Summary: One of the key components of Photoshop is layers. Layers allow you to stack images, shapes, text, etc. If you take 2 pieces of paper and you put one on top of the other and partially cover the bottom piece of paper, that is similar to a layer in Photoshop. We will show you not only how to create layers, but also how to rename the layer and even how to change the layer order. As we proceed with this course, we will also explaining how to delete a layer, hide layers or even change the opacity of a layer. Before we are finished, we will also explain terminology such as what happens when you “Rasterize Layer”.
Currently we are using Windows Vista Home Premium 64 Bit and the Photoshop CS4 Extended 64 Bit version.
Knowledge You Need to Know:
If you are unfamiliar with certain areas that are not covered in this tutorial, feel free check out other tutorials on our website. We have many different types of tutorials that can be downloaded (Video, PDF) or viewed online that will train you for free! Once you have the knowledge, feel free to come back and go through this tutorial again.
Layers:
Finally, we get to “Layers”! A lot of other Photoshop sites, might start with the initial training of Photoshop with Layers, but we felt it was very important for you to understand certain areas such as palettes or even selection tools before we dived into Layers. Many of the past tutorials we have been getting you prepared for layers.
First let’s get you to understand what a layer is. A layer allows you stack images, text, shapes, etc. on top of other images, text, etc. Let’s look at the example below. The bottom layer is the “Red Layer”. See how both the Green and Blue Layer are covering up the “Red Layer”? Now you need to determine what the middle layer is. If you look, the “Green Layer” is partially covering up the “Blue Layer”, so that would make the “Blue Layer” the middle layer. That leaves the “Green Layer” which is the top layer. On the example below, our top layer is actually the text. Remember, not only images, but text, shapes, etc. can be a layer. You will notice the text is actually on top of the Green circle.
Now that we explained what should be the top, middle, and the bottom layer, let’s look at the palette called “Layers”. The palette is usually located in the bottom right hand corner of the screen.
| | A). We explained the top layer is actually the text layer. On this example the words “Red Layer” is actually the top layer. We also explained that because the red circle was covered up by the blue/green circles, that would make the “Red Layer” the bottom layer (B). |
Creating Layers:
Now create an 800 X 800 new document. Please refer to Working With Image Files tutorial for more information on creating new documents. Because we already have talked about the Ellipse tool (see Drawing Tools tutorial), go ahead and create a Red circle anywhere on the empty canvas. Photoshop Tip – There is no limit on how many layers you can create, besides the system resources it uses).
In the Layers palette you will see a red color box and “Shape 1” to the right of a gray box. What does this mean? Certain items can be edited after you have created them. One example is text. If you create text you will see a “T” for the image. This tells you if you select the text with the type tool you can edit it.
To make it so you can’t edit the item, you will need to rasterize the layer. What the heck is rasterize? One example is let’s say you had a text layer, and you wanted to run different filters and before you can run the filters, you need to rasterize the layer from either text, shape, etc. into an image. Once an item is rasterized, you can no longer edit the item.
| | A). If you Right click the word “Shape 1”, (do not right click the red image, etc. or you may get a different menu), you will see a new menu displayed. |
| | B). Left click “Rasterize Layer”. |
You will see the Layer change. Instead of have the 2 boxes, you will see 1 box with your now formed image and then the word “Shape 1”.
Now follow the above instructions and add a “Blue” eclipse (it does not matter where you put it, but we would recommend that you draw it over a portion of the “Red” circle. Now rasterize and create the 3rd layer with the ellipse tool and make this one a “Green” circle. This last circle should overlay a portion of the “Blue” and “Red” circle. Now your layers should look similar to the following image.
Moving Layers:
You already know by now what is the top and bottom layer, let’s now move them around. First, Left click the “Shape 2” which is the “Blue” circle. You should see it is now highlighted. Now move your pointer over the word “Shape 2” and hold down the Left mouse button. Now drag your mouse up. Move it above the image of “Shape 3”. Now your layer palette should look like the image below.
So what did you just do with the layer? You moved it to the top and told Photoshop that that the blue circle is now the top layer. If you look at your image, you will see the “Blue” circle is on the top of the other images. If you did it correctly, you should see the “Blue” circle covering the “Green” and “Red” circle. You will also notice that the “Green” circle which use to be the top layer is shifted down to the middle layer.
