Adobe® Photoshop® CC® Bootcamp

Lesson Info

Vector & Raster Layers Basics

And we're gonna go ahead and move on to rasterized versus pixel-based layers. Now, at this point we've looked at a lot of things that are pixel-based. Everything we saw in those composites were pixel-based layers and not necessarily things that were raster-based. These names will show up a lot in the future, so when we talk about smart objects and we talk about text, we'll talk a lot about vector-based images when we're doing smart objects, text, and shapes. But it's important to understand this at the layer understanding level now to understand the difference between a vector-based layer and a rasterized layer. So if I press V for my move tool, and I click on this vector-based layer here. I'll press Control click, now with the move tool, you see this thing here that says Auto Select? I like to have that turned off. I like to be able to select my own layers, and to do that I press the Command or Control key. If you have this auto select here when you click on a layer, it's going to ass...

ume that the layer that you're clicking on, if that layer has a lot of content in it, that's above it but's also transparent, if it's set to auto select, it may not select the layer that you want it to select. So I make sure that that auto select is turned off so that I make the decision on what is selected, and by doing that, I press the Control or Command key, and notice, it switched from the background, Control click, it now clicks on the vector shape. So now if I Command or Control click on this vector shape, I now have that shape selected without having to go into my layers palette. So if I press Command or Control T, this will allow me to transform this. And we're gonna talk about transforming in the future here, but if I press and hold Shift and Alt, and move that up as I do that, that is a vector-based image. Notice how it started out very small, very small, but as I moved it up, we got to see all the stuff that's happening within that vector-based shape. If I Command or Control click on this rastered layer here, press Control T, Shift and Alt and move this up, those shapes were the exact same thing. So what I did when I built this diagram was I built this diagram from a vector shape, copied that vector shape on both sides, and then rasterized the one layer. And what you see from this is that the vector shape maintained the stroke path, whereas because that rasterized layer was so small, when we blew it up, we were basically interpolating all the pixels, just like you would if you were blowing up the image size of a canvas. The difference between a vector shape and a rasterized shape is a rasterized shape is made up of individual pixels. So when you increase the size of those individual pixels, you're telling Photoshop to insert information where information doesn't exist, so you get all that blurriness that's happening with the photos. But notice over on the vector-based shape, the vector-based shape was actually a shape made of a stroke path and not a full fill of red color. So what happens there is as we blow that up, it's doing all the calculations of the line work and all the calculations of the shape, so that no matter what size that vector is, when you make it small or large, it's gonna be the exact same thing. So this, I say typically the vector and raster thing comes in when you're talking about shapes and text versus pixel-based image editing that you would do from a photo that you get from your camera. Our cameras do not shoot vector-based images. Wouldn't that be beautiful if our cameras just shot vectors, because then any picture we took could be the size of a thumbnail or the size of a billboard, with absolutely no problems. I don't know when or if that technology will ever exist, but we right now are shooting in pixel-based form. That's why if you take a five-megapixel image and try to blow it up to a 24 by 36 canvas, it's not gonna look right. It's gonna be blurry because the pixels are interpolating or information is being added there. Making things smaller on a raster image is typically no problem, so if we started with this vector larger and made it smaller, it wouldn't have a problem getting much smaller but getting bigger is the problem. Whereas vectors, they are line and shape calculations that happen as they grow and expand and contract. Where we can see that is if we were to just go into a regular pixel-based image. This is a pixel-based image. Anything that we pull in from our camera is a pixel-based image, so this is just a background layer that we would get from say, we go in from Adobe CameraRoll and we come into Photoshop defaults to a background layer. This is a pixel-based layer. So if you're trying to wrap your head around this whole pixel and vector-based thing, just think of a pixel-based layer as any layer that comes in from Adobe CameraRoll that you're pulling into Photoshop as that background layer. You will know when you're in the vector world, you will. Because it'll typically be a shape or it'll be a text layer.

