Course outline

Photoshop is regarded as the industry standard photographic editing software favoured by photographers, graphic designers and people working in the creative industries.  Now in its 25th year, it is a very sophisticated programme, however by learning just a few tools and tricks you will be able to transform your own photographs.

This course is delivered as two half-day sessions, each 3 hours in duration. The second date will be scheduled on a mutually convenient date upon booking the first session.  

 Course Content

Hour 1

Introduction to the Workspace

• Create a new document
• Controlling the workspace
• Customising the workspace
• Screen layout and window arrangements
• Navigation and zoom shortcuts
• Guides, grid and ruler
• Learn Palette

File Formats

• Image quality and resolution
• Bitmap and vector graphics
• Image and canvas size
• Colour spaces (RGB vs. CMYK)

Hour 2  

Transforming

• Cropping Images
• Creating custom pre-set crop sizes
• Straightening 

 Selections  

• Creating selections using the selection tools (Marque, Lasso, Polygon & mechanic Lasso, Quick selection & Magic Wand)   
• Improve and refine selections
• Adding and subtracting from selections
• Saving and loading selections

Hour 3

Layers

• Create, delete and edit layers
• Name, hide, arrange layers
• Merge and group layers
• Change opacity and blending modes
• Create clipping paths
• Blending layers

Hour 4 

Colour Correction and Adjustment

• Destuctive vs. non-destuctive  
• Use Adjustment layers
• Levels and curves
• Hue and saturation
• Correcting white balance
• Shadow and highlights (using smart filters)

Colours and gradients  

• Work with the Colour Picker
• Use the Eyedropper tools
• Save and share colours and swatches
• Create and control gradients

 Hour 5

Removing objects from their background

• Create layer masks and clipping masks
• Using the ‘Select & Mask’ feature

 Removing unwanted objects from an image 

• Using the Content-Aware tool
• Using the Clone stamp tool

Hour 6

Image Retouching

• Use the healing brushes, Spot Healing & Patch Tools
• Use the Red Eye tool
• Use the Blur, Sharpen and Smudge tools
• Use the Dodge, Burn and Sponge tools
• Use the Liquify Filter  

Filters and Effects   

• Explore the Filters palette to add ‘filters’ to your images
• Explore the Effects menu to add ‘effects’ to selections and text  

Output

• Output graphics for print or web  
• Compress / re-sampling image size

Optional topics which could be covered if time allows or swap with contents above by prior agreement

Text

• Create text using the Type tool
• Explore character properties
• Explore paragraph properties
• Working with styles and adding styles to text
• Adding effects to Type

 Photo-merging  

• Blend multiple images to create a panorama
• Create a photo-montage

Painting and working with Brushes

• Use the brush tools
• Creating custom brushes (e.g. watermark)

Course requirements  

This lesson is suitable for anyone with basic PC or Mac skills who wishes to learn Photoshop from scratch or wants to improve their existing knowledge of the program. You have the choice of working on one of my iMacs or you can bring your own laptop with Photoshop installed (which comes with Abobe Creative Cloud). 

Booking an alternative date

Contact Caroline on 07944 267113 to arrange a mututally convenient alternative date and time to the one shown above if this one does not suit you.

Coronavirus Update March 2021

This one to one training will be offered following government guidelines of social distancing of 2 metres apart using two side by side large screen iMac computers or ideally the participant should bring their laptop computer with Adobe InDesign installed. All surfaces including the keyboard and mouse will be sanitised before commencement of the session.

I am currently offering all training in my large airy conservatory at home located on Cambridge Road near Scotdales in Great Shelford.