Renaming Layers:
You will be spending a lot of time in the Layers palette and we would highly recommend that you change the layers name to something that you will remember. To rename a layer, DOUBLE Left click the word such as “Shape 2”. You will then be able to rename the layer. Change it to “Blue Layer”. Now proceed and change “Shape 3” to “Green Layer” and “Shape 1” to “Red Layer”.
Deleting Layers:
If you would like to remove a layer, you can delete a layer by one of two methods. Method 1 is listed below. Let’s delete “Shape 3” or “Green Layer”.
| | A). Right click on the text of the layer (Do not Left click or click on the picture or you may get a different menu). |
| | B). Now Left click “Delete Layer”. |
Now you will see a dialog box asking you if you really want to delete this layer? Left click “Yes” to delete the layer.
Method 2 of deleting a layer is to drop it in the trashcan. We are not a big fan of this way of deleting the layer because it does not confirm you truly want to delete it as the other method asks you to confirm deletion. One way to get back the deleted layer for both methods is use the “Undo” command which is keyboard shortcut CTRL-“Z”.
| | A). First Left click the “Red Layer” and once it is highlighted, hold down the Left mouse button and drag it to the trashcan (B). |
| | B). Release the Left mouse button to delete the layer. |
We need at least 2 layers to show you the rest of the areas of “Layers” so please use the keyboard shortcut of CTRL-“Z” to undo the changes.
Hiding Layers:
Sometimes you get to many layers and it becomes confusing or maybe you no longer want to see a certain layer, but you do not want to delete the layer. Well then it is time to hide the layer. On all layers you will see a picture of an “Eye” next to the image in the Layers palette. To hide a layer, Left click the eye image. Photoshop Tip – If you would like to see the layer displayed again, Left click this box (it toggles on and off).
Opacity Of A Layer:
Sometimes you want the lower layers to bleed through. An easy way for it to bleed through to the lower layer is to change the opacity of the layer. By default a layer when created is at 100% opacity (no transparency). On this example, Left click the “Blue Layer” and once it is highlighted, Left click the “Opacity:” box and use the slider to change the opacity. Left click on a spot on the slider bar (left or right).
With 50% opacity, you can now see some of the “Red Layer”.
Merging Layers:
As you begin working with layers, you will find yourself wanting to merge multiple layers together (you can merge as many layers as you would like together, but on this example we will be merging the 2 layers.
| | A). First you need to select both layers. Left click the first layer and hold down the CTRL key and Left click the second layer. Photoshop Tip – If you would like to select a block (layers that are together), use the “Shift” key instead of the CTRL key. Now Right click on either text (not the images) and you will see the following menu. |
| | B). Left click “Merge Layers”. |
By default the name of the layer is the top layers name. By now you should know how to change the name of the layer. You should see 1 layer in the layers palette.
Miscellaneous Information:
In a previous tutorial called Selecting Image Content, we discussed how to use the “Move Tool” and in a previous tutorial called Patterns we discussed that if you used CTRL-“J” you can duplicate a layer.
By now you should know the true basics of Photoshop layers. In future tutorials we will be discussing Adjustment Layers and other Layer options. For now, you should have a good understanding what is a layer and how to rename, hide, change the order of the layer or even how to delete a layer.
Please take a few minutes and answer the 10 question quiz below to determine how well you have learned this subject.
Quiz
1). How do you change the layer name?
| | A). Left click the layer, and then Left click the “Rename” button. |
| | B). Double Left click the image in the layer. |
| | C). Double Left click the word of the layer. |
| | D). Left click the word of the Layer and use the “Rename” option in the “Edit” menu. |
2). What does Rasterize Layer do?
| | A). It converts your text, shape, etc. into an image. |
| | B). It converts your text, shape, etc. into a smart layer. |
| | C). It allows you to edit the text, shape, etc. |
| | D). It configures the color settings for the layer. |
3). What is one method of deleting a layer?
| | A). Left click the layer and then hold down the Left mouse button and drag it to the words “Delete Layer” option in the palette. |
| | B). Left click the word in the image and select “Delete Layer” option. |
| | C). Left click the “Delete Layer” checkbox and Left click the layer. |
| | D). Left click the layer and then hold down the Left mouse button and drag it to the trashcan. |
4). How do you change the layer level (position of the layer)?
