Lessons
Bootcamp Introduction
16:22 2The Bridge Interface
13:33 3Setting up Bridge
06:55 4Overview of Bridge
11:29 5Practical Application of Bridge
27:56 6Introduction to Raw Editing
11:00 7Setting up ACR Preferences & Interface
07:39 8Global Tools Part 1
16:44Global Tools Part 2
20:01 10Local Tools
22:56 11Introduction to the Photoshop Interface
07:13 12Toolbars, Menus and Windows
25:07 13Setup and Interface
11:48 14Adobe Libraries
05:57 15Saving Files
07:39 16Introduction to Cropping
12:10 17Cropping for Composition in ACR
04:44 18Cropping for Composition in Photoshop
12:40 19Cropping for the Subject in Post
03:25 20Cropping for Print
07:34 21Perspective Cropping in Photoshop
07:11 22Introduction to Layers
08:42 23Vector & Raster Layers Basics
05:05 24Adjustment Layers in Photoshop
27:35 25Organizing and Managing Layers
15:35 26Introduction to Layer Tools and Blend Modes
21:34 27Screen and Multiply and Overlay
09:15 28Soft Light Blend Mode
07:34 29Color and Luminosity Blend Modes
12:47 30Color Burn and Color Dodge Blend Modes
07:43 31Introduction to Layer Styles
11:43 32Practical Application: Layer Tools
13:06 33Introduction to Masks and Brushes
04:43 34Brush Basics
09:22 35Custom Brushes
04:01 36Brush Mask: Vignettes
06:58 37Brush Mask: Curves Dodge & Burn
06:53 38Brush Mask: Hue & Saturation
07:52 39Mask Groups
05:52 40Clipping Masks
04:11 41Masking in Adobe Camera Raw
07:06 42Practical Applications: Masks
14:03 43Introduction to Selections
05:42 44Basic Selection Tools
17:41 45The Pen Tool
11:56 46Masks from Selections
04:22 47Selecting Subjects and Masking
07:11 48Color Range Mask
17:35 49Luminosity Masks Basics
12:00 50Introduction to Cleanup Tools
07:02 51Adobe Camera Raw
10:16 52Healing and Spot Healing Brush
14:56 53The Clone Stamp Tool
10:20 54The Patch Tool
06:38 55Content Aware Move Tool
04:56 56Content Aware Fill
06:46 57Custom Cleanup Selections
15:42 58Introduction to Shapes and Text
13:46 59Text Basics
15:57 60Shape Basics
07:00 61Adding Text to Pictures
09:46 62Custom Water Marks
14:05 63Introduction to Smart Objects
04:37 64Smart Object Basics
09:13 65Smart Objects and Filters
09:05 66Smart Objects and Image Transformation
10:57 67Smart Objects and Album Layouts
11:40 68Smart Objects and Composites
10:47 69Introduction to Image Transforming
04:34 70ACR and Lens Correction
09:45 71Photoshop and Lens Correction
14:26 72The Warp Tool
11:16 73Perspective Transformations
20:33 74Introduction to Actions in Photoshop
09:27 75Introduction to the Actions Panel Interface
05:06 76Making Your First Action
03:49 77Modifying Actions After You Record Them
11:38 78Adding Stops to Actions
04:01 79Conditional Actions
07:36 80Actions that Communicate
25:26 81Introduction to Filters
04:38 82ACR as a Filter
09:20 83Helpful Artistic Filters
17:08 84Helpful Practical Filters
07:08 85Sharpening with Filters
07:32 86Rendering Trees
08:20 87The Oil Paint and Add Noise Filters
15:08 88Introduction to Editing Video
06:20 89Timeline for Video
08:15 90Cropping Video
03:34 91Adjustment Layers and Video
05:25 92Building Lookup Tables
07:00 93Layers, Masking Video & Working with Type
15:11 94ACR to Edit Video
06:10 95Animated Gifs
11:39 96Introduction to Creative Effects
06:08 97Black, White, and Monochrome
18:05 98Matte and Cinematic Effects
08:23 99Gradient Maps and Solid Color Grades
12:20 100Gradients
04:21 101Glow and Haze
10:23 102Introduction to Natural Retouching
05:33 103Brightening Teeth
10:25 104Clean Up with the Clone Stamp Tool
08:07 105Cleaning and Brightening Eyes
16:58 106Advanced Clean Up Techniques
24:47 107Introduction to Portrait Workflow & Bridge Organization
14:47 108ACR for Portraits Pre-Edits
21:27 109Portrait Workflow Techniques
18:46 110Introduction to Landscape Workflow & Bridge Organization
12:17 111Landscape Workflow Techniques
37:36 112Introduction to Compositing & Bridge
06:59 113Composite Workflow Techniques
34:01 114Landscape Composite Projects
24:14 115Bonus: Rothko and Workspace
05:15 116Bonus: Adding Textures to Photos
07:05 117Bonus: The Mask (Extras)
05:18 118Bonus: The Color Range Mask in ACR
04:54Lesson Info
Smart Objects and Image Transformation
Let's go ahead and talk about how this works when we transform images. So, what I've done here is I've made a diagram for you that you can use to test this out too. It's a really interesting perspective. We've talked about pixel peeping before, this is definitely pixel peeping at its max, but it's really cool. So we have over here, we have a vector based image, that's a smart object. Over here, we would have a raster based image, that will be a pixel based layer. And I have a broken bubble level in my head. Even with the levels that are on my stinking tripod, my tripod head, it doesn't matter what it is, I always have something in my image that needs to be straightened. It's just one of those things. I actually, I just thought of this. About 11 years ago, I made an action to tilt my canvas two degrees to the right because that's how broken my bubble level is. It's always broken by two degrees. So, when I pull an image in and I press play on that and it would, it was that predictable. I...
