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Saving Files

Let's with this in mind. Let's talk about So now I have this document and I need to make sure that I'm giving myself the best possibility of whatever I wanted with it next. So I probably have not said this enough during these three days. But first I'm going to save it is a PSD. I never said that, like, you know, once or 47 times, but that's always from a step without even thinking about it. It saves PSD because PSD file preserves everything as we talked about. Yeah, I could save us tiff. But for my reasons, I like to do PSD so that visually I know there's my PSD file. It's going to be a pretty big file because I've got several camera raw files embedded inside that I'm okay with that. Personally, I'd rather have that than have ah, graphic foul like a photo Father was linked to it somehow, and I mistakenly deleted that file and then it was gone. So one of the secret added benefits of using the smart object thing is, if somehow you deleted a folder with the original raw files, they're sti...

ll in here because they're embedded inside this. They're not referring to that other file there in here. It makes the foul bigger, but also provides another former backup file. So this PSD files could be my master file my working file. But if you want to call it, I usually call it master file because it's got everything I need and might even have layers that are currently hidden. But I know they're in there in case I want to change something. Then I decide. Okay, I'm ready to send this off to my favorite lab for printing. Well, they don't want me to send them my joy. Enormous psd file. So they want a fill in the blank file. And by that I mean, if they say J peg, I give them J peg. If they say we like a tiff with these settings, you betcha. So my thought processes always been this back in the early days. When I first started this before all the stuff even started and we were doing that pays layout we talked about and paste up. Everything we did was based on the printer saying, Make sure you do it this way and we go Yes, sir, because it was their printer, so if we didn't prepare the file correctly, it wouldn't work. So I've kept that philosophy forever. So I'm going to print to a lab that I've never used before. The first thing I do is look somewhere on their website where it says prepare your files this way. And if it says make sure it's a 300 DP I tiff file, even though I'm going really okay because that's what they want, That's what give him. So by preserving my PSD file, I can then save a copy in whatever other format I want. Now, every so often, I see people do this next thing and it just give me a heart attack. I think I'm gonna diet in early age by watching people do this because in their head, they're thinking and they're they're doing part of it. Well, cause they're like, I'm saving all my layers in the PSD file like, good for you, I say. But I need a J peg. So I'm gonna flatten all this and then save it as a J peg. And I'm just like when you flatten something, you better be darn sure you go to save as not save because of you had saved. Guess what? That's your new document. No layers. So to me. I don't want to take that chance. Yes, I need to end up with a version that's flattened, but I would never and I mean never flatten this one. I would make a copy of it, which is flattened, and the way you do that is a simple is this save as so if you're ever going flatten and then save another coffee is that's just danger waiting to happen. So plus, it's an extra step. That's unnecessary because look what happens in here I'm in to save as dialog box. It recognizes my document has layers. So says so. Therefore, you have. I assume you want to say, there's a PSD, and if I say well, I've already saved my master files a PSD this one I'm saving as a J peg to send to someone that all I do is change the file format to Jay Peak. Before I do that, this whole check box right here says layers when I choose J peg, it can't have layers, so it flattens it for me. So in one step in one dialog box. I now have a flattened version that's a different file format and a different filing so that we have completely removed any danger of Oops. I flattened by mistake, and I know most will say, Oh, that's never happened, right? It's happened. I know what's happened and why would you even bother taking that chance? And some people, like want to flatten in order. Print. No, you don't. If you're printing to your own printer, there's no reason to flatten. I don't know who started that rumor many years ago that you got flattened before you print to your own printer. No, you have to flatten a copy to send out to someone else to print, because otherwise the foul would be huge. But if it's your own machine, it prints whatever it sees, So why flatten it? Just print it, and then, if you decide to turn off a layer, print that one, I don't know where that mistaken impression came. I know part of the reason yes, people say I'm to flatten it and artist to sharpen it or make it a smart object and sharpen that. Maybe that would work, too. So this is how I would say, Is that what I would consider that best practice way to make sure that you're giving the best of both worlds? That master file that's got all that stuff in it. Smart object, smart filters, adjustment layers, mask, etcetera, etcetera. Maybe the layer cops have used layer cops all in there. Then you save a copy that's flattened as J. Peg. That's the one that gets sent out to wherever. If it's for your website, you take this big file. That's J. Peg. Then you scale it down to a smaller size will look good on your website or Facebook page. But back in the background is still that huge PSD file that I've got safely stored away. So if I was to show you behind the curtains on my laptop, there be a file folder that was a project in there. Be Rafael Rafael Rafael. Raw file PSD folder called Final doesn't actually have quotes around it, but it should. And that's where I saved my J pic, so it's never really final in my mind. But I mean it is for now, its final. That's where the J pay goes. Then I sent it off to the lab