Do you remember me mentioning the workshop I planned in Budapest? Well, it’s already over, and I’m back home. We had just a fantastic time! Lots of great shooting opportunities, lots of learning (and lots of laughs) with a truly wonderful group of photographers (that’s us above, plus Cole the Wonder Dog). All of the photographers had been in one of my previous workshops, so it was like a reunion with old friends, and that made it even more special.

I’ve got a lot more to share from the trip (and lots of photos), but one thing I did learn from working with the students in the class is how much you can speed up your workflow by learning a few key shortcuts. I’m not just talking about those hidden ones you use just once in a while, but daily ones folks keep hunting under menus for instead of just zooming through their work with a quick keyboard shortcut. This was especially true when they took an image over to Photoshop (not as much in Lightroom, but certainly some there as well).

10 shortcuts every Lightroom user needs to know when they jump over to Photoshop

So, today I thought I’d share 10 shortcuts every Lightroom user needs to know when they jump over to Photoshop (and some are going to seem obvious, because you probably know some of them, but are you using them? You might know them, but are they a part of your daily workflow? If they’re not, they’re holding you back speed and efficiency-wise.

1. See this box above? You see it over and over again, every day. To “Save,” press the letter “S” (lowercase). Press “D” for Don’t Save” and the Esc key for Cancel. So, S, D, or Esc. when you see this window. No moving the mouse or clicking.
   
2. Right after choosing one of those, don’t go digging through the menus to close the image window. Just press Command-W to close the WINDOW. (Ctrl-W on Windows).
   
3. To run the same filter you just ran in Photoshop, using the same settings (so you don’t even see the filter dialog or window – it just applies the effect using the same settings you used last time), press Ctrl-Command-F
   
4. To open Camera Raw as a filter (it’s the Develop Module of Lightroom, but it lives inside Photoshop), press Shift-Command-A (PC: Shift-Ctrl-A). To close that window, press the Esc. Key.
   
5. To select the entire image, press Command-A (the shortcut for “Select All” – that’s Ctrl-A on Windows).
   
6. Get the Move tool by pressing the letter “V” (you’ll be using this one all day – and your fingers are one key away from ‘v’ – this one is more important than you’d think).
   
7. Press “D” to reset your foreground and background color swatch (the one at the bottom of the toolbar) to its default setting of black as the foreground and white as the background.
   
8. To quickly zoom in/out of your image, press Command – + to zoom in and Command – – (minus) to zoom out.
   
9. To Delete a Layer, don’t drag it down to the trash can at the bottom of the Layers panel; just hit the Delete key (Windows: Backspace), and it’s gone.
   
10. To add a keyboard shortcut for something that doesn’t already have a keyboard shortcut (like the Gaussian Blur or Unsharp Mask), you can add your own by going under the Edit menu and choosing “Keyboard Shortcuts.” That brings up the window you see below, where you can find the menu item you want to have a shortcut; click on the empty space in the ‘Shortcut’ column and type in the shortcut you’d like to use. If it’s a shortcut used by something in Photoshop, it’ll give you the option to move that shortcut here (taking it from the other menu item), or you can try something else.
    
    Adding your own custom keyboard shortcut like this is highly recommended if you find yourself using something again and again that doesn’t already have a shortcut. After doing this, now it does, and your workflow just got faster.

I hope you found that helpful. It’s not a lot to memorize, but it can sure make a big difference when you hop over to Photoshop. Next time, we’ll go through my list of Lightroom shortcuts.

It’s great to be back, but in just two weeks I’m off to teach another workshop on the island of Santorini, Greece. I can’t wait!!! Have a great Monday, everybody!

-Scott

The post I’m Back From Budapest (and I’m sharing some super handy shortcuts) appeared first on Lightroom Killer Tips.

NOTE: This panel was called “Geometry” in Camera Raw, but it is identical to the Transform panel in Lightroom. Why the two names? Well, that’s a very good question for Adobe (cricket, cricket).

Here’s what Adobe did (for reasons I do not quite understand). They moved the Geometry panel to the Crop tool. When using Camera Raw from the Filter Menu, you click on the Crop tool (which was never there before when using it as a filter), and now the panel appears (as seen above where I’m clicking on the Crop Tool).