t was always going to be two degrees off. Anyway, so what you can do though, is actually, when you do that to a photograph, when you straighten the image, you're actually shifting the pixels and transforming that image when you straighten that image. Might be a little bit different in something like Adobe Camera Raw because it's on the raw file and tapping at the raw level. But if you come into photoshop and you straighten an image, it's gonna shift everything. So, if you've got sharpening that's happening on your photograph, as you shift that image, that slight rotation, is going to throw off the sharpening in that image. So, these examples will show us exactly how that works. I'm gonna press command or control R and I'm gonna bring down a ruler or a guide, just to the top of here, because these boxes now need to be straightened and put up on that guide. So, how I'm gonna do that is the first thing I'm gonna do is I'm gonna zoom in here and show you that this is the raster based version and move over here, this is the vector based version. Notice how other than really making our eyes hurt, they're the exact same thing. But there's a reason why I chose to fill them with that pattern, it's not because I like it. So, I'm gonna go ahead and zoom out. I'm gonna click on this vector based layer. I'm gonna command or control T, and I'm gonna rotate this until it is straight and I'll know it's straight because I'm using that guide. Press V for my move tool and move that up and then rotate it up until it's straight on that line. Which this is essentially the same thing as image straightening. The only problem right now is if I go to the crop tool and straighten that, it's gonna throw off this whole canvas. That's why I'm not using straighten tool right now. So, once I've got that set up, I can look in here, make sure it's perfect. There, perfect, okay, so that would be straight and I'll commit to it and press enter. Now I'll move over here. I'll look at this raster based image and I'll press command or control T and I'll move it 'til it's straight. Again, I told you this is pixel peeping at its finest. If you want to stick your tongue out while you do it, go right ahead. And then I'll press enter on that, press command or control H to get rid of that. Now what I want you to look at here is when you zoom in here to this edge, notice how because this was a vector based image, this line is still perfectly straight. If we go over here, it's straight but look what happened to the pixels when I moved it. It shifted all those pixels a little bit and it shifted those pixels and put them up here. Look what happens inside this design. Now, I'll move over here. Look at that, that's still straight. Everything in there is still very nice looking, right? But the other one on the other side, that raster based image, lost all that quality, along with that shift. So how this works is if you got an image like this, like this photograph here in Chicago, you can see my broken bubble level, even though I've got all the things to straighten things out it's still broken. If I was gonna go ahead and straighten this image, the typical way I would straighten it, by going into the crop tool and use my straighten tool and straightening out along one of the buildings that might be within the center of the image, everything's gonna shift. So, if I press C for the crop tool, control and spacebar, zoom in, and then straighten this, off of this building, press enter, I'm gonna go ahead and make a duplicate copy of this with my history and on this one, I'm gonna go ahead and step back. Now what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna right click and I'm gonna convert this to a smart object. 