Teach Yourself Photoshop 4 in 14 Days -- Ch 1 -- Photoshop Basics






Teach Yourself Photoshop 4 in 14 Days







- 1 -
Photoshop Basics

The first thing that you need to know about Photoshop, before we begin
manipulating images, is simply how to open and view files. Photoshop can open a wide
variety of file formats, and you can customize your view of an image in a number
of different ways, ranging from window sizes to magnification.
This chapter will cover methods of saving your work, because if you don't save,
all the changes you make will be lost.
And finally in Day 1, we will examine different methods of image acquisition,
such as scanning, photo discs, and digital cameras, weighing such factors as price
and how the final image will used.
Working with Files
Photoshop can open a wide variety of images in a wide variety of formats.
Formats are different ways that images can be saved for different uses, such as print
or the World Wide Web (for more information see Appendix C, "File Formats").
In the Windows world, file formats are defined by the three-letter extensions
to file names, such as .doc for a word processing document. Some common graphic file
format extensions are:


.pct: PICT files
.bmp: Bitmap files
.tif: TIFF files


Mac users are lucky because they have never had to deal with file formats. Macintosh
files have what is called a resource fork and a data fork. The data
fork, obviously, contains the file's data and the resource fork contains the file's
information--whether it is a graphic file, a word processing document, or even a
sound. Don't let this worry you Windows users. File names are kind of a pain, but
they aren't that difficult.
The most common file format in Photoshop is .psd, which is the native Photoshop
file format (Photoshop document). Using this format, you can save an image from any
of the modes with which Photoshop works (see Day 4, "Color Modes and
Models," for more information on color modes). For now, suffice it to say that
the modes are how Photoshop deals with color. The native Photoshop format also enables
you to save layers. No other format allows this (for more on Layers see Day
8, "Layers"). For most of the exercises in this book, we will be working
with the Photoshop file format.
The drawback to .psd is that it is native to Photoshop and other applications
may have trouble opening this format. To move files between applications, to print,
or to publish on the World Wide Web, you must save your files in a different format.
Here are some common formats with brief definitions of their uses:


Bitmap (.bmp): This is a standard file format for Windows.


GIF (.gif): GIF stands for Graphics Interchange Format. It is one of the
formats you can use for web publishing. Because it is a compressed format, these
take less time to transmit over phone lines.


JPEG (.jpg): JPEG stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group. JPEG is
another popular format for web publishing.


TIFF (.tif): TIFF stands for Tagged-Image File Format. These files can
be saved for use on either Macs or Windows machines. This is also often the preferred
format for desktop publishing applications, such as PageMaker and QuarkXPress.


PICT (.pct): This is by and large a Macintosh format. It too is widely
used in desktop publishing.


Raw (.RAW): This format saves image information in the most flexible format
for transferring files between applications and computer platforms.


PNG: This file format is an alternative to the GIF format. It has a lossless
compression scheme and can be displayed gradually as it is downloaded.


These file formats are available in the Save dialog boxes--File+Save, File+Save
As, and File+Save as copy. Just look for the drop-down menu.





NOTE: You will hear the terms lossy and lossless bandied about in
discussion of graphics files. These have to do with compression schemes. Say, for
instance, you have an image with a lot of sky that is the same shade of blue. A compression
scheme will enable you to save just one pixel of that blue instead of all of them.
This means that the entire sky will be filled from that one section, giving you a
smaller file size but less quality.
A lossy compression scheme, then, is one in which you sacrifice file information--the
appearance of the file--for file size. A lossless compression scheme retains the
original appearance of a file but doesn't compress as much.





Opening Files
If a file is of the proper type (a file format that Photoshop recognizes), often
all you will have to do is double-click it with your mouse to not only open it, but
to open Photoshop as well.
Sometimes, however, Photoshop doesn't recognize a file as one that it can open.
When you find yourself in this situation, you have two options: you can open a file
via the File menu or if you are using a Windows machine, you can associate
the file with Photoshop.
To open a file via the File menu, simply follow these steps.


1. Click the File menu and drag down to Open as shown in Figure 1.1.


Figure 1.1
The File+Open command.


2. Navigate through the directories and folders of the Open dialog box until
you find the file you seek (see Figure 1.2).


Figure 1.2
The Open dialog box.