| | A). Hold down the Left mouse button and drag it to the “Arrange Layers” button to change the layer level. |
| | B). Hold down the Left mouse button and drag it up or down (above or below a layer). |
| | C). Use the “Move Tool” and drag the actual image to a different layer on the canvas. |
| | D). Select the layer in the palette and then use the “Layer Level…” command in the “Layers” menu. |
5). How do you hide a layer?
| | A). Right click the image in the layer and Left click “Hide Layer”. |
| | B). Left click the layer and select the “Hide Layer” button in the palette. |
| | C). Drag the layer to the “Hide Layer” button in the palette. |
| | D). Left click the “Eye” next to the image in the layer. |
6). If you would like to have a layer bleed through another layer, what option would you set?
| | A). Use the “Transparency” option in the layers palette. |
| | B). Use the “Opacity” option in the layers palette. |
| | C). Right click the layer and select the “Transparency” command. |
| | D). Right click the layer and select the “Opacity” command. |
7). What is the keyboard shortcut to duplicate a layer?
| | A). CTRL-“J”. |
| | B). ALT-“J”. |
| | C). CTRL-“L”. |
| | D). ALT-“L”. |
8). When you merge layers, what layer name does it use when it is merged?
| | A). It uses the last known layer name. |
| | B). It uses the bottom layer name. |
| | C). It uses the top layer name. |
| | D). It asks you the name you would like to create when merging the layers. |
9). What key do you hold down when selecting a block of layers?
| | A). CTRL. |
| | B). ALT. |
| | C). You need to hold down the Left mouse button. |
| | D). “Shift”. |
10). What is the maximum number of layers you can have?
| | A). 100. |
| | B).Unlimited and is based on your system resources. |
| | C).50. |
| | D). 200. |
Answers: 1). C, 2). A, 3). D, 4). B, 5). D, 6). B, 7). A, 8). C, 9). D, 10). B
Scoring:
0 - 5 = Please review the video tutorial and re-read this document either offline (PDF) or online.
6 – 8 = We would recommend that you print this document off and read it at a later time.
9 – 10 = Congratulations you have passed the quiz. Go ahead and view another tutorial on our site.
We hope you enjoyed this detailed tutorial. Please visit us at: http://www.Photoshopeducation.blogspot.com to expand your knowledge within Adobe Photoshop.
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Summary: Photoshop provides you with patterns which are usually used to tile a portion of your image you are editing. We will show you how to use a pattern and if none of the patterns provided with Photoshop suits your needs, you can create your own using one of two methods. We will be showing you how to sample a pattern and how to use the Pattern Maker filter (if you are running Photoshop CS4, you will need to download this filter). We will also, show you what is a Patterns Overlay option within the blending options of layers and how to duplicate a layer.
Currently we are using Windows Vista Home Premium 64 Bit and the Photoshop CS4 Extended 64 Bit version.
Knowledge You Need to Know:
If you are unfamiliar with certain areas that are not covered in this tutorial, feel free check out other tutorials on our website. We have many different types of tutorials that can be downloaded (Video, PDF) or viewed online that will train you for free! Once you have the knowledge, feel free to come back and go through this tutorial again.
Preparing For This Tutorial:
You will be using the Sky image which we have used in past tutorials. If you do not have this image, please scroll down to the “Click Picture To Download Supporting Files” and download the image. Please open the image DSC03562 in the Photoshop Program.
Creating A Duplicate Layer
As we stated, we will not be diving into Layers this tutorial, but we want you to get your feet wet again (in the Custom Brushes tutorial, we showed you a few areas of layers). Layers will be located in the palette window. If it is not open, please refer to The Work Area tutorial which talks about palettes.
By now you should have the Sky picture open. Let’s look at the Layer palette. You will notice a Background Layer. It is ALWAYS a good idea before you edit/change any photos is to duplicate the layer. One of the important reasons to duplicate a layer is to allow you to refer to the original image at any time. Sometimes you will forget what objects are in the original image. Also until you have a new layer, you can’t do blending options.
The easiest way to duplicate that layer is to use CTRL-“J”. Photoshop Tip – If you had multiple layers already, you need to make sure you Left click the Layer you want to duplicate and make sure it is highlighted.