However, as you can see no actual crop tool is found there (it only appears when the image is still in its raw state, so if you open a raw image, the crop tools are there. If you use Camera Raw as a filter, you just see the Transform (Geometry panel) and nothing else. I know. It’s weird, but weirdness aside, at least the mystery of the “Missing Transform Panel” has been solved.

Have a great Monday, everybody!

-Scott

P.S. There are just two spots left for my travel photography workshop on the beautiful island of Santorini, Greece, this May. Info and tickets at scottkelbyworkshops.com

The post The Mystery of the “Missing Transform Panel” in Camera Raw appeared first on Lightroom Killer Tips.

The November 2023 issue of Photoshop User is now live on the KelbyOne site and the KelbyOne app for iOS and Android.

In this issue, explore the latest Lightroom updates and AI advancements announced at Adobe MAX, plus create an old-school comic book ad, give a winter makeover to a sunny photo, build an AI robot with AI, turn people into miniatures, use the Clone Stamp tool for a creative spatter portrait, and so much more!

This issue’s cover by KelbyOne member Jeff Dannay

Current KelbyOne members can log into their account to access the new issue, or you can visit https://kelbyone.com/magazine to sign up and start reading today.

KelbyOne Pro members have access to more than 120 back issues of Photoshop User magazine all the way back to January 2012, plus all 64 issues of Lightroom Magazine. Not a Pro member yet? Click here for more information.

The post The November 2023 Issue of Photoshop User Is Now Available! appeared first on Lightroom Killer Tips.

The October 2023 issue of Photoshop User is now live on the KelbyOne site and the KelbyOne app for iOS and Android.

In this issue, we continue our annual tradition of bringing you 100 of the hottest tips by 10 of the coolest gurus in the industry, plus we explore ways to improve Lightroom Classic’s performance, experiment with blending textures with live text and using layer styles as dynamic masks, mimicking infrared effects in Photoshop, turning midday lighting into golden-hour lighting, creating designs for packaging, and so much more!

This issue’s cover designed by Jessica Maldonado

Current KelbyOne members can log into their account to access the new issue, or you can visit https://kelbyone.com/magazine to sign up and start reading today.

KelbyOne Pro members have access to more than 120 back issues of Photoshop User magazine all the way back to January 2012, plus all 64 issues of Lightroom Magazine. Not a Pro member yet? Click here for more information.

The post The October 2023 Issue of Photoshop User Is Now Available! appeared first on Lightroom Killer Tips.

Last week, Photoshop’s Generative Fill became “all grown up,” it moved out of the “Beta” version of Photoshop and it now lives in regular ol’ Photoshop (well, the latest version, which is Photoshop 2024). As usual, there’s a lot of mis-information, hysterics, and stuff out there that’s just plain wrong, so today I thought I do a quick Q&A to address some of these questions. Here we go:

Q. So, I get 250 credits a month and then Adobe starts charging me for using Generative Fill, right?
A. Nope. You don’t ever get charged for using Generative Fill – you get unlimited Generative Fills. By the way, that 250 credits is for folks who have the Adobe Photography Plan ($10 a month US). If you have the full Adobe cloud subscription, then you get 1,000 credit a month.

Q. So at what point do I have to pay more for using Generative Fill?
A. At no point. You don’t pay more once your credits at gone.

Q. No way. I read somewhere that you get charged.
A. Yeah, don’t believe everything you read on the Internet.

Q. But this is on the Internet!
A. That’s not a question, so let’s not dwell on it. You don’t get charged, that’s a fact, so let’s move on.

Q. So what happens when I run out of credits? Does Generative Fill turn off?
A. No. You have unlimited Generative Fills, so it never turns off and never stops. The only possible thing that could happen (“could,” not 100% that it ever will) is that after your credits are gone, depending on the traffic to Adobe’s Generative Fill Servers, it could take a little longer for your fill to render. So, instead of 12-seconds (average by my calculations), maybe it could be 15-seconds or 16 or who knows, but just longer. Again, that’s only if the servers are slammed.

Q. And if I run out of credits, Gen Fill and Expand slow down?
A. From what I understand, you may not even notice a slowdown, if there even is one. Again, it depends on the server use, time of day, etc,. While you still have credits, you’re in (for lack of a better term), a “Priority Line” to get your Generative Fill done. When you run out of credits, now you’re just some schlub, begging for scraps of Fill.