3. To open, either select it by clicking it once and then hitting Open, or double-click
it.


Windows 95 has made enormous strides in improving the user interface for PCs,
but files, as we discussed previously, still rely on three-character file extensions
to define their type, and if that file extension is not there, you have to add it.
This method, however, assumes that you know the type of file you are dealing with.
If you don't know what the file's specific format is, try opening the file via the
File+Open command. If this doesn't work, you may be dealing with a damaged file.
After you have opened your file, save it with the File+Save command and Photoshop
will automatically append a file extension.
If you are working in Windows, you may have problems opening certain files because
they are associated with different applications. You can double-click a file
with the .bmp extension only to find that Windows has opened the native program Paint.
Or, as it is set up on my machine, for example, when I double-click a GIF file, Netscape
opens instead of Photoshop. This is not a huge problem, but it can be annoying. The
solution is to associate all of the graphics file formats with Photoshop.
Here's the process for associating files with Photoshop:


1. Open the folder that contains Photoshop on your hard drive.

2. Select View+Options+File Types (a tab menu) shown in Figure 1.3.


Figure 1.3
The File Types tab of the Options dialog box.


3. In this dialog box, find the file format you want to associate with Photoshop
and click Edit. Maybe you want to associate the .bmp format or the .gif format (see
Figure 1.4).


Figure 1.4
This is where you will make the association.


4. In the following dialog box, you will need to click the Edit button, which
will enable you to define the path to Photoshop. The path is the route to
the application, and you don't have to remember every directory that goes to Photoshop.

5. Click the Browse button. Now, just find Photoshop on your hard drive and double-click
it. That dialog box will close and the new path will appear in the preceding dialog
box.

6. Click OK and then close all of the preceding windows.


From now on, whenever you click a file of this format, your machine will know
that you want to open it with Photoshop. This can be a real time-saver.





NOTE: For Macintosh Users Only: If you have to work cross-platform,
that is, on both Macintosh and PC, you should choose to include file extensions with
your files. This option is found under File+General Preferences+Append DOS Filenames.






Importing Files
Certain file types cannot be opened by just the File+Open command. Certain types
of files must be imported into Photoshop. These are mainly from TWAIN sources, such
as scanners. Please consult your scanner's documentation for more information.
Other files that can be imported are those defined as Quick Edit files. This is
an option for editing large TIFF or Scitex files. Instead of having to open the entire
file, making for slow editing, you can open a portion of the file via the dialog
box shown in Figure 1.5.
Figure 1.5
The Quick Edit dialog box.
Importing via Quick Edit:


1. Select File+Import+QuickEdit.

2. Navigate to the images file on the accompanying CD-ROM.

3. Open file 01file03.

4. You will see the dialog box as shown in Figure 1.5.

5. Drag the crosshairs to select a portion of the image and click OK.


To save your changes, select File+Export+Quick Edit Save. This will update the
entire file with your changes included.
Creating New Files
There's more to Photoshop than just opening files, though. Creating a new file
in Photoshop is just as easy as opening files. There are just a few more options
for you to specify. You will need to create new files when you want to create new
artwork or to have a blank sheet on which you can combine images. It is like opening
your artist's notebook to a new blank page.
Select File+New, and you will see the New File dialog box (see Figure 1.6).
Figure 1.6
The New File dialog box.
Type a title for your new file at the top of the dialog box, such as Test1. The
following sections will give you a brief overview to get you started on setting up
a new file.
Image Size
In this dialog box, you specify the size of your image--width and height--in pixels,
inches, centimeters, points, picas, or columns. These are available in drop-down
menus that you can access by clicking the small arrow next to the unit of measurement.
Select the measurement with which you feel the most comfortable.
Measurements are greatly affected by the resolution of your document, which is
set in the Resolution setting of the New File dialog box. If, for instance, your
resolution is set to 72 pixels per inch, such as you would use for web publishing,
and you set your height and width measurements to 1 inch, you will get a very different
look than, say, if you enter a resolution of 300 pixels per inch (see Figure 1.7).
Figure 1.7
Both canvases are set at 1 inch square. The one at left is at 72 pixels per inch.
The one on the right at 300 pixels per inch.
Try this yourself. Create a couple of new files and change the resolutions to
72 pixels per inch and 300 pixels per inch. You can open rulers just as you see in
Figure 1.7 by selecting View+Show Rulers.
Also note, however, that the larger you make your image, the more memory it requires
(both in RAM to have it open, and on your hard disk to save), so you want to stay
within reasonable limits. The image on the left consumes 16 kilobytes of disk space.
The one on the right weighs in at 264 kilobytes.
To get an idea of this, create a new file and enter 50 inches for both width and
height. Notice the file size reading. It will probably be something like 37 megabytes,
and that is just for the canvas space without a single pixel on the "page."
It's not hard to imagine the disk real estate that graphic images, such as those
generated by Photoshop, can consume.
See Appendix B, "Optimizing Memory Preferences," for some suggestions
on the type of hardware you will need to run Photoshop optimally, as well as a listing
of external storage devices for storing the large images you will be working with
and creating.
Resolution
The resolution of the image is extremely important. The higher the resolution,
the better quality the image (but, as usual, the more memory it requires). Most images
that you see in print are close to a resolution of 300 DPI--or Dots Per Inch.
Your computer's monitor, on the other hand, has a DPI of 72, which is substantially
lower. Therefore, set the resolution depending on what your output will be. If you
intend to publish your images on the web, then anything over 72 DPI is a waste. Computers
can't display at a that high of a resolution. If, on the other hand, you are printing
to a high- quality laser printer, set the resolution to 200 DPI.
You really would only use 300 DPI if you are looking to create professional color
prints. For most of our work and in the tutorials, keep the resolution at 72 DPI.
This will keep your machine from slowing down. Also, if you are interested in resolutions
for web graphics, check out Day 14, "Photoshop for the Web."
Modes
Modes determine the way Photoshop interprets and creates color values. These range
from grayscale to CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black). For our purposes, leave
RGB (Red, Green, Blue) selected. It is the most flexible for computer color work,
and you can always change the mode if you so decide after you begin working. For
more information on modes, refer to Day 4.
Contents
It is in this section of the New File dialog box that you can select a background
for your image.


White: sets the background to white


Background Color: sets the background to whatever color is currently selected
as a background color


Transparent: provides a clear background


For this exercise, select White. Then click OK.





NOTE: Importing Files: The import command File+Import is used to
work with a scanner, which is what is meant by a TWAIN resource. The import command
also enables you to bring in file with formats that have special plug-in modules.
Consult your scanner's documentation for further information.





The Canvas and the Active Window
You can have more than one window open within Photoshop at a time, but only one
can be the active window. If the window is active, there will be a strip of
color across the top; inactive windows are gray.
The canvas is the large white square within the window (see Figure 1.8). This
is where you will create and edit images. The canvas can be transparent or the current
background color (to ascertain your background color, check your toolbox).
Figure 1.8
The canvas.
Set your mouse cursor at the lower-right corner of the window, and then click
and drag. The window expands, but notice that the canvas size stays the same. After
you have created a new file, you can only change the size of the canvas by selecting
Image+Canvas Size. This command enables you to specify a new height and width for
the canvas (see Figure 1.9). The anchor section enables you to specify the base area
from which the canvas will expand or shrink.
Figure 1.9
Resizing the canvas.
The Status Bar
At the bottom of the Photoshop screen (for Macs, some of this information will
appear at the bottom of each active window), you will notice a status bar (see Figure
1.10). This useful feature reminds you which tool is selected and gives you information
on its modifier keys. It displays how much memory (hard disk space) the image takes
up, how efficiently Photoshop is working in RAM, the current size of the Scratch
disk, and how long Photoshop took to perform your last operation.





NOTE: The Scratch disk is Photoshop's version of virtual memory.
That means that a portion of your hard disk is used as RAM. It provides a place for
images that overflow the existing RAM on your machine to go, enabling you to continue
working. If you are working to a large degree in the Scratch disk, you are not working
as efficiently as you could, because it is a lot slower than real RAM.
The solution is to buy more RAM. Buy as much as you can afford and your machine
can take.





Figure 1.10
The Status bar.
The Status bar keeps you apprised of the following information:


Document Sizes: This is a handy readout. The number to the left of the
slash is the current size of your file. The number to the right of the slash estimates
the size of the file that will go to print. The print size is usually smaller (except
for JPEG images).


Scratch disk: This readout displays how much room is left on your primary
scratch disk, which, unless you have specified otherwise in the preferences, is your
hard drive.


