Adobe Photoshop Course

Photoshop Basics

• Overview of the Photoshop CS4 interface
• Bitmaps and vectors explained
• Image modes
• Image size and resolution
• Image colour concepts

Photoshop Selection Techniques

• Essential image navigation shortcuts
• The marquee tools
• Adding and subtracting selections
• Automatic selection using the wand tool
• Automatic selection using the quick selection brush
• Manual cut-out techniquesl
• Transforming a selection
• Understanding selection edges
• Refining selection edges
• Saving and reloading a selection

Photoshop Basic Tools and Colour

• Overview of the Photoshop toolset
• Brushes and brush types
• Adjusting brushes
• Choosing colours by eye
• Numerical colour
• Pantone colour
• Do's and don'ts of choosing colours
• The background image
• Erasing and canvas colour

Layer Masks in Photoshop

• Introduction to the power of layer masks
• Creating a layer mask from a selection
• Modifying a layer mask using the paintbrush tool
• Tricks for modifying mask edges for cut-out
• The gradient tool and masks

Photoshop Layers - Combining Images

• Layer blending modes
• Layer opacity
• Transforming and distorting layers
• Working with multiple layers
• Creating montages

Image Adjustments in Photoshop

• Destructive verses non-destructive techniques
• Using adjustment layers
• Levels explained
• Colour balance and colour balance considerations
• Hue and saturation
• Selective adjustments using masks

Photoshop Filters

• An overview of Photoshop filters and their uses
• Pixel (100%) view and what it means
• Advantages of using smart filters
• Image sharpening in detail
• Image blurring
• Selective filtering

Layer Effects in Photoshop

• Overview of layer effects
• Applying drop shadow
• Applying other layer effects

Steps to Prepare and Image for End Use in Photoshop

• Opening an image using Adobe Bridge
• Scan resolution and dpi explained in depth
• Reference to colour bit depth
• Cropping and sizing (the quick way)
• Image adjustments using levels, colour balance and hue/saturation
• Further correction to images using Shadow/highlight
• Re-touching using the clone tool
• Re-touching using the healing tool
• The new Clone Source Palette

Photoshop File Formats

• Considerations when choosing a file format
• Common file formats explained