop CC 2014 you will want to also Update the Extension Manager to version 7.2. To check the version of your Extension Manager, choose About Extension Manager and notice the version number listed If a version lower than 7.2 is installed, the Extension Manager will not be able to work with CC 2014 applications.
If no update beyond 7.1 is available via Creative Cloud Desktop app initially, perform these steps to get the latest version of Extension Manager installed. Uninstall the Extension Manager using its uninstaller. Mac: /Applications/Extension Manager CC/Uninstall Adobe Extension Manager CC. Win: Add/Remove Programs.
Quit the Creative Cloud Desktop Application. Restart CC Desktop Application. Reinstall Extension Manager You should now have Extension Manager 7.2 installed.
How do I install the Photoshop CC update for Creative Cloud if I’m a new member? If you’re brand new to Creative Cloud, all apps and services can be installed from the. (Note: if you still see “Apps” instead of “Download Center” clear your browsers cache and cookies for Adobe.com) Go to and sign in with your Adobe ID. Click Download Center: You can browse through all the apps and services, and view details about all apps and services. Navigate to the App you want to download and install, and click Download. The product detail page opens: Review the details, system requirements, and supported languages.
Click Download:. If this is the first time you’re downloading an app, Adobe Creative Cloud is downloaded and installed on your computer. Adobe Creative Cloud then manages the rest of the installation process. Note: Adobe Creative Cloud desktop app is supported on Mac OS X 10.7 or later, and Windows 7 or later. If you’re downloading an App on an older operating system, Adobe Application Manager is used to download and install your app. If I install 2014 release of Photoshop CC, does it update and replace the current version of Photoshop I currently have installed? The 2014 release of Photoshop CC (version 2014.0) is a major version update and will install completely separate from the current Photoshop CC or any prior versions you have installed.
With major version updates, we may update compilers for development and/or change system requirements, so we don’t automatically replace the prior version for compatibility reasons – e.g. OS, plug-ins, or other system drivers. You are welcome to keep both versions installed, or uninstall prior versions of Photoshop if you would like. Can I uninstall prior versions of Photoshop (CC, CS6, etc.) after I install the 2014 release of Photoshop CC? That decision is totally up to you.
After you are comfortable with the Photoshop CC and confirmed all your plug-ins, hardware & printer drivers are working correctly, feel free to uninstall CS6. How do I uninstall a previous version of Photoshop?
On Mac, go into the Photoshop application folder and double-click the “Uninstall Adobe Photoshop CC” or “Uninstall Adobe Photoshop CS6” icon: On Windows, see: Do I have to re-install my 3rd party plug-ins and extension panels after I update? Because the 2014 release of Photoshop CC (version 2014.0) is a major version update it will install completely separately from the current version of Photoshop CC (version 14.2.1) and have a separate plug-ins folder. If you need more assistance, get help on our forum here: How do I sign out of the Creative Cloud app? Click the gear icon in the upper left of the Creative Cloud app and select Preferences: Click Account in the preferences dialog and click Sign-Out: Where can I learn about more about the new features in the 2014 release of Photoshop CC?.
Photoshop CC Video Tutorials:. I’m brand new to Photoshop. Where should I start?. Where do I find older versions of Photoshop to download from Creative Cloud?. To download a older version of an app, see the following document: Additional Questions:.
Mac (900MB DSL 1.5MBS = 80 minutes Cable 3MBS = 45 minutes Corporate Network 10MBS = 12 minutes). Win (1.3GB DSL 1.5MBS = 123 minutes Cable 3MBS = 66 minutes Corporate Network 10MBS = 17 minutes).
Additional Information:. Additional info on the 2014 release of Photoshop CC:.
I had this problem a few years ago and found the solution in the registry. I just found this online and it sounds similar to what I did to correct it. From: After looking at a new user’s registry HKEYCURRENTUSER and comparing it to the one on the original user, I found a registry value which was not changed, and should have been.