Now you will see you have 2 layers. It will highlight the current Layer which is called always “Layer 1” (unless you rename it). See how easy it is to create layers?
Using Patterns
Now it is time to get to the Blending Options screen.
| | A). Right click on the “Layer 1” word. Do not Left click on the word or do not Right click on the image in the layer or you may get a different menu. |
| | B). You will see a new menu displayed. Left click on “Blending Options…”. |
Now Left click on “Pattern Overlay” (not the checkbox, but the word). You should see your image change in the center of the window.
Remember, we are only going to get your feet wet with Patterns. Here are the true basics of the “Pattern Overlay” option. In a future tutorial we will be discussing most of the “Blending Options” and for now, let’s focus our attention on the “Pattern Overlay” option.
| | A). Left click the drop-down box. |
| | B). Left click on the pattern name (if you had more than a few patterns, you would have to use the scrollbar to display the rest of the patterns. |
| | C). When you are happy with your selection, Left click the “OK” button. If you are not pleased with the selection, you can always Left click on the “Cancel” button. |
You will now see the image change to a tiled version of the pattern. Photoshop Tip – If you used one of the selection tools before you selected a pattern overlay, it will only fill that portion of the image.
Sampling A Pattern
Unless you want to use the whole image as a pattern, we would recommend that you select a portion of the image. Please refer to the Selecting Image Content tutorial or even the Magical Colors And Selections tutorial for more information.
Left click the “Edit” menu and Left click on the “Define Pattern…” command.
Left click on the “Name” field and enter a name and then Left click the “OK” button to continue.
You should now see the Pattern in the list. Photoshop Tip – If you hover over a pattern, it will tell you the pixel size (see example below).
Downloading Filter?
For some reason Adobe removed the Pattern Maker from the Photoshop CS4 program. If you are using Photoshop CS4, you will need to download the filter. Before proceeding, verify that you have the Pattern Maker which is located in the “Filter” menu and is usually located towards the top of the menu.
If you DO NOT have the Pattern Maker Filter, please follow these instructions below. Because the Photoshop program is on the Mac and Windows, please Left click the correct link to download your version of this Filter.
Windows or Mac OS
Because it is different to install on the Mac or even Windows Vista versus XP or even a 64 bit and a 32 bit, we recommend that you follow the instructions on the site. Once installed, you will need to make sure you restart Photoshop CS4 before you can see the changes.
Using The Pattern Maker Filter
First, select your image, or if you would like to use the whole image, please skip this step. Photoshop Tip – For us it is easier to select a portion of the image before we get into the Pattern Maker, but please note you can always make the selection once you are in the Pattern Maker screen.
Left click the “Filter” menu and Left click “Pattern Maker…”.
There is a lot to this screen, but we just want to go over some of the basics you will find in the Pattern Maker Filter. We have discussed the Marquee Selection tool (Selecting Image Content tutorial) which is located on the top left hand side of the screen. We have also trained in the Magnifying Glass (Zoom And Panning tutorial). Finally you will see the Hand Tool which was discussed in the Zoom And Panning tutorial. These 3 tools will allow you to fine tune your selection.
Now look to the right hand side of the screen.
| | A). When you want to preview the pattern, Left click the “Generate” button. |
| | B). If you Left click in the boxes or Left click the arrow and use the slider bar to change the numeric value, you can change the Width & Height. |
| | C). Offset has the following options: None, Vertical, Horizontal. If you Offset the pattern it will shift the image either up or down or left or right (Vertical, Horizontal). |
| | D). Amount is how much you want to Offset it by. This is a percentage. On the example below, we have selected 50% and vertical. |
| | E). Smoothness controls the smoothness of the Pattern tile. Use the drop-down box to change it from 1-3. |
| | F). Sample Detail will set the size of the details in the pattern sample. |
| | G). If you want a color border around your pattern, first Left click the color box and change your color. Please refer to the Colors And Painting Tools tutorial which talks about changing the color. Once you have changed the color, Left click on the “Tile Boundaries” checkbox. On our example, we left it as neon green and selected the “Tile Boundaries” box. |
Here is the example of our new pattern.
You will notice the Preview will display the sample of your pattern. To Save your pattern, Left click on the image of the disk which is located on the left hand side underneath the pattern preview. Photoshop Tip – As you generate different patterns, you can use the < or > in the preview to view the different generated patterns.