or my custom, whatever it is, and they go, Oh, I love it. But can you just change this one thing? I know I can't go back to my master file. Change it, re save a new flattened version. So is there really anything that bad about flattening? Potentially? Because, I mean, if you get in a good enough habit, I suppose you could argue you could flatten, say, even an unflattering. But why, that's an extra step. Don't do it now. If I'm working on a project with 20 photographs, here's what I would typically do. Do all the work save each one is a PSD, and so I have this folder full of 20 PSD files. Then I select all those 20 files and use an automated command called Image Processor that turns all those into J picks as a batch. And I go have a sip of my water while those big bang bang bang bang and makes a bunch of J picks for me. This is so important. I stress it a lot and Yellen screen because there's been enough times over the years our people have said things like, and I love when this happens. I don't really That was in your workshop. I remember you said something about flattening and J Peg. So I saved. I flattened and I say there's a J peg. But when I opened it, all the layers were gone and I met. That is correct. I don't know what they're expecting me to say. Just go to the filter called D flatten. If I and you'll be all set, that's like, Yeah, exactly. So don't even take that chance. So that's kind of the way we do it now. The other reason for doing that is let's talk about sharpening for a second. Sharpening is something that is very dependent on the end result. As I mentioned briefly before, if I'm creating this strictly to put on a gallery on my website, that I'm gonna sharpen quite differently if I'm gonna send it to a lab. So therefore, what I might do is this save my PSD file without any sharpening or just maybe a little bit here and there. Nothing major save as that J peg file, and then this open that J. Peg sharpened this. Sharpen it for whatever purpose you're doing for This is a very large file that's meant for prints. I would sharpen appropriately what I probably would consider doing. Fact, I do this quite often, just while I'm making sure I'm doing this correctly as I would, even though it's gonna be eventually be a J pig again. Convert to a smart object, do whatever sharpening style. I use either one of these to you like to use putting the numbers. So I know for when I go to print, I like to use 10 Those air just numbers that I have used that worked pretty well. Click OK, Save us Jay Peak. So I'm making my final final copy that sharpen. Then I say, Well, hold on a second now I now anyone for my Facebook page. It's way too big. So I go image size and it should be much smaller for my Facebook page. Now that sharpen looks way too much, so let's pull it back to more number. More numbers I use for a non screen like 81 8 or something like that, and then say that is a J peg that's called Facebook Gabay or something or you have folders that do that. So this is a new approach that I would say is I don't like to use the word safest but safe in the sense that you're not making any permanent changes in your PSD file. Is this big and ready to be massaged into whatever size you want and sharpened accordingly? I could sharpen that big master file. But then, if I end up squeezing it down to be a Facebook page, as you just saw there, the shopping probably way too much, so I find it easier to do it in this way. It takes a bit of, ah thought process to say, OK, first, I'll do this, Then I'll do that. But if you want the full control, this is the way that I would suggest doing it. I have had this question for a while. Maybe you could help me with it when we send off are sharpened files to a lab is gonna print for us. Do they do additional sharpening, or do they run it without sharpening? I would say depends depends on the lab, but I would think they wouldn't or at least they would look at it and be able to. Most people who are seasoned can look at a file on screen ago. Yeah, that's been sharpened unless they feel like it's under sharpened for their printer. Maybe, but that's kind of the same conversation we're having about Will place color, correct or not. You know it may be an option, but that's nothing that I would be talking to a lab and say, What's the best plan? Is it better for me to sharpen it the way I like? Can you give me some settings for sharpening? Because sharpening is the kind of thing where people could and have written entire books just on the topic of sharpening umpteen different ways to sharpen. How do you decide the numbers of how to sharpen? You get on all sorts of math of how to do it in the line screen, divided by their block D block. So you know this method is a good approach to take, but on top of that, I would still be having a conversation with the place that's doing the output or, if it's your own printer, do a quick test and say, I'm putting to my epicenter, HP year. Whatever printer, What's a good number? So you do a quick little research on what people are saying out there. You try that and go. I'm not sure I like that. Let me try. And that's the other benefit, Of course, even for this, if I was doing this is a test for print I could print go in and adjust the sharp into something else. Print and I have three prints with different amounts of sharpening, and I can see which one I like better. So that's another reason for trying to keep things in that flexible manner all the time. Yeah, I'm glad that you brought that up, able to hear people in the chat room periods about sharpening as well, using the term output sharpening and just trying to get clarification on the different types. So here's the little nutshell version of sharpening. So when you in the camera, if your camera set to J. Peg, the camera does some things to your J pic, including a little bit of sharpening. So coming right out of the camera, it's already sharpened, and that's considered most people input, sharpening me on the way in its sharp It's a little bit, then preparing for output. We call it extra. Scharping is help. A shocking. The reason they call it print Sharpening is we don't just do