Trick Photoshop

Get intensely electrifying background special fx in just a few clicks. This trick is so simple and produces such awesome effects, it may blow your mind! Here we go… 1. In Photoshop with an open document, select the gradient tool and choose one of the colorful gradient presets from the Options area (We used a blue, red, yellow linear gradient). Now, drag the gradient tool from one side to the other, creating a linear blend. 2. Change the gradient mode from ‘Normal’ to ‘Difference’. Make more gradients on the same layer of the document by clicking and dragging the gradient tool again and again, using different directions and lengths for the gradient. Notice the gradient design will change dramatically each time this is done. The screens below show how fast the gradient effects become so cool. SCREENSHOTS: 1st swipe with gradient in ‘Difference’ mode [See Screenshot] 2nd swipe [Screenshot] 3rd swipe [Screenshot] 4th swipe [Screenshot] VARIATIONS: 1. Click CTRL-I to Inverse. 2. Cli...

One of the best ways to learn a new trick in Photoshop is to grab a tutorial that catches your eye and dive right in. VunkySearch offers just that kind of eye-pleasing, pick-up learning. Users can comb through VunkySearch using keywords or simply hit the randomize button to see dozens of tutorials from different sites thumbnailed on the main page. Clicking on a thumbnail pulls up a larger sample, and the lesson can be browsed in a lightbox-style window on VunkySearch or you can go to the site directly. The tutorial-in-a-window setup is surprisingly smooth, getting you back to the tutorial gallery quickly if you need a different perspective. For some more interesting Photoshop tutorials to increase your photo-editing-fu, check out how to spice up your pictures with lighting effects and creating photorealistic reflections . If you have a favorite site for finding awesome Photoshop tutorials, share it in the comments!

Many photographers, even the pros, feel overwhelmed by all the options Photoshop provides. Fortunately O'Reilly's latest release, " The Photoshop CS4 Companion for Photographers ", spotlights only the critical tools you'll need most often in one compact reference. In the new book, professional photographer and bestselling author Derrick Story teaches you how to quickly and efficiently organize and edit your photos without compromising the originals. "CS4 is going to be a game-changer for many photographers using Photoshop. For the first time, Adobe has included all the tools necessary to build a non-destructive workflow from upload to output. 'The Photoshop CS4 Companion for Photographers' walks you through each step of this process showing you best practice techniques along the way. After reading this book, you might actually think that Photoshop is friendly, even easy. I know this sounds remarkable, but I firmly believe it," notes Derrick, wh...

Finally, after seeing some great things about Photoshop CS4, I have a copy installed on my Mac and I had to write about my first impressions. One week and I'm seriously impressed. The installation went smoothly enough, but there is one thing I have to mention. If you EVER have to, (and I don't see why you'd have to, other than swapping Hard Drives,) de-install Photoshop CS4, make sure you 'De-activate' the software through 'Help > Deactivate' and use the provided Uninstaller. The regular 'Install CD' will only support the 'reinstall (add) or 'uninstall [remove] workflow.' Before you diddle with any images, get used to the new Interface. The Menu Bar only looks a little different, but it ends there. Things are rearranged differently and you have to use a different mindset. The left-most ToolBar looks almost the same, while the top-most Menu Bar is decidedly different. Notice the Bridge CS4 next to the PS icon for fast movement betw...