Adobe® Photoshop® CC® is a valuable tool for photographers, but it can also be intimidating. In this all-inclusive 20 lesson course, you’ll go from opening the program for the first time to creating images that really stand out. Join Blake Rudis, Photoshop® expert and founder of f64 Academy, as he shows you how to maximize your use of Photoshop®. Topics covered will include:

Week 1
• Class Introduction & Bridge, Adobe Camera Raw, Setup Interface, Cropping and Layers
Week 2
• Layer Tools, Masks, Selections, Clean-Up Tools and Shapes & Text
Week 3
• Smart Objects , Transforming, Actions, Filters and Editing Video
Week 4
• Custom Creative Effects, Natural Retouching, Portrait Workflow, Landscape Workflow, and Composite Workflow

Don’t let the many aspects of Photoshop® prevent you from maximizing your use of this amazing app. Blake will help you develop the confidence to use your imagination and create the images that you will be proud to share with your clients.

Software Used: Adobe® Photoshop® CC® 2018

Lessons

Bootcamp Introduction
The Bridge Interface
Setting up Bridge
Overview of Bridge
Practical Application of Bridge
Introduction to Raw Editing
Setting up ACR Preferences & Interface
Global Tools Part 1
Global Tools Part 2
Local Tools
Introduction to the Photoshop Interface
Toolbars, Menus and Windows
Setup and Interface
Adobe Libraries
Saving Files
Introduction to Cropping
Cropping for Composition in ACR
Cropping for Composition in Photoshop
Cropping for the Subject in Post
Cropping for Print
Perspective Cropping in Photoshop
Introduction to Layers
Vector & Raster Layers Basics
Adjustment Layers in Photoshop
Organizing and Managing Layers
Introduction to Layer Tools and Blend Modes
Screen and Multiply and Overlay
Soft Light Blend Mode
Color and Luminosity Blend Modes
Color Burn and Color Dodge Blend Modes
Introduction to Layer Styles
Practical Application: Layer Tools
Introduction to Masks and Brushes
Brush Basics
Custom Brushes
Brush Mask: Vignettes
Brush Mask: Curves Dodge & Burn
Brush Mask: Hue & Saturation
Mask Groups
Clipping Masks
Masking in Adobe Camera Raw
Practical Applications: Masks
Introduction to Selections
Basic Selection Tools
The Pen Tool
Masks from Selections
Selecting Subjects and Masking
Color Range Mask
Luminosity Masks Basics
Introduction to Cleanup Tools
Adobe Camera Raw
Healing and Spot Healing Brush
The Clone Stamp Tool
The Patch Tool
Content Aware Move Tool
Content Aware Fill
Custom Cleanup Selections
Introduction to Shapes and Text
Text Basics
Shape Basics
Adding Text to Pictures
Custom Water Marks
Introduction to Smart Objects
Smart Object Basics
Smart Objects and Filters
Smart Objects and Image Transformation
Smart Objects and Album Layouts
Smart Objects and Composites
Introduction to Image Transforming
ACR and Lens Correction
Photoshop and Lens Correction
The Warp Tool
Perspective Transformations
Introduction to Actions in Photoshop
Introduction to the Actions Panel Interface
Making Your First Action
Modifying Actions After You Record Them
Adding Stops to Actions
Conditional Actions
Actions that Communicate
Introduction to Filters
ACR as a Filter
Helpful Artistic Filters
Helpful Practical Filters
Sharpening with Filters
Rendering Trees
The Oil Paint and Add Noise Filters
Introduction to Editing Video
Timeline for Video
Cropping Video
Adjustment Layers and Video
Building Lookup Tables
Layers, Masking Video & Working with Type
ACR to Edit Video
Animated Gifs
Introduction to Creative Effects
Black, White, and Monochrome
Matte and Cinematic Effects
Gradient Maps and Solid Color Grades
Gradients
Glow and Haze
Introduction to Natural Retouching
Brightening Teeth
Clean Up with the Clone Stamp Tool
Cleaning and Brightening Eyes
Advanced Clean Up Techniques
Introduction to Portrait Workflow & Bridge Organization
ACR for Portraits Pre-Edits
Portrait Workflow Techniques
Introduction to Landscape Workflow & Bridge Organization
Landscape Workflow Techniques
Introduction to Compositing & Bridge
Composite Workflow Techniques
Landscape Composite Projects
Bonus: Rothko and Workspace
Bonus: Adding Textures to Photos
Bonus: The Mask (Extras)
Bonus: The Color Range Mask in ACR