'Cause what I said before, what a smart object does is it can contain vector or raster based data. So by turning this into a smart object first, it's remembering all the data that was in this image before I do the straighten. So, if I go ahead and zoom in here, press C for the crop tool, and straighten this along this edge, just like we did in the last one. Now, if I wanted to move one on top of the other, I'll press V for the move tool, move this on top of here. Which one was my, oops, one of them. You know what I'm gonna do? I'm gonna go back to the beginning because I messed myself up (laughs). Good idea, Blake. So, I'm gonna go ahead and let's go to this image. Okay, let's close this down. Okay, so I got this one converted. This is my smart object one. So, I'm gonna do, is after I've got that smart object and it's straightened, I'm gonna double click here and I'm gonna call this smart straighten. And now, I need to make a duplicate copy of this, go back to the very beginning and not make it a smart object. So, I'm gonna rasterize that. And now I'm gonna zoom into the back of this, C for my crop tool, straighten this down. Basically, I want to turn that raster based image. So, when I straighten this and I move this one, which is not my smart one, pull it on top of here. What is going on here? I think I know what's going on. (sighing) 'Cause this one is not straightened anymore, is it? No, I know what's going on. I'm gonna go back all the way to the beginning because I think what's happening is sometimes when you duplicate a smart object and you mess with that smart object on another layer, what happens is it saves those settings from that duplicate that you made because it's always thinking about that smart object. So, that's the problem that's happening there. So, what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna open that back up. Just the regular JPEG that we had there and now I'm gonna straighten this image. Just like we did with the last one, but I'm gonna make a duplicate copy of it. So, I'm gonna make a duplicate that I can straighten, that's gonna be a rasterized image, and the other one is gonna be the smart object. So, I'll right click on this, convert to smart object, and then I'll straighten it along that building in the back. You guys are gonna know how to straighten an image like no other. And then I'll go ahead and commit to that and press enter. Come over to this one, C for my crop tool, and then straighten it along this edge, right here. So, this would be my non smart and I'll press V for the move tool, bring that over to this image. I'm pressing and holding shift while I do that, 'cause what that's gonna do is because they're the same size, if I press and hold shift while I move it over, it will automatically align them from the center. Now, other than my crop being a little bit different because no two crops are the same, there will be a slight difference in the pixels here. So that's the smart object, that's the non smart object. And because this image is so small, it might be hard to see the different details in there, but you'll notice the same thing is happening, especially right up here. Look along this top edge of this building. There's the non smart object, there's the smart object. That slight change in pixels that's happening up there, especially right along this edge, that slight change in pixels is because that data is being manipulated with that non smart object. And here, the smart object retains the same. So, other than those being slightly different because the straightening was just a little bit different, we are seeing a slight difference in pixel change. Again, this is a small image, so it'll actually probably more evident on the small image than it would on a bigger image. So, what that means is that the more that image has to straighten, the more it has to shift those pixels. We didn't have to do a whole lot of straightening to this, so, now a whole lot of pixels actually did move in that process. But, if you're gonna be straightening your images in photoshop, change it to a smart object first because that first image that we looked at, this image right here, was a dead giveaway that when we straighten our images on a raster based image, we do lose some pixels there. Now, if we zoom out here, look at that. We can't tell the difference. I don't want you to say, everything single time I'm gonna straighten my image, I'm gonna have to turn it to smart object. What I'm showing you here is an example of what is happening. But does it necessarily mean that every single time you straighten your image, you have to turn it to a smart object first, no, that's not exactly what I'm saying. But know that when you do straighten it and if you've done any sharpening in the process, you're gonna throw off your sharpening a little bit. So, let's say you get done with your whole work flow. Your whole work flow is done and you go, ah crap, my horizon's not straight and you straighten that horizon, just pay attention to it because some of that sharpening might have shifted in that process. I'm not guaranteeing that it's always going to happen, but some of it might happen. So, just look at it. I just needed you to be aware of that.