Efficiency: This is interesting to check occasionally. It informs you
how much of your system is actually working in RAM and not in virtual memory--that
is to say, hard disk space.


Timing: This tells you the amount of time it took to perform the last
operation, if you really want to know.


The Info Palette
Photoshop offers a wonderful feature that enables you to select options without
digging through a ton of menus and dialog boxes. These options are found in palettes,
which in turn are found under the Window menu. There are palettes available for
all the tools in the toolbox, palettes for colors, palettes for swatches, and, in
this case, for providing file information and navigating in the active window. We'll
discuss the tool palettes on Day 3, "Painting and Drawing Tools."
Select Window+Show Info to open the Information palette (see Figure 1.11). Let's
play around with this palette and see what it can do.
First, open the file 01file01 from the CD-ROM. Now, drag your cursor over the
image and notice the changes in the Info palette.
Figure 1.11
The Info palette.
The two upper divisions of the palette contain color information. If you click
the tiny arrow beneath the eyedropper icons, a drop-down menu will appear from which
you can select the desired mode. For now, RGB and CMYK, the default settings, will
be fine.
The RGB color model uses different variations of red, green, and blue to display
color. The CMYK model uses variations of cyan, magenta, yellow, and black. Thus,
the numbers you see to the right of the RGB and CMYK letters are the relative percentage
of those inks in the color your cursor is currently over. For more information on
RGB and CMYK, see Day 4.
The section in the lower-left corner of the Info palette gives you a readout of
your cursor's location within the boundaries of an image. The upper-left corner of
your canvas will be x = 0 and y = 0. As you move to the right the x or horizontal
value increases. As you move downward, the y or vertical value increases.
If you click the tiny arrow icon beneath the crosshair icon, you can change the
measurements from inches to pixels, centimeters, points, or picas.
The final lower-right section of the Info palette contains information for cropping
and selections (see Figure 1.12). It gives you the dimensions of your selection,
but we'll talk more about selections and cropping tomorrow.
Figure 1.12
The Info palette with Cropping tool active.
For now, just know that the Info palette is there for your use. It can come in
handy when you need to make precise measurements. It can also be of great use when
you are working in color.
Photoshop Views
One of the wonderful things about working with digital images is that not only
are they infinitely manipulable, but how you view them can be configured and
adjusted considerably to suit your own particular needs.
Toolbox Options
Turn your attention to the bottom of the toolbox (see Figure 1.13). These buttons
change the way your canvas is displayed onscreen.
Try all three and see which one you like the best. I prefer to work in the Standard
Screen Mode myself, because you can keep a variety of windows open and in sight.
This makes it easier to navigate between them. The Full Screen Mode with Menu bar
is kind of nice, though, if you are working only on one piece of art and don't want
to be distracted by other windows. For my money, the Full Screen Mode is only good
for showing off final pieces; it isn't really that great for working.





NOTE: No matter what screen mode you are using, if you want to hide
all of the palettes, the toolbox, and the status bar, simply hit Tab. Hit Tab again
to turn everything back on just as it was before.





Figure 1.13
View options in the toolbox.
Here are your options for screen modes:


The Standard Screen Mode is the default for Photoshop (see Figure 1.14). It is
controlled by the far left button in the toolbox. The Standard Screen Mode keeps
all of your image windows in view.


Figure 1.14
Standard screen view.


To enter Full Screen Mode with Menu Bar, click the middle button (see Figure
1.15). This removes all windows but the active one from your desktop. It retains
the menu bar in a slightly cosmetically altered fashion at the very top of your screen.
You can also enter the Full Screen Mode by clicking the button on the far right of
the toolbox. This hides everything but your active window and the toolbox itself
(see Figure 1.16).


Figure 1.15
Full screen mode with menu bar.
Figure 1.16
Full screen view.
The Window Menu
You will find most of the options for configuring the way you view images in Photoshop
under the Window menu. If, for instance, your screen is becoming cluttered with a
variety of open image windows, try selecting Window+Cascade or Window+Tile (this
should feel familiar to those of us Windows users who struggled through 3.1). The
results are shown in Figures 1.17 and 1.18.
Figure 1.17
Cascaded Windows.
Figure 1.18
Tiled Windows.
If there are too many windows open for either of these commands to be of much
help, but you are working