Left click the “Name” field and enter the Pattern Name. Left click the “OK” button or if you are not happy with the pattern, Left click the “Cancel” Button.
If you want the image to tile your pattern, Left click the “OK” button in the Pattern Maker. If you want to bypass Photoshop using the Pattern, Left click on the “Cancel” button. If you go into the blending options (make sure you duplicated the layer with CTRL-J), you will see your new pattern.
Deleting Patterns
To Delete/Rename a Pattern, the easiest way is in the blending options. If your Right click the pattern name, you can Left click the Delete/Rename Pattern options.
Miscellaneous Information
We will not be covering how to install Patterns from a web at this time, but just to let you know, you are not limited to you creating Patterns. If you do a search for “Free Photoshop Patterns” you will find a lot of sites were you can download these types of files. Photoshop Tip – The file extension for Pattern files in Photoshop is “.PAT”.
By now you should know of a few ways to create patterns in Photoshop CS4. We are sorry if you had to download the Adobe additional Filters, but for some reason Adobe removed some of the Filters in Photoshop CS4.
Please take the time and see how much knowledge you have learned in this course by taking the 10 questions quiz below.
Quiz
1). After you have made your selection, what menu would you find the “Define Pattern…” command in?
| | A). Filter. |
| | B). Edit. |
| | C). Pattern. |
| | D). File. |
2). What is the keyboard shortcut to duplicate a layer?
| | A). CTRL-“L”. |
| | B). ALT-“L”. |
| | C). CTRL-“J”. |
| | D). ALT-“J”. |
3). What is one way to use the Patterns?
| | A). Go into “Blending Options” and use it in the “Patterns” section. |
| | B). In the “Edit” menu, select “Patterns Options”. |
| | C). In the “Edit” menu, select “”Use Patterns”. |
| | D). Go into “Blending Options” and use it in the “Patterns Overlay” section. |
4). What do you do if you do NOT see the Pattern Maker filter in the menu?
| | A). Left click on the link in the tutorial and download/install the filter. |
| | B). Within the “Edit” menu, Left click, “Preferences” and Left click “Add Additional Filters”. |
| | C). Install Photoshop CS3, because you can’t use it in Photoshop CS4. |
| | D). It will always be in the Filter menu and you do not need to do anything. |
5). In the Pattern Maker Filter, what is “Offset”?
| | A). It means you can change the color by a shade. |
| | B). This will only sharpen the edges of the pattern. |
| | C). It will shift the image left or right or up and down. |
| | D). It flips the colors of the pattern. |
6). How do you delete a pattern easily?
| | A). Within the “Pattern Overlay”, Right click the pattern and Left click delete. |
| | B). Within the “Edit” menu, Left click “Manage Patterns”. |
| | C). Locate your pattern and drag it to the “Delete” button. |
| | D). Go into the “Preset Manager” and locate the pattern and select the “Delete Pattern” button. |
7). What is the file extension of Pattern files.
| | A). “.PTN”. |
| | B). “.PRN”. |
| | C). “.PAT”. |
| | D). “.PAF”. |
8). How do you find out the pixel size of a pattern within the Pattern Overlay section?
| | A). Right click the pattern and Left click “More Details”. |
| | B). Hover over the pattern and a box will display the pixels. |
| | C). Drag the pattern to the “More Details” button. |
| | D). Left click the Pattern, and Left click the “Info” button. |
9). By default the first duplicate layer you create is called what name?
| | A). Layer. |
| | B). Background. |
| | C). Dup Layer. |
| | D). Layer 1. |
10). Within the Pattern Maker, how do you add a colored border around your pattern?
| | A). Left click the “Border” checkbox. |
| | B). Left click the “Tile Boundaries” checkbox. |
| | C). Draw with Rectangle Tool and then select a color. |
| | D). Left click the “Border” box and a new window will be displayed to select the color. |
Answers: 1). B 2). C, 3). D, 4). A, 5). C, 6). A, 7). C, 8). B, 9). D, 10). B
Scoring:
0 - 5 = Please review the video tutorial and re-read this document either offline (PDF) or online.
6 – 8 = We would recommend that you print this document off and read it at a later time.
