Photoshop Tool Guide
Photoshop Tool Guide
This guide explains the use of almost all of Photoshops mainly used tools. It will show you what it looks like, what it does and its secondary functions. Some tools will not be shown but will be explained.
The secondary tools are the tools that drop down when you click on hold your mouse over a main tool.
Brackets show the short cut of the tool.
1.
Tool Type: Rectangular Marquee Tool (M)*
Description: This tool is used to select pixels to be moved. It only works on the current layer your on. When something is highlighted with this tool you can press "Delete" to get rid of it or move it with the Move Tool.
Secondary Tools: The secondary uses are Elliptical, Single Row and Single Column Marquee Tools. They all do the same thing, but the shape of selection varies.
2.
Tool Type: Move Tool (V)*
Description: Used to move highlighted areas, move images, text- just about anything.
Secondary Tools: Non-Existent
3.
Tool Type:Polygonal Tool (L)*
Description: This tool is the exact same as the Marquee Tool, except you are able to customize where you want to cut out a shape or part of an image.
Secondary Tools:The secondary tools are- Lasso Tool and Magnetic Lasso Tool. Lasso selects areas in circles and ovals, while the Magnetic Lasso Tool locks on to specific points.
4.
Tool Type:Magic Wand (W)*
Description: This tool is mainly used in basic renders and cropping out unwanted backgrounds with single colours. It's not recommended for multicolor background removal.
Secondary Tools:The secondary tools are- Lasso Tool and Magnetic Lasso Tool. Lasso selects areas in circles and ovals, while the Magnetic Lasso Tool locks on to specific points.
5.
Tool Type:Crop Tool (C)*
Description: Unlike the Marquee tools which remove inside the highlighted boarder, the crop tool deletes around the selected area. Very useful for editing images.
Secondary Tools: Non-Existent
6.
Tool Type:Red Eye Tool (J)*
Description: Self explanatory- Removes red eye from photographs.
Secondary Tools: Patch Tool, Healing Brush Tool are used to fix and touch up images and photographs.
7.
Tool Type:Brush Tool (B)*
Description: Most commonly used tool. The brush can be used to do a variety of things. Makes circles, squares, patterns anything imaginable. You download different brushed to customize your brush tips and make your designing that much better- Endless possibilities.
Secondary Tools: Pencil Tool and Colour Replacement Tool. The Pencil Tool is almost the exact same as the Brush Tool, there is no use for it really because the brush can be adjusted to be the same diameter as the pencil. Colour Replacement just swaps colours.
8.
Tool Type:Clone Stamp Tool (S)*
Description: This allows you to highlight a selection and copy it where ever you want. Used for editing images, tricky tool to use at first.
Secondary Tools: Pattern Clone Tool allows you to draw patterns- used like a brush. To get more patterns, download a brush kit. More patterns usually come included.
9.
Tool Type:Eraser Tool (E)*
Description: Erases your big mistakes! Can be adjusted to different shapes and sizes.
Secondary Tools:Background Eraser erases a specified colour when clicked and removes only that colour.
10.
Tool Type:Paint Bucket & Gradient Tool (G)*
Description: Fills in a large space with colour quickly- the area must be completely enclosed for it to work successful. The Paint Bucket Tool only fills solid colours. Gradient Tool fills with multicolours and different transparency's.
Secondary Tools: Explained Both Above
11.
Tool Type:Burn Tool(O)*
Description: Darkens areas when click on- Darkness can be adjusted. This tool is highly affective for editing images.
Secondary Tools: Dodge Tool does the opposite of burn, it lightens areas when clicked on.
12.
Tool Type:Eyedropper Tool (I)*
Description: Simple tool that copies a color that is clicked on. This colour is added to the colour bank.
Secondary Tools: Measuring tool- Ive never used this tool, but I believe it would measure...lol
13.
Tool Type:Pen Tool (P)*
Description: Using this tool may seem easy but getting good with anchoring points and changing them takes practice. Useful for making abstract lines that twist and turn- also used a lot in signatures.
Secondary Tools: Freeform Pen Tool, Add Anchor Point Tool and Delete Anchor Point Tool. Freeform allows you to draw without straight lines that snap. Add Anchor adds a new pivot point for the line to extend off of. Delete Anchor removes a pivot point.
14.
Tool Type:Smudge Tool (R)*
Description: Smudges where ever you move your mouse. Great for making motion blur manually.
Secondary Tools:Sharpen and Blur Tool. Sharpen Tool makes the drawn on area more detailed and pixelated. Blur Tool makes the area out of focus and less detailed.
15.
Tool Type:Rectangle Tool (U)*
Description: Makes different shapes- Circles, polygons, squares rectangles, ovals, custom shapes and lines.
Secondary Tools:Eclipse, Line, Custom Shape, Rounded Rectangle and Polygon Tools, used the same- varied shape.
15.
Tool Type:Text Tool (T)*
Description: Makes Text, what else can I say?
Secondary Tools:Vertical Text- When you type the text goes up and down rather from left to right.
I hope you all enjoyed this guide, it took longer then expected to make. I made this for people who are just learning photoshop, they can come here too see a small example of how a tool works, and what its main uses are for.
NOT ALL TOOLS ARE EXPLAINED
Other Guides-
How To Bring Renders Into Signatures [Advanced]- Here.
How To Bring Renders Into Signatures [Basic]- Here.
The Perfect Claim & Cancel Guide-Here
