Photoshop Pros

Photoshop is a computer program used to generate and alter images. You can use their vast array of tools to create images from scratch, or you can download photos, scanned artwork, or Internet icons to Photoshop and change them however you want. To the novice, the breadth of Photoshop's functions can be daunting, but after spending some quality time with the instruction manual, even the beginner should be able to take advantage of Photoshop's many features. Photoshop video tutorials for beginners are also available to guide you through any part of Photoshop you with to go.

There are four main components that will appear on your screen when you open Photoshop. These will be the main tools you use to create and edit images. These tools are:- Menu Bar, Drawing Canvas, Toolbox & Palettes.

We'll start with the familiar first. The Menu Bar thankfully looks like the menu bar in most other applications. You can save, get a new screen, copy, and paste; all the functions with which you are already familiar.

The next component of Photoshop with which you should familiarize yourself is the Drawing Canvas. The drawing canvas is the large white area in the middle of the screen where you will draw or edit your images. You can set the size of your drawing canvas to limit the size of your image. The drawing canvas title bar tells you the name of your image, as well as the zoom and what mode you are in. It is possible to have an unlimited number of drawing canvases open at a time and to set them to all different sizes.

The Toolbox is your main arsenal for creating and editing images in Photoshop. The toolbox holds twenty different tools that allow you to draw and modify images on your drawing canvas. You can draw lines, fill in colors, erase images, select parts of an image, and so much more. For every function you select in your toolbox, Photoshop changes the shape of your pointer in hopes of helping you to remember what tool you have selected.

The final main component of Photoshop is the Palettes. By default, five palettes will come up on your screen when you open Photoshop. These palettes are: information, brushes, layers, command, and color. More are available in a drop down menu on the menu bar. The palettes are what give Photoshop its versatility. Each palette modifies the properties of the tools in the toolbox. For example, the brushes palette allows you to change the thickness of line your brush draws. There are a lot features in each palette. As you are familiarizing yourself with this function, make sure to check out all the tabs and fly-out menu options.

Once you have familiarized yourself with the basic functions of Photoshop, you should get to know all the tools in your toolbox. The best way to do this is open a new drawing canvas and start to draw with each tool. If you can do this with the instruction manual open in front of you, you will both be able to read about all the properties of each tool as well as see what you can do with it on the canvas. After you become well-versed in the basics, it is time to move on to more advanced Photoshop applications.

If you need to learn how to use Photoshop fast, then check out these Photoshop Video Tutorials For Beginners.