Basic Functions inPhotoshop Elements 6

Tom Fangel 2009

1- Photoshop Elements - Archiving and File Formats

When you are working on a web project, it is essential to keep track of all your material. For the photos:

1) A folder for usable but unprocessed originals

2) A folder for processed photos that still have their original size (maximum amount of pixels). These photos are saved in the TIFF format and can be used again in other contests.

3) A folder for processed, downscaled and ready for web photos

RAW:

The basic format is RAW. A raw file consists of raw numbers representing the data of the picture. A small jpeg thumbnail is attached to the raw file to confirm the existence of the picture.

All cameras have a built-in raw converter and can save the picture in the JPEG format.

Some cameras can save the raw data in a RAW file and leave the raw conversion to be done in Photoshop by the photographer. This method has some technical advantages and is preferred by professional photographers.

JPEG:

A compact bit-reduced format. Standard for web publishing.

Not ideal for archiving as the bit-reduction is repeated every time the file is opened, changed and saved again.

TIFF:

Standard format for archiving. No loss of quality after repeated editing sessions.

As it is not bit-reduced (compressed), it takes up more space than jpegs.

Fil-formats:

Folder tructure for a web project:

03- Photoshop Elements - Workflow

The basic workflow:

Archiving:

Selecting usable photos and saving them in the ORIGINALS folder.

Photoshopping the photos and archiving them in tiff format in the TIFF folder.

Downscaling for web-size and archiving in the READY_FOR_WEB folder.

Photoshop workflow:

1) Cropping

2) Adjusting brightness/contrast

3) Adjusting colors

4) Adjusting sharpness

5) Save as TIFF

6) Scaling for WEB

7) Save as JPEG

Extra functions:

Writing text on the photos

Using symbols and graphics

Removal of red eyes

Working with “layers”

03-Photoshop Elements - Settings in Preferences and Color Settings

Settings:

In Preferences set Units&Rulers to pixels

Display&Cursors: set as indicated by the arrows.

In the Edit menu the Color Settings is set to “Always Optimize Colors For Computer Screen”

05-Photoshop Elements - The Crop Tool -1

Check that Aspect Ratio is set to No Restriction

Start at the top left corner and press the mouse button.

Drag the mouse towards the lower right corner and release the mouse button.

This does not have to be precisely the cropping that you want. You can now fine-tune the cropping by dragging at the small rectangles and turn the whole cropping area by using the corner rectangles.

The turn-symbol pops up when you move the cursor close to the corner rectangle symbol.

Aspect Ratio

Crop Tool

Pull for adjustment

Turn Symbol

Ordinary cropping with no restriction of height and width aspect

06-Photoshop Elements - Cropping - 2

Set Feather to 0 px. Set Mode to Fixed Aspect Ratio. Write the aspect in Width/Height (ex. 4:3).

Select Rectangular Marquee Tool

Place the cursor at the starting point of your crop in the top left corner and press the mouse button

Drag the mouse towards the lower right corner and release the mouse button.

Your cropping selection here cannot be adjusted, but you can press APPLE (CTRL) +D and try again

Settings for fixed aspect

Aspect Ratio

Cropping with fixed height width aspect

Finish the procedure with CROP

07-Photoshop Elements - Adjustment of Light and Contrast-1

In Quick Mode the Lighting menu has 3 adjustment tools:

The Lighten Shadows will improve the shadow areas of most photos

Midtone Contrast can give life to dull photos and Darken Highlighs can often bring back details in “burned-out” highlights.

08-Photoshop Elements - Adjustment of Light and Contrast-2

If the photo needs large amounts of adjustment go to the main menu.

In the Enhance menu, select Adjust Lighting - Brightness/Contrast.

Remember to take the “Preview” option. The adjustments can be evaluated “before and after”.(In EDIT/QUICK MODE select WIEV = Before and After)

Note that this Brighness/Contrast adjustment effects the shadows, mid-tones and highlights in equal amounts.

This is different from the fine-tuning adjustments in the Quick Edit menu, where shadows, mid-tones and highlights are treated individually.

09-Photoshop Elements - Adjusting Colors

Color adjustment are normaly done after adjusting brightness and contrast

Saturation: The amount of color has been heightened a bit here Temperature: The color has been adjusted towards blue Hue: No changes here. ( HUE is used very rarely)Tint: The color has been adjusted towards magenta

10-Photoshop Elements - Adjusting Sharpness

Sharpen:

Contours of the details are enhanced.The sharpen adjustment is performed at 100%size on the monitor.

Take care not to exaggerate!

