Keyboard Shortcuts Lead to Photoshop Nirvana

I think you’ll agree, if you’ve been using any version of Photoshop for any amount of time, that it’s a fun program to use and even more fun as you begin to unlock its secrets.  I started using Photoshop over ten years ago but didn’t even begin to grasp its power until I started using it to scrap digitally.

The latest tools I’ve discovered are the Patch tool and the Color Range selector and I’ve still got far to go before I’d consider myself an advanced user.  For instance, have you ever changed the Image mode to Lab Color in order to adjust the Lightness Channel?  I’ve done it a couple of times while following a tutorial but haven’t yet found the initiative to strike out on my own.  For the most part, I follow along with tutorials and lessons without knowing exactly where I’m headed, trusting the instructor to lead me safely to a good result.  Sometimes this works - sometimes it bombs.

So I’ve learned some exciting photo effects - from sketching to dramatic black and white and LOMO to miniaturization - and taught myself to turn them into actions.  But the best thing I’ve learned, something that makes it more fun than ever before, is keyboard shortcuts.

I knew and used all the usual shortcuts - Ctrl+A for ’select all’, Ctrl+C for ‘copy’, etc. - but then I learned about [ and ] for decreasing and increasing brush or eraser size, x for toggling between background and foreground colors and Ctrl+Shift+I for inverting a selection.  When I learned to use Ctrl+click while using the Selection tool in order to select a layer by pointing to its element on the canvas, I did a little happy dance and Alt+drag to duplicate a layer made me want to go out and find someone with whom I could announce the good news.  These barely scratch the surface, though.  Truly.

If you’re really interested in streamlining your Photoshop time and unlocking some of those secrets, visit Trevor Morris Photographics to find the keyboard shortcuts chart specifically for your version of Photoshop.  Mine has 2 very full pages (and another 2 organized by keyboard location) and some of the functions are for effects I haven’t even figured out yet so I’ve got my work cut out for me.

If you’re a Photoshop or Elements user, I’d really love to hear about your favorite keystroke shortcuts.  Leave a comment with a shortcut hint for these programs.

If you haven’t given Photoshop a try yet, cruise on over to the new Adobe Photoshop Express to join the beta team and help determine the final online product.

Tschüss!

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