9 – 10 = Congratulations you have passed the quiz. Go ahead and view another tutorial on our site.
We hope you enjoyed this detailed tutorial. Please visit us at: http://www.Photoshopeducation.blogspot.com to expand your knowledge within Adobe Photoshop.
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(Brushes, Textures, Fonts, Images, Actions, .PSD, Etc.)
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Summary:
Today we are going to talk about creating custom brushes. The easiest way to create a custom brush is from an image. Once created, it will always be in your brush presets. We will show you how to use this custom brush and how and even how to delete a brush. Along the way we will even train you on the basics of the Lasso tool and we will get your feet wet with Layers. Have fun and enjoy this tutorial about custom brushes.
Currently we are using Windows XP and the Photoshop CS4 Extended version.
Knowledge You Need to Know:
If you are unfamiliar with certain areas that are not covered in this tutorial, feel free to visit us at: http:/www.Photoshopeducation.blogspot.com. We have many different types of tutorials that can be downloaded (Video, PDF) or viewed online that will train you for free! Once you have the knowledge, feel free to come back and go through this tutorial again.
Preparing The Canvas:
Create a new canvas of 800 X 800 (pixels) and set the background to White. Once created, change your foreground color to anything you would like.
Creating A Custom Brush Using Text:
In the previous tutorial we talked about the horizontal and vertical type tool. Even though you can use any image, we will begin by making a custom brush out of text. Type your text with the Horizontal Type Tool (A). We felt it was a good time to also show you the “Layers” palette. This palette can be displayed anywhere on the screen, but it usually is located to the right hand side. **We will be creating a tutorial soon to discuss all the functionality of the “Layers” palette. Make sure you have the “Layers” palette open (see tutorial on palettes for more information). Double Left click on the “Layers” tab to display the 2 layers. Once you have committed your text, you will notice a “T” in the “Layers” palette (B). This tells you that the text can still be edited.
Now we want you to move your mouse over to the letter “T” in the “Layers” palette. Next hold down the CTRL key and Left click the letter “T” (A). You will see that Photoshop automatically selects your text (B) (you will see what people call marching ants around the characters).
Left click the “Edit” menu and Left click the “Define Brush Preset…” command.
Now it is time to assign this brush a name, so Left click in the “Name:” text box and type a name for this brush. When you are finished, Left click the “OK” button. If you are not happy with the brush, you can always Left click the “Cancel” button. **Now create a new 800X800 (white background) document and proceed with the tutorial.
Using The Custom Brush:
Now select the “Brush” tool and select the Brush tool options. Scroll to the bottom of the presets and you will now find your custom brush. Change the diameter if you would like and double Left click the custom brush to use. Photoshop Tip - If you hover over the custom brush, it will give you the name of the brush (see example below where it shows Photoshop Te..).
Now Left click on the new canvas (remember you should have created a new 800 X 800 with a white background). When Left clicking on the canvas, you can drag, change the color, etc. On the example below I changed the shade of black and single Left clicked around.
Deleting The Custom Brush:
Sometimes, you realize that you no longer need the custom brush. One way to delete a brush is to go back to the Type Tool options and Right click on the custom brush that you would like to delete (A). Now you will see sub-menu displayed and Left click on the “Delete Brush” (B) option.
Now you will see a “Delete the brush?” dialog box displayed. Left click the “OK” button.
Creating Brushes From An Image:
You are not limited to creating brushes from only text and you can create custom brushes from images. In a later tutorial we will talk about all of the selection tools that Photoshop has to offer. Today, we are just going to show you the true basics of the “Lasso Tool”. Before you proceed with the tutorial, scroll down to the bottom of the blog post and Left click on “Click the Picture To Download Supporting Files” to download this image. Now open this image. You will notice it is a picture of a sky. On a 2 column toolbar the second tool down from the top on the left hand side is some of the selection tools. Right click on this toolbox to display the sub-menu and Left click the “Lasso” tool.
Now move your mouse to the smaller cloud towards the left hand side and while you are holding down the Left mouse button, drag your mouse in a circle. When you get back to the starting point, release your Left mouse button. You should see the “Marching Ants” displayed.
Now that you have selected a portion of that image, Left click on the “Edit” menu and Left click “Define Brush Preset…”. Name your brush (refer to the section on how to create a custom text brush) and press “OK” to continue.