Class Materials
Bonus Materials with Purchase
Ratings and Reviews
a Creativelive Student
Amazing course, but don't be fooled into thinking this is a beginner's course for photographers. The problem isn't Blake's explanations; they're top. The problem is the vast scope of this course and the order in which the topics are presented. Take layers for example. When I was first learning Photoshop (back when we learned from books), I found I learned little or nothing from, for example, books that covered layers before they covered how to improve/process photographs. These books taught me how to organize, move, and link layers before they showed me what a layer was actually for. Those books tended to teach me everything there is to know about layers (types of layers, how to organize them, how to move them, how to move them two at a time, how to move them two at a time even if there are other layers between the two you're interested in, useful troubleshooting tips, etc. ) all before I even know (from a photographer's point of view) what it is the things actually do. The examples of organizing, linking, and moving mean everything for graphic designers from Day One, but for photographers not so much. Blake does the same thing as those books. Topics he covers extremely early demand a lot of theoretical imagination for a photographer who doesn't already know quite a bit about what he is talking about. Learning about abstract things first and concrete things later only makes PS that much harder to understand. If you AREN'T a beginner, however, this course is amazing. I thought it would be like an Army Bootcamp, taking you from zero and building you into a fit, competent Photoshop grunt. Now I think it's more like Army Bootcamp for high school varsity jocks. It isn't going to take you from the beginning, but the amount you'll get out of it is nonetheless more than your brain can imagine. I've been using PS for years to improve my photographs, and even to create the odd artistic composite or two. The amount I've learned in the first week is amazing, and every day I learn something -- more like many things -- which I immediately implement to improve my productivity and/or widen the horizons of what I can achieve. If you ARE a photographer who's a Photoshop beginner, I'd take very seriously the advice Blake gives in the introduction: Watch one lesson, and practice the skills and principles you learn in that one lesson for two weeks. THEN watch the next lesson. You can't do that of course without buying the course, so it's up to you to decide whether you'd like to learn Photoshop and master Photoshop all from the same course. Learning it first and mastering it later will cost more money, but I think you'll understand everything better and have a much more enjoyable ride in the process. As for me? I'm going to have to find the money to buy this course. There is simply way too much content in each lesson for me to try to take on all at once, but on the other hand I don't want to miss anything at all that he has to share.
Robert Andrews
Blake Rudis is the absolute best in teaching photoshop. His knowledge and how he presents the instruction is clear and concise - there is NO ONE BETTER. Yes, his classes require some basic skills, and maybe I'd organize the order of (or group) the classes in a different order, but, let me be clear - if anyone is to be successful or famous in the Photoshop world, it should be Blake Rudis. I strongly recommend his teaching. I started photography and post processing in 2018, and because of this class, I'm know what Im doing. The energy you get when you create something beautiful is profound, it makes you bounce out of bed (at 4AM) like a 5 year old, to go create. It's a great ride! Thanks Blake, & Thanks Creative live.
Esther Gambrell
WOW!!! I've been purchasing CL classes for several years now and have watched HOURS of "How-To Photoshop" classes, but this is the first one I've actually purchased because of the AWESOME BONUS content!!! SERIOUSLY??!!?!? A PLUG-IN??? But not only that, Blake is SO easy to understand, and he breaks down concepts in different ways to connect with different people's learning styles. I REALLY appreciated this approach because I am a LEFT-BRAINED creative that has an engineering background, so I really connected to what Blake was saying. THANK YOU FOR THAT! There are TONS of Photoshop courses out there, but I found this one to be the most helpful in they way Blake teaches concepts so that you know WHY you're doing what your doing. I feel like he taught me how to fish with Photoshop to feed me for a lifetime instead of just giving me a fish to feed me for one day. This is the BEST overall PS course out there!!! Thank you!!!!