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Using CC Libraries

Lesson 7 from: Customize Photoshop's Panels, Shortcuts, and Menus

Dave Cross

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Lesson Info

7. Using CC Libraries

Lesson Info

Using CC Libraries

If you do in a local in color does work correct and I'm glad you asked that because that's a perfect segway into and that's and that is that's exactly the point whenever you define a brush it takes whatever is black becomes whatever foreground color you so you could make a solid red logo or solid blue local but if your logo is to color, this doesn't work okay, so we'll come up with a solution shortly but before I do that I want to show you that that it is also possible to take things if you have adobe illustrator you khun take adobe illustrator files and use them in photo shopped in the same kind of built in way and then we'll get to your answer your question about what if you have color okay, so with brushes that's a very valid issue that people say but my logo is to color the best you could do would be to shades so you bring in your logo on its black and light gray. That means if you click on blue is your color you'll have blue and lighter blue but that's the reality of the brushes t...

hat uses your one four round color so the other option that that is can help us but still doesn't solve the completely is to make a custom shape and the advantage of a shape over a brush is a shape of scaleable cause inspector so when you make a brush that's, why I said, you have to make the brush big to begin with, you can scale it down with a shape it can come in really small, but because it's basically based on vector shapes is very scaleable. So for example, by here and elsewhere, this is just some design I made very simply by using built in shapes that aaron illustrate. I want to use that for some purpose in photo shop, so even if you don't really use those very much it's pretty easy to just go select all and then copy and then you come back to photo shop, I usually make a new document and then you hit paste illustrator folks up a very interesting relationship when you move files back because when you go to pace, it doesn't just paces. How would you like to paste it if I pace it as pixels? It means it's lost all of the ability to be scaleable vector, which might be finding some situations. What I want to do is pace it as a path and then right away I go on here and I choose define custom shape, same kind of idea I'm going to call you want to call it shaped eight fifty four, so called fifty five does that makes much better sense so now I want to use that I take my custom shaped tool right here and it has its own little shape pickers you see, I have a few shapes and write down the bottom be the one that I just created and that means now that if I could make it this big or I could make it this big or this small little never lose quality because while I'm ship dragging it it's still vector when I let go, it's still makes a layer sorry didn't demonstrate that very won't do it this way instead it's better so I have it's really hard to see because of the has a very thin little it really was a really bad demonstration we can see that it's there actually is something there so the theory would be if I had a logo I could do that but the problem still becomes it's still one color, so let me show you this example. So what do I do in a case like this? Here's my logo I want to use that well I would look at and say right away it won't look like that it will be a one color version of that because that's just the way shapes work in for a shock and depending on the version you have, there is a solution that will eventually get to so the challenge becomes if I want to make this a shape in photo shop let's just see what happens if I just select this and copy it. Try this again let's use this one paste as a path hold on a second. Let me get rid of that existing one. Okay? Based is a path it looks good at first except wait a minute. Wasn't there some text down there at the bottom that's? Because in order to be viewed as a shape it can't be texting phyllis there has to be a shape there's a function militia or called create text outlines it turns your type into the actual shapes that's why the word luxurious shows up because it is, but for now let's, just try it and see what it does. And this is the unfortunate deceiving part of this because it looks like it's pretty good right now. But look what happens when I choose. Um sorry. Get back here. Make sure it's active fine custom shape could use even seeing the thumbnail see the difference. They're supposed to be a letter l in the middle but photo shop saw that entire shield is just a solid shape. So I have to do some work back and illustrator to make those into two different shapes and the type of the bottom didn't come across, so if this was gonna work what I'd have to do is first of all this text of the bottom I'd have to use a command is called convert. Sorry, create outlines. Now this is where once again we try to insulate dangerous territory because an illustrator I really want to keep my type editable but to create a shape it has to be outlined. So I would either make a copy of this or do this and then copy it and then undo it one way or the other. So I end up still not going to solve this problem here. Police you can see in this case when I copy it and then paste as a path, at least now the text of the bottom is still there. The challenge becomes because this was just a piece of stock image that I found for illustrator. I'd have to do some work to kind of figure out ok, how can I make that l in the middle? Not just a totally black shield. So it's doable, but it's still a little more challenging, so the options would be this s instead, I would do one of a couple things I'm going to select all again and copy. So this would be if I did not have the latest version of photoshopped, this is how I would do it. I would make a fairly big file just to make sure I have a bigger than us that I need to just make it rgb color click ok and she was paced as a smart object when you paste as a smart object that means you've created a link between illustrator and photo shop so that means it's still technically a vector quality graphic but it will look just the same as it did an illustrator and you can see that aiken scale it up to the size that I want so option one would be to do this once and then say this in a place you can find it because what will happen is the logo's just on a layer by itself. So now if I want to use this logo in some photograph and photo shop I would open this file and I would drag and drop it onto my photograph and now I have my nice to color logo there so