Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Introduction to Adobe Photoshop

By David Peters

Today is an exciting time for photography. The advances in digital technology have made it easy and accessible for anyone wanting to achieve professional photography editing effects to do so from the comfort of their own home. The internet has provided us with an infinite amount of programs to improve the images we capture, but none can aspire to the status of Adobe Photoshop. The program is so recognized as the editing program of choice for the professional and amateur alike that the phrase 'to Photoshop' is in common use meaning to alter images.

You can 'Photoshop' any image to include people and places you've never met or been to. An image of you on a beach playing volleyball with Elvis and The Beatles would be hard to produce before Photoshop, but now pictures like this are almost commonplace. Anything you can think of, Photoshop can render realistically.

One thing that Photoshop is closely associated with is isolating aspects of the image you don't want and removing them. This can be used to improve physical features, such as smoothing out damaged skin or covering up body piercings, and can even be used to remove whole objects from the image that detract from the photograph like a distracting person in the background. With Photoshop it is unlikely that you will be able to tell that any alteration has been done to the picture, as the software is so complex.

Photoshop is the industry standard for photography editing. This means that it is essential to learn how to use this application, but don't worry if you think it will be difficult. Like all good programs, it is easy to use and hard to master. The interface is accessible to the user, so that starting out is not complicated. If you feel you need help, ask any college students you know to teach you as they will probably be familiar with Photoshop.

The birth of Photoshop was in 1989 by the Knoll brothers. The software was being developed for their own use at the time, but the sophistication of the software made it clear that there was a market for Photoshop. They soon founded Adobe and began selling the program in 1990.

The success of Adobe is an outstanding example of the power of the internet. Software designed by Adobe is on nearly every computer in the world, as its free PDF reader has had such widespread popularity. The Adobe Reader is the standard PDF reader, just as Adobe Photoshop is the standard photo editor and is proof of Adobe's unique dominance of media-related software.

To gain experience with Photoshop you should find a copy you can experiment with. Perhaps a friend or relative has one. Go over and explore the program, browsing all the features and adding effects to images. Once you get a feel for how the software operates, ask your friend to show you the more advanced features. Then you'll see why Photoshop has its first-rate reputation. Within no time, you will be addicted to Photoshop.

Downloading a copy for your own use will make it easier to practice using Photoshop. You can get a free trial version, but it will have limited features. The best thing to do is to buy a full version from Adobe as then you don't have to worry anymore and can concentrate on learning how to use the product. Photoshop is used so much, that it makes sense buying a copy. Once you own a copy, you may find that you spend hours experimenting and exploring the features. While this is a great way to get used to the features, specific learning in a Photoshop class can improve your learning curve and make you understand Photoshop faster.

When you master the software, there is no limit to what you can do. Just imagine any concept and you will be able to translate it into an image in no time. Keep experimenting, and remember to have fun! - 15485

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