1) Cropped

2) Brightness/Contrast

3) Colors

4) Sharpness

Here is a detail from the photo.

Before and after sharpening.

The detail is from the large TIFF files before resizing for web use

Photos for web are sharpened again after resizing.

Detail before “sharpen” Detail after “sharpen”

11-Photoshop Elements - Resizing for Web-1

Select: Image - Resize - Image Size: Select from the dialogue boxes:

Constrain Proportions.

Resample Image.

Biconic.

Write the pixel size you need.

The hight/width aspect is maintained.

Not OK Sharpening:When the picture has been rescaled, it has to be fine-tuned for web publishing.

The most important adjustment issharpening. Do not exaggerate.

Also check Brightness, contrast and saturation.

The picture is saved via the File-Save For Web command.

OK Sharpening:

Not important for web publishing

read on:

12-Photoshop Elements - Resizing for Web-2

original size vs. new size

The Save For Web command has a before and after picture .The result of the chosen Custom Presets can also be evaluated in a browser = Preview In: (browser name).

Tips:

Choose JPEG in custom presets

If you activate the small triangle to the right of Custom Preset, it is possible to determine the final file size in advance. (Desired File Size).

Before After

Preview in browser

Choose JPEG in Custom presets.

13-Photoshop Elements - Red Eyes Removal

Set Zoom = 100% (Actual Pixels). Select Red Eye Tool.

Set Pupil Size = 55 % ( as a starting point )

Set Darken Amount = 45 % (as a starting point)

Place the cursor (the cross) in the center of the pupil and click.

If the changed area is too small or too large, change Pupil Size to another %-value.

If the pupil gets too bright to too dark, change the %-value for Darken Amount.

Cursor

Cursor

Red Eye Tool

14-Photoshop Elements - Texts-1

Bring Elements in Edit/Full mode.

Select theText Tool.

Select Font and size

Select font color

Start writing where you want the text. It is easy to adjust the exact placement afterwards

If you highlight the text, you can change font, size and color.

With the Move Tool you can move and turn the text

Text Tool

Move Tool

Font and size

Highlight for changes

Tool for moving and turning

Choosing colors ( Edit/Full mode):

At the bottom of the tool box you have the symbols for foreground and background colors. By clicking the mini-symbol, you can reverse them. By clicking the foreground color, you can change it.

mini

foreground

15-Photoshop Elements - Texts-2 +Graphics

When the Text Tool is selected a new transparent layer is paced o top of the bagground (picture).

The layer can be adjusted by making it active by mouseclicking

The visibility of the layers are turned on/off by clicking the eye symbols.

The transparency of the text layer are adjusted with the Opacity %-slider.

Active

non-active

Symbols - like arrows - are selected by choosing the Custom Shape Tool, which is found in the submenu to the rectangle tool. The color of the Shape wiil be determined by the foreground color. Blue is chosen here.

Selecting Shape and Color

Graphics

A Shape is formed in a new layer like a text layer and can by moved, turned and resized in the same way

16-Photoshop Elements - Layers-1

Layers are used for partial adjustments of the picture.In an adjustment layer the whole. picture is first adjusted.Afterwards the effect is removed from unwanted areas.

In this example we want to brighten the two persons, but not the surrounding area:

Select Brightnes/Contrast in the Layers Menu.

Adjust the effect in the layer. You can adjust a little bit too much, because the effect can be toned down by the Opacity %-slider.

Layers menu in Full Mode

Brightness/Contrast dialogue box

Adjustment Layer

Original Picture

continued..

Original and adjustment layer

You can click the eye-icons and turn the layers on/off to evaluate the effect.The upper layers will always cover those below.

17 - Photoshop Elements - Layers -2

Select Brush Tool in Full Mode.

Choose brush with soft edge.

Choose a suitable brush size. You can change the size as you paint.

Select black foreground color and paint over those areas that should not be effected by the adjustment. You can paint back the effect by painting with the white foreground color.

The result of the paintwork can be seen in the layers menu. Black paint blocks the effect of the adjustment layer from influencing the background layer (original picture).

The effect of the adjustment layer can be toned down with the Opacity %-slider.

When you are satisfied with the result select from the main menu: File-Flatten Image.The two layers are then merged into one.

layer with mask and the result of painting

Brush Tool

Brush type and size

18-Photoshop Elements - The Desktop - Overview

Edit Menu in Quick Mode

Edit Menu in Full Mode

Tool menu in Full Mode

When a tool is selected in the tool menu, various properties of the tool can be selected here

Foreground and background color