it's not as built in because it has to still be a separate file that's if you do not have photo shops sisi twenty fourteen the update dick this is getting so difficult talk about photo cc twenty fourteen update that came around december or january that's where this way if you can see a function called libraries you can do this next thing if you pull down your men you don't see libraries, you can't do this this one you can I mean but the next thing I'm about to show you you can't do so if you and this is a frankly for anyone out there that still kind of iffy about the whole creative cloud thing and why I should do in the benefits this is probably one of the best examples I've ever seen because I used to spend all this time that I just did talking about well you have to pace this and now there's a thing called library that shared between photoshopped l a share and now in design so instead of going where did I put my logo? This is what you would do instead in illustrator you would take this logo and just drag it in here and see if it actually got it tio there's called very helpful artwork one okay so now if I go back to photo shop and go to my library that it's already there I did not do this before this is that's not a trick that was that fast because I had to the library illustrator now said my photos of library I won't bother but if I lost in design it would be a mayan design library so now any time I want my two college logo I drag it on so no more where did I put that kind of thing? It's just a drag and drop from the library's panel onto your image so um and the reason I show both ways I know not everyone has creative cloud not everyone is a fan of that whatever the reason is so option one you can still do, which is to put it in a file somewhere, but then it's up to you to save it in a place or you can go and find it if you want to build it in to your document than this library function as one of the most interesting things that's come out recently in this creative cloud concept is because it's taking advantage of this cloud technology to say it's news you added and one it's available on the other as you saw that fast, that was I didn't pre prepare that that's how fast it actually worked and believe me, I was like way past because I was afraid was gonna be like I'd say that look how fast it is let me like it's not there yet, but that's actually how fast it works. Ok, so that's the two solutions for those scenarios when you have a logo that relies on color more than one like a two colors recall or whatever logo is either every time you're importing it in from somewhere or put in a document or use this library function to move it back and forth so you would definitely have to be connected to the internet too take a danger that's now once it's there so that just need the first time but like right now if I turned off my wireless it's still it's in that library now it's that initial transfer once you add in tow one library it takes that quick second toe look but they're from then on working in photos off its built in now and in one other question when you talk about presets and the other feature early earlier if you were new and starting out how would you approach that because you're not familiar with are going to be familiar with all the tools well I think the easiest way to answer that is initially it's going to become you going ok I'm I'm using this setting not told this setting and eventually you start realizing this is I keep kind of reverting back to this is my favorite setting or uses the most then that becomes a logical thing to sail out now making a preset at worst you might find yourself making a pre set of everything and then revisiting it months ago you know I never used these three seems to lead him like I said there's really no I can't think of any downside to making process except the list gets long it's not like it slows down photo shop where it makes it all you know over overloaded with information it's really just more a lot of things you could look through so I guess I would say that as your starting out, if you think there's even a possibility, you might use that setting again making a pre set the worst habit that new people get into when they look at presets is because photoshopped prompt you to they call it pre sent one next one is pre set to six months a year like can it doesn't help me at all. So develop your own. I deliberately didn't say use this naming system because it has to be, you know, one that makes sense to you. I know what type tool? Pre since I had my own little codes in my mind I know that's a line center that's a line left things like that, but make it yours. So then you're more likely to glance at a listen go I know exactly what that is. And if you don't know what it is like, sometimes the brush icons are so tiny you might go. I remember what that is. So you just click on it and hit it with the brushing. Ok that's what it is okay, so this library thing again is it's fairly new it's very nice because it khun both share things from illustrator here's a logo that actually was done in photo shop. Because it didn't need illustrator but the same time for the same reasons that of me every time going I need to go on open that file somewhere now it's just a dragon drop from that onto my image and now that low was right to use this one happens tohave one other little function built into it, which is kind of interesting because photo shop has a function called layer cops where you can combine different layer versions so different visibility things like that. So I wanted to have several versions of this same logo instead of making five different or, say four different ones I made one if I double click on this, you can see it actually has all these things built into it called layer calms, which allow me to look at different versions of this logo, so because that's built into it, it means even as I look at this, I can access all that information and very easily it's appear sorry properties I can go into here say I wanted to switch it to the red and black ones, so instead having to go and find a different logo that's basically built into it that's a little bit beyond the scope of what we're talking about today but is to show you that's why I'm completely sold on this library function because if I can combine illustrator files, photoshopped files and it's not just that as also other types of pre cents for example one thing we haven't talked about should talk about briefly is another type of precept just tow keep our minds taken of all the different options here very often people use these wonderful things called layer styles mike layer styles or things like devlin boss drop shadow all that kind of stuff and what often people do is