Beginner Photoshop Tips and Tutorials
Photoshop tips from black and white conversions to correcting colour casts
How could our Photoshop tips help you? Imagine the amount of (otherwise great) photos you discard because they are either a little under or over exposed. Maybe something got in the way of that perfect photo just as you fired or some other minor imperfection made you hit that delete key!
Using Photoshop, I can guarantee you will have hundreds more keepers in your files, I have saved literally thousands of pictures using Adobe’s premier editing suite. In fact I would bet money on you going through ALL of your old photographs and "tweaking" them, I did!
For the last few years, it has added a whole new dimension to my photography. Years ago I built a black and white darkroom in the loft, and it took AGES, and copious amounts of paper and chemicals, to satisfy my creative itch! Needless to say, colour processing didn’t get a look in, I left that to the pros at the labs!
When I first discovered Photoshop, I was baffled and bemused by the sheer scale of what I was looking at, I may as well be learning Japanese! It is the most comprehensive editing software available today and I suspect for a long time. I read up on as many Photoshop tips as I could find from magazines, websites and lately, blogs.
Photoshop Actions
Note: For the past decade or so, I have been using Kevin Kubota's Photoshop Action sets on most of my wedding images and find them invaluable. See more info here: Kubota Photoshop Actions
In typically "Me" style, I just loaded a photograph and started to play around, clicking this, sliding that … it wasn't long before I got very frustrated with the sheer amount of features and effects available and so I shut the whole thing down for a while.
Underexposed portrait - Converted to black and white and sold canvas print for £800
Then I started to read, and to listen to other people and their own Photoshop tips, people who knew what they were doing, and it wasn't long before I was as "at home" with Photoshop as I was up in the loft in the early 80's! It is not unusual for me to spend up to 8 hours a day on Photoshop CC nowadays. I run EVERY photograph I take through it whether for minor adjustments, or a full creative splurge!
I will show you some simple Photoshop tips and techniques such as turning a somewhat bland photograph into something usable. For example, this image was underexposed but with just a few tweaks, it improves dramatically.
Basic Beginner Photoshop Tips
If you are serious about photography and feel that you want to explore a new and exciting avenue, give it a try. Once you get the hang of it, I can assure you that you will Always use it! It will really get your creative juices flowing.
Oh, and you don't have to have the latest version to get creative. Why not look at Photoshop CS 5 or 6 (if you can get hold of a copy). A few generations old now but still great software and cheaper than the latest subscription packages!
Anyway, check out some of our Photoshop tips below and start learning. Some of the tutorials are from a while ago but the techniques still work in current version of Photoshop.
Learn to greatly enhance a person's portrait by drawing attention to their eyes
How to remove and correct red or yellow colour casts in your photos
Watermarks can significantly reduce image theft through automatic copyrighting
It's like anything. Once you know how, it is easy! Try it out for yourself.
Subtle sharpening techniques is the key. Keep it simple and don't overdo it.
Increase highlights in a portrait without using Photoshop's "highlights" tool.
Learn to isolate images with a white background using Photoshop's path tool.
Straight lines and neat walls make great interior photos. Learn to straighten them.
Simple adjustments to brighten shadows and enhance colours in Photoshop.
The Photoshop clone tool can save you a lot of time having to re-shoot the scene.
Reduce and eliminate the appearance of noise or grain in digital images.
Also, check our selection of Video Photoshop Tutorials