Q. Really, a schlub begging for scraps?
A. Well, I might have embellished that a bit. But, like I said, you may not even notice a slowdown, or maybe on occasion you will, but you’ll still get unlimited Generative Fills; you’re not paying for them, so I’m not sweating it.

Q. But they will start charging us soon, right?
A. I have not heard anything – not a single thing- about any plan to start charging for using Generative Fill, but that doesn’t mean that can’t change someday.

Q. You mean like how they raised the price of the photography plan?
A. They didn’t raise the price of the photography plan. It’s been almost 11 years, and they still haven’t raised the price; though they did raise the price of some of the other Adobe subscriptions, this one is still the same price it always was. Think about that – what do you buy that hasn’t raised its price in nearly 11 years? Well, besides KelbyOne.com, of course. Right! Hats off to Adobe (even I thought they would have raised the price by now).

Q. Where will I see how many credits I have left?
A. You’ll see that on Photoshop’s Home Screen in your account info.

Q. I just looked there, and I don’t see any credits.
A. That’s because the credit thing hasn’t started yet. It starts November 1, 2023.

Q. So I can use Generative Fill a bunch now without losing any credits?
A. That’s right, knock yourself out.

Q. But once November 1st gets here, I really need to keep an eye on my credits, right so I don’t get charged?
A. Um. No. Can you please let go of the whole “I’m getting charged for credits” thing? When you run out of credits, you get an unlimited amount more. No charges. No more money. It’s (say it with me now), unlimited and free.

Q. So, what constitutes me using a credit?
A. It’s one credit every time you click the Generate button.

Q. What if I don’t like the results? I mean, what if I don’t like any of the three variations it proposes, and I have to click Generate again?
A. You get charged for that 2nd Generation.

Q. So, I don’t lose a credit per variation just when I click the Generate button?
A. That’s right.

Q. What if I want to stay at the front of the speed line for Generative Fill (at my job, I don’t have time to wait even a few more seconds)? Can I buy more “priority line” credits? 
A. Yes, absolutely – (and these are totally optional), but they’re $4.99 for another 100 credits. but I’d wait and see how it works for you once you run out of regular credits because it might not impact you at all (or not that you notice anyway), but at least if you feel you need more priory credits, you can get ‘em.  

Q. If I don’t use all of my credits, will they roll over to next month?
A. Nope. It’s not like Delta SkyMiles – they don’t “roll over” – you start with a fresh 250 total each month. 

Q. Did they raise the resolution of what Generative Fill outputs?
A. Not yet, but they’re working on it. That’s why when I use it if I’m concerned about resolution, I use it in increments rather than selecting huge areas all at once, and it works great.

Q. Now that Gen Fill is in Photoshop proper, can I use the results for Commercial Work?
A. Yes, now it’s available for commercial use (here’s a link to an Adobe blog post where they talk a bit about commercial use).

Q. When will Adobe Stock contributors get paid for having their images used for the Gen Fill training?
A. Check your account – contributors have already been paid (I think it was on the 13th of this month), and from the comments I’ve seen, that’s gone over really well due to the size of the payouts.

Q. I’m still not 100% sure about the whole “Am I having to pay for Generative Fill” thing?
A. If it’s not clear by now, I’m not sure Generative Fill credits should be your main concern.

If you have any other questions (legit questions, not whining, not complaining, or just being snarky, etc.), I’ll do my best to answer them below.

Have a great weekend, everybody, and conserve those credits! (I just wanted to see if you were paying attention).

-Scott

The post Now that Generative Fill is officially in Photoshop, I did a Q&A so we can stop freakin’ the heck out! appeared first on Lightroom Killer Tips.

AI goes well beyond generating images in Photoshop and we show you all the ways it can help improve your images and workflow, plus things every Lightroom Classic user should know to get the most out of managing and editing their images, creating the Droste effect where an image repeats within itself, mastering the colors and textures of the Arctic, using the Warp tool to apply texture effects, building a product label, and so much more!

This issue’s cover image by KelbyOne member Laurent Lanée

Current KelbyOne members can log into their account to access the new issue, or you can visit https://kelbyone.com/magazine to sign up and start reading today.

KelbyOne Pro members have access to more than 120 back issues of Photoshop User magazine all the way back to January 2012, plus all 64 issues of Lightroom Magazine. Not a Pro member yet? Click here for more information.