they go to this function they say ok, I won I add um let me change the color first because it will be easier to see I think if I pick a different color okay, so I want to add something like a beveled on boss so we choose what? But I'm choosing here really is not important is just the fact that I'm changing something so you can see that something is changing here and I also want a drop shadow and I want the drop shadow to be uh here been and let's just say that that is so lovely just use your imagination that I wanted to use this on a siri's of photos I'm trying to create some consistency for some project instead of trying to remember okay it's capacity thirty five with an angle of forty eight and all that stuff then instead new style now why it's not called new pre sent I don't know but it is a present it's just a style preset so when I choose that says what would you like to call it again? Not style to would call it devil plus shadow or something that makes sense to me click ok, so now I'm working away on some other project and I think so I would first go to my type tool preset to make sure I've got it the size and everything I want put in my type and then said trying remember I just go to these styles panel and there's the one I just made hip has done now as I mentioned before I want to reemphasize because it's so important and that is when you click on that pre set it just says here's the way you made it look but if you want to change it look right here that when the boss drop shadow it's all student is automatically adding the look that I can then continue to edit so I might decide in this case because it's a much bigger font I need to adjust the bevel somewhat so I still can but it saves me having to go ok? It was a devil of I think it was an inside devil it's already built in so unfortunately and again with apologies to my good friends that adobe this still hasn't changed after all this time the built in styles that ship with photo shop probably don't give you the best impression of why you want to use them because some of them are just a little these air I'm not kidding you this ships with photo shop like yes, I'd like to use that look for my type because it's so lovely, you know, there's a few there just kind of yeah, interesting what's weird is if you go to this pop up menu, all of these air sets of style police and some of these were really, really good. They're just hidden away, but that's another example of another style, and when I talked for about the precept manager saying it, it manages the look of this panel if I didn't want to show you some of the weird ones that are in there, I'd be going in there and going delete, delete, delete, delete because they're just once I know I will never ever use except to make fun of adobe, so because of that, you know so you can reorganize them so you create new style process for a project, you drag him right to the top, you know, these are my four presets that I use all the time. If you hover over it, it'll eventually should ok it's not going to today, probably because of this mouse pose a thing, but normally it pops up a little yellow thing that tells you the name of the preset so he can't remember you khun build in the color if you want in this case I just had it say use whatever my forehand color is but at a beveled on boss and a drop shadow you could also add into that style a colored overlay so it always be that same color as well so there's all different levels off a bill wait for you to do that so as I mentioned before they precept manager the's air all the pre sensitive controls swatches grady and styles patterns, contours, custom shapes and tools so if you again found that you looked at the existing tool precept that said I want to start with my own, you go into the ones you think you'll never use like someone here there's one that says something about tie dyed impressionist yeah, I don't think going to use that hit delete or if you really love it, make it a duplicate of it I don't know, but the point is you can each anywhere under this list all of these things have a panel full of pre sets that are both the existing ones adobe gives you and ones that you've created and then you can control reorganize and also as I showed you very importantly create that backup set and you can either manually before creative cloud if we wanted to say when we went from one version of photos up to a new version you had to manually export all of your presets and then loading the new version now it gives you that option as soon as you install a new version and ask you, would you like me to migrate your presets for you? And I can't think reason why you'd say no because he'd say, oh yes, I prefer you move all those things over so the important part of this whole discussion is we're talking about a variety of things the whole point of those to make your life simpler so you layout photos up the way you want with panels you start to slim and trim your menus and make keyboard shortcuts that make sense to you and all of these presets mean, most the time we talked about presets because there's so many of them do you think about it the number of times where you're repeating a similar kind of operation it's not exactly the same the tool used might still be the same and then build on top of that, people who have like a you know, a brush preset with your signature just means lots of possibilities but you have to remember too actually try these things and not just go yeah, that was kind of cool it's up to you now toe put these in action you have any questions? So you're collecting all this stuff you're making, especially when I get to brushes or actions and I'm scrolling and scrolling and scrolling. Would you just reset to the default and then go outside and load every single time? The reason I would, personally, I would say yes, because I think that's, a better alternative to scrolling and scrolling. But, as I mentioned, is the onus is on you to make sure you're very careful about when you add new brushes that you have to say those other ones, they'll be lost. But for me, I like that system better, because I'm not costing. Looking through this huge list of of options, I'm narrowing down the choices that I want.

Class Materials

bonus material with purchase

Dave Cross - Customizing Photoshops Panels Shortcuts Menus - Reference Guide.pdf

Ratings and Reviews

jcashin
 

Thank you so much Dave for this awesome course. I can tell already that my work in Photoshop is going to be so much more effective. I actually did stop the videos and make some tool presets and a curve preset. Thanks Creative Live for featuring such an easy to follow and understand instructor like Dave.

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