print anymore. And that's why it has this debate, because I'm gonna sharpen quite differently, for the units can appear on my screen versus the one I'm gonna send to my lab or to my own printer. So output sharpening means sharpening based on the style of output you're going to do, and you use bigger numbers for print than you would for on screen. When you take a raw file, a raw file and this is what throws mostly off with a raw file on the back of your camera go Oh, that looks awesome. That's because the little led display on the back or LCD display is adding a little bit of vibrancy and sharpening because it's almost showing you a J peg when you open your raw fire like doesn't look quite the same. That's because Rafael really means it's raw because it allows you to say I'm going to do some vibrancy and everything else and by nature, whether you know it or not, Camera raw by default is adding some sharpening. I didn't change that. That's the default. Settings is doing a little bit of sharpening input, sharpening to try and help a little bit. But then leading you the opportunity and photo shopped to say how much help with sharpened I want. So those are the default numbers that I rarely, if ever changed every time bringing a raw file. There's a little bit of Scharping being added based on numbers that they've put in there. Depending on the photo, I might choose to change a little bit, but I typically those are pretty good numbers as a good start. And then on top of that, I sharpened based on Where's it going? What type of output isn't thing happened when you go from light room to photo shop light rooms, adding some sharpening because sometimes I get a print back from the lab and I'm like, Wow, that's over sharpened. I never sharp in any of my prints to go to the lab. I love the when they come back, but sometimes I get him back in like, Whoa, they sharpened on top of that right, and that's why I want to find out from them. How What are you doing? Because if they say well, our process, we do sharpen that I might go in and turn this off or dial it down or something like that makes sense. OK, so everyone, including people home, raise your right hands that promise I will always save a PSD file on. I won't flatten if I don't because there's no reason to. I'll make a flattened version. I always joked about this for years. We always say You have to think of flatness, photo shops, f word. It's bad. And you just did not even say it out loud except to say, Don't ever or flatten a copy have no problem with making a flattened version that all the time I just never flatten it in photo shots. So just to kind of wrap up, we'll see if there's any questions in a moment. But that's the main things I wanted to show you throughout this thing, so I can't stress enough the following things work non destructively cause that as you saw, I think it opens up all this creative possibilities, but also to me, control and accuracy. It's not just about changing my mind It's like, What if I do this or I want to re use that later on? I want to go back and say, How did I do that? So I look at the my structure, my document, The reality of it is yes, your file sizes are going to get larger. That's just the way it is. But I'd rather have that than open a folder and go 10 Jay Peak files. Yea, what do I do with those? How did I do that? I have no idea. And also, even though I did a little soap box on it before practice, The way you learn smart objects is you do that little practice the way you say, I'm gonna try this border thing and you just try it and you go down that road, be willing to experiment, recognize him, got those. All these built in opportunities to experiment because of previews and cancels and smart filters and masks and adjustment layers and all those things. So resist the temptation to our race. Delete, Merge! Rast, arised Flatten Those air five forbidden fruits of photoshopped shouldn't do those at all if you can at all avoid it Any other final thoughts from you. Really, that's it is just, you know, that the my goal in this was to show such a range of possibilities. And now you have to take it and make it your own. So it wasn't intent to be fold this recipe. It's Here's all these cool ingredients. Now it's up to you. Toe. Go and do something cool with it. All right, Great. We will wrap things up, then Time has been flying. Thank you so much. Everybody out there who's tuned in There are three sessions with Dave Cross. Hopefully, you've all learned a ton huge thank you to our students for being here and hanging out with us and getting some time with Dave. Really appreciate it. And, of course, the biggest thank you to Dave Cross for being here, which I'm sure won't be the last time. We need to have Dave back in our San Francisco studio very soon, and I do want to just wrap up with some comments that have come in from the Internet throughout our course here, and especially this last segment in particular, that displaced method that you were showing Marcel in the chat room says the displaced on the wall blew my mind. GM four design says scraping brain matter off the wall Apparently, my mind got displaced with that. So if you miss that, you're definitely gonna want to go back and watch it. A few other comments that came in and again this last segment we had a viewer in the chat room saying, Thank you. This portion with the ballerina is exactly what I've been waiting for. This course has been just excellent. Dave, you are superb teacher. I'm so pleased to be able to purchase this course at that reduced rates so I can use it over and over to improve my photo shop skills. I'm so happy that I was here over the past three days and then, finally one more here from Michelle, who's joining from Hamburg, Germany, and says, This is the most exciting free course I've ever seen. I have to say, Dave has been a tremendous instructor. Thank you for inspiring me so much. Michelle from from Hamburg, Germany, right now, Once again, thank you so much for watching. My name is Chris Jennings. Thanks for tuning in. It's been great having you here, but for right now, that's all we've got. It's a wrap and we'll see you next time