The post The September 2023 Issue of Photoshop User Is Now Available! appeared first on Lightroom Killer Tips.

The August 2023 issue of Photoshop User is now live on the KelbyOne site and the KelbyOne app for iOS and Android.

In this issue, AI is on track to becoming an ubiquitous part of society, so jump aboard as we train you to use Generative AI to help you build composites in Photoshop (Beta); plus, revisiting Lightroom on the web; re-creating bitmapped computer graphics of old; fixing perspective distortions in both Lightroom and Photoshop; creating an animated tracing effect; protruding images outside of text; and so much more!

This issue’s cover image by KelbyOne member Russ Everett

Current KelbyOne members can log into their account to access the new issue, or you can visit https://kelbyone.com/magazine to sign up and start reading today.

KelbyOne Pro members have access to more than 120 back issues of Photoshop User magazine all the way back to January 2012, plus all 64 issues of Lightroom Magazine. Not a Pro member yet? Click here for more information.

The post The August 2023 Issue of Photoshop User Is Now Available! appeared first on Lightroom Killer Tips.

The July 2023 issue of Photoshop User is now live on the KelbyOne site and the KelbyOne app for iOS and Android.

In this issue we give you a summer refresher that will have your Photoshop type skills radiating off the page, plus a look at the latest updates to Lightroom mobile, perfecting selections for Generative Fill, creating a sparkler effect, using Generative Fill to build an underwater mermaid scene, exploring the PortraitPro 23 plug-in, and so much more!

This issue’s cover image by KelbyOne member George Peters

Current KelbyOne members can log into their account to access the new issue, or you can visit https://kelbyone.com/magazine to sign up and start reading today.

KelbyOne Pro members have access to more than 120 back issues of Photoshop User magazine all the way back to January 2012, plus all 64 issues of Lightroom Magazine. Not a Pro member yet? Click here for more information.

The post The July 2023 Issue of Photoshop User Is Now Available! appeared first on Lightroom Killer Tips.

If you’re here in the US, tomorrow is “Independence Day,” a federal holiday where we celebrate our independence from British Superstar Dave Clayton, and we do this by making a ton of hot dogs and hamburgers out on the grill and then at night, we shoot off fireworks. It’s a very American day, and as such, lots of people get injured in the process. But that’s not going to be us — we’re going to photograph (from a safe distance) and then post-process the heck out of our shots so they look awesome (and we don’t get hurt).

A while back, we did a special 4th of July episode of ‘The Grid,’ all about how to take great fireworks shots where Erik (the Real Rocket Man) Kuna and I cover everything from the gear to the techniques to the post-processing in Lightroom and Photoshop along with lots of helpful tips along the way.

We get right to it from the start (we have a lot to cover), and if you want to make great fireworks shots tonight, we give the exact time-tested recipe of settings you can’t miss!

P.S. I’m doing a live 2-hour online Webinar with the great folks at Rocky Nook (they publish my books) on “How to capture amazing shots on your iPhone” coming up on Thursday, July 13th, from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm Pacific Time (so it starts at 1:00 PM New York Time), and I’ve got lots of cool stuff to share, so I hope you can join me. Here’s the link to sign up.

The post How to Shoot and Post-Process Your Fireworks Photos appeared first on Lightroom Killer Tips.

The June 2023 issue of Photoshop User is now live on the KelbyOne site and the KelbyOne app for iOS and Android.

In this issue, learn the fundamentals of masking to using them creatively to add depth and dimension to your images, plus a closer look at the mind-blowing Remove tool in the latest Photoshop update, exploring the latest updates in Lightroom Classic that have improved the Lightroom-to-Photoshop workflow, creating a day-to-night image gradient, correcting white balance for skin tones in Lightroom, and so much more!

This issue’s cover image by KelbyOne member Steve Whiston

Current KelbyOne members can log into their account to access the new issue, or you can visit https://kelbyone.com/magazine to sign up and start reading today.

KelbyOne Pro members have access to more than 100 back issues of Photoshop User magazine all the way back to January 2012, plus all 64 issues of Lightroom Magazine. Not a Pro member yet? Click here for more information.

The post The June 2023 Issue of Photoshop User Is Now Available! appeared first on Lightroom Killer Tips.