Create a new 800 X 800 pixel with a White background. Follow the instructions on how to use your custom brush (see the above section called “Using The Custom Brush” ). Here is the example we did with this custom brush. Remember you can change the color or even change the size of the brush, etc.. If you look at the brush you can see the clouds.
Loading Custom Brush Sets:
You are not limited to only creating your own custom brushes and you can even download sets of custom brushes from the Internet. If you do a web search for “Photoshop Custom Brushes” you will find many sites that you can download custom brushes. Once you have downloaded the file, follow the instructions on how install the custom brushes. Most of the time you will be copying a file that ends with .ABR and placing it in the “Brushes” sub-folder of Photoshop. Once you have it in the folder, you can follow these instructions on how to add brush sets.
Open the brush options box and to the right of the diameter number you will see a right arrow. Left click this right arrow (A). You will see a sub-menu displayed and now move your mouse to the “Load Brushes…” command and Left click (B). Photoshop Tip – If you can’t figure out how to get your standard brushes back to its default brushes, use the “Reset Brushes…” in this sub-menu.
Now you will see a dialog box open. You should see your downloaded file that you copied to the “Brushes” folder. Double Left click the file to use that custom brush set. You will notice that Photoshop appends the brush sets to the bottom of the current set.
That concludes this tutorial on custom brushes. As you can see we did not discuss how to create your own sets of brushes or even how to use the “Preset Manager”. We just wanted to get your feet wet with custom brushes. Along the way you learned how to select text in the Layers palette, plus how to use the basics of the Lasso tool. Please take a minute and answer the 10 question quiz.
Quiz
1). You use the Lasso Tool for what?
| A). To change the color of the selection. |
| B). Make a selection, which can be used to create a custom brush. |
| C). Allows you to free-hand draw circles (very similar to the brush tool). |
| D). Creates a perfect rectangle around an object to allow you to select it. |
2). What is one way to display the brush name?
| A). Double Left click the brush and the name is displayed in the top right. |
| B). Turn on “Display Brush Name” in the preferences option. |
| C). Hover over the brush and the brush name will be displayed. |
| D). Once you select the brush, the name will be displayed in a sub-menu. |
3). When you Left click on the “T” in the Layers palette, what key do you hold down to select only the text?
| A). ALT. |
| B). Shift. |
| C). <F5>. |
| D). CTRL. |
4). What is the default file extension for Brush Sets?
| A). .ABR. |
| B). BRU. |
| C). ABS. |
| D). BSO. |
5). What command do you select to reset your brushes to the defaults?
| A). Brush Reset. |
| B). Brush Defaults. |
| C). Reset Defaults. |
| D). Reset Brushes… |
6). What is one option in the brush options box that you can’t use with a custom brush?
| A). Master Diameter. |
| B). Hardness. |
| C). All normal options are available. |
| D). Diameter by numeric value. |
7). What is one way to delete a brush?
| A). Drag the brush to the trash can which is located by the commit button. |
| B). Rename the brush to “Delete”. |
| C). Move the brush to the “Delete Folder”. |
| D). Right click on brush and Left click “Delete Brush”. |
8). What are the moving dots usually called after you have made a selection.
| A). Marching Ants. |
| B). Moving Ants. |
| C). Dots. |
| D). Selection Ants. |
9). What menu is the “Define Brush Presets...” in?
| A). File. |
| B). Brushes. |
| C). Edit. |
| D). Help. |
10). When you add a custom brush set (ABR files), by default the new brushes will?
| A). Be added to the front of the current brush presets. |
| B). Be added to the end of the current brush presets. |
| C). Replace current brush sets. |
| D). Ask you if you want it in the front or end of the current brush presets. |
Answers: 1). B, 2). C, 3). D, 4). A, 5). D, 6). B, 7). D, 8). A, 9). C, 10). B
Scoring:
0 - 5 = Please review the video tutorial and re-read this document either offline (PDF) or online.
6 – 8 = We would recommend that you print this document off and read it at a later time.
9 – 10 = Congratulations you have passed the quiz. Go ahead and view another tutorial on our site.
We hope you enjoyed this detailed tutorial. Please visit us at: http://www.photoshopeducation.blogspot.com/ to expand you knowledge within Adobe Photoshop.
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