I found a key: HKEYCURRENTUSER Software Classes Applications Photoshop.exe shell open command This key was set to the path for Photoshop CS6 when it should have been set to Photoshop CC. In other words, in my case, it was set to: “C: Program Files Adobe Adobe Photoshop CS6 (64 Bit) Photoshop.exe” “%1” When I changed the CS6 to a CC, in other words, so the whole key reads: “C: Program Files Adobe Adobe Photoshop CC (64 Bit) Photoshop.exe” “%1” Everything now works perfectly. The whole “Creative Cloud” apps concept has always been advertised that we’d be getting all of our applications updated with new features as soon as they were added. Doing this 2014 release is no different than going back to they way we changed from CS4, CS5, CS5.5, CS6 with “major version updates” every 12-18 months. Looks like Creative Cloud was just a cheap parlor trick by Adobe to get people paying monthly. If not, then why weren’t all of these new 2014 features rolled out as soon as they were developed? The 2014 release of Photoshop CC (version 2014.0) is a major version update and will install completely separate from the current Photoshop CC or any prior versions you have installed.
With major version updates, we may update compilers for development and/or change system requirements, so we don’t automatically replace the prior version for compatibility reasons – e.g. OS, plug-ins, or other system drivers. You are welcome to keep both versions installed, or uninstall prior versions of Photoshop if you would like.
I have just installed Photoshop CC 2014 and uninstalled the previous version. I use Lightroom 5 and regularly use the merge to HDR Pro function in Lightroom which opens up Photoshop.
I have tried this on the 2014 version and it opens Photoshop but that is all it does. None of the merging happens at all, it’s just a blank Photoshop page. Is this a glitch or should I try reinstalling PS CC 2014? Any light shed on this matter would be greatly appreciated as it’s annoying me somewhat. And I can’t reinstall the old version either. Try this: install Photoshop CC 2014 over the top of itself (without removing it). To do this, in the Creative Cloud desktop app, go to the Apps tab.
In the lower half, labeled Find New Apps, there is a filter drop-down to the right. By default it says All Apps or Filters & Versions, click it and choose Previous Version. Find Photoshop on the list and the button will say “Install” but it will also be a drop-down menu. Choose CC 2014 (15.0). This will do a “repair” install over the top of your existing files. From Glyn Dewis: WHERE ARE MY PLUG INS? I’m curious why this update has a year-time-stamp on it, while all of the other updates have been just within the same package/bundle.
It is slightly confusing that I now I have to check to see if there’s any changes I’m unhappy with, and then go back and uninstall the previous versions. Although I see how it would be nice to “check before you upgrade” I guess I’m now just used to blindly accepting the upgrades and rolling with it, isn’t that the idea with CC anyhow?
I mean, how long with the older versions of CC be supported anyways, its just a matter of time before you have to go to the newer version of CC “2014” or “2015.” I’m confused, but I thought CC was a way of getting rid of the time-stamp-based programs. The Flash-based Extensions not being supported info detailed above was not easy to come. I spent close to three hours yesterday with your chat and twitter “support” teams and got nowhere. The whole thing is rather puzzling because you decided to leave the Extensions menu just where it was before but grayed out and then one has to start digging around for quite a while just to find out is just a “ghost of things past”. (Why is it even there?).
Like someone else suggested in this page, these things should be made clear upfront. If you disable a command, leave it there, grayed out, ok, but when hovering above it, for example, a pop up shows up with info and/or a link to find out more and an option to hide the deprecated command. Seriously, this is just an idea (offered for free here) and your hired team could come up with 20 more in an hour. This is the thing: as a designer I spend a large part of my time in creative meetings, dealing with clients and one form or another of paper work and after all that find very little -but precious- time to actually do creating work.
I do not appreciate how your team, after all if the WOW exciment you created about your new products and how wonderful they are, leave “easter-egg bombs” for us to find and deal with. I do not have time to do your IT work and for free! At the very least, as proposed above, information about deprecated and/or moved commands and functions should be available right away as one opens up a new or just-updated app, not after wasting time with someone across the world who asks pointless questions over an over again but does little to actually solve an issue correctly; or sifting through dozens of chat board posts and forums and twitter Come now! Are you thinking these issues through from a user’s perspective?? It does not fee like it at all.