Overview
Adobe Photoshop is the industry standard for photo editing, retouching, and digital image creation. This two-day course gives you a solid foundation in Photoshop’s essential tools and workflows, so you can edit photos, create compelling graphics, and produce professional-quality imagery with confidence.
You’ll learn to navigate the interface, work with layers and selections, make precise color and exposure adjustments, retouch images, and combine multiple elements into polished compositions. By the end of the course, you’ll understand how raster images work, when to use Photoshop instead of Illustrator, and how to create clean, professional files ready for print or digital use.
Format: 2 Days | VILT
Who Should Attend
- Designers new to Photoshop or switching from other photo editing tools
- Marketing professionals creating social media graphics, ads, and visual content
- Photographers looking to edit and enhance their images professionally
- Anyone who needs to retouch photos, create graphics, or composite images
What You’ll Learn
- Navigate Photoshop’s interface, tools, and workspaces efficiently
- Use layers to build non-destructive, editable compositions
- Make precise selections using multiple selection tools and techniques
- Adjust exposure, color, and contrast to improve photo quality
- Retouch images to remove blemishes, objects, and imperfections
- Work with masks to blend images and create selective adjustments
- Set up files correctly and export for print, web, and social media
Course Outline
Module 1: Photoshop Fundamentals and Interface
- Understanding raster images vs. vector graphics: when to use Photoshop vs. Illustrator
- Navigating the workspace: panels, tools, and customizing your layout
- Creating, opening, and saving documents with proper settings
- Zooming, panning, and rotating your canvas for efficient navigation
Module 2: Layers: The Foundation of Photoshop
- Understanding layers and why they’re essential for non-destructive editing
- Creating, duplicating, and deleting layers
- Arranging layer order and organizing with layer groups
- Layer visibility, locking, and layer naming for project organization
Module 3: Selection Tools and Techniques
- Marquee tools for geometric selections: rectangles, circles, and rows
- Lasso tools for freehand and polygonal selections
- Magic Wand and Quick Selection tools for color-based selections
- Refining, adding to, subtracting from, and saving selections
Module 4: Basic Photo Adjustments and Color Correction
- Brightness/Contrast adjustments for quick exposure fixes
- Levels adjustment for precise control of shadows, midtones, and highlights
- Curves for advanced tonal adjustments and creative color grading
- Hue/Saturation for color shifts and saturation adjustments
Module 5: Cropping, Resizing, and Canvas Management
- Crop tool for composition improvement and aspect ratio control
- Straightening images and perspective crop corrections
- Image Size vs. Canvas Size: understanding resolution and resampling
- Understanding resolution and DPI for print vs. web output
Module 6: Retouching and Healing Tools
- Spot Healing Brush for quick blemish and imperfection removal
- Healing Brush for texture-matched retouching
- Clone Stamp tool for duplicating and covering unwanted elements
- Content-Aware Fill for removing objects seamlessly
Module 7: Working with Brushes and Painting
- Brush tool fundamentals: size, hardness, and opacity controls
- Brush panel: customizing brush settings and dynamics
- Eraser tool and background eraser for removing pixels
- Painting and drawing on separate layers for flexibility
Module 8: Masking Fundamentals
- Understanding layer masks and non-destructive editing
- Creating and editing layer masks with brushes and gradients
- Using masks to blend images and hide/reveal content selectively
- Converting selections to masks and refining mask edges
Module 9: Working with Text
- Creating point text and paragraph text for different needs
- Character panel: fonts, size, leading, and tracking controls
- Paragraph panel: alignment, justification, and spacing
- Text effects and layer styles for polished typography
Module 10: Adjustment Layers and Non-Destructive Editing
- Why adjustment layers are better than direct adjustments
- Creating adjustment layers for levels, curves, and hue/saturation
- Stacking and organizing adjustment layers in your workflow
- Using masks with adjustment layers for selective corrections
Module 11: Basic Compositing and Blend Modes
- Combining multiple images into a single composition
- Understanding blend modes: Multiply, Screen, Overlay, and others
- Layer opacity and fill for transparency and blending control
- Transform tools: Move, Scale, Rotate, and Free Transform
Module 12: File Formats, Resolution, and Export
- Saving files in native Photoshop format (.psd) for editing
- Understanding file formats: JPEG, PNG, TIFF, and when to use each
- Export As and Save for Web for optimized digital files
- Resolution requirements for print, web, and social media
Prerequisites & Technical Requirements
- No prior Photoshop experience required
- Basic computer skills and familiarity with file management
- Adobe Photoshop CC (current or recent version recommended)
Customization Options
This course can be tailored to your team’s specific goals—whether you’re focused on photo retouching and enhancement, creating social media graphics and marketing materials, or preparing images for professional printing. We can adjust examples and exercises to match your industry and the types of projects you’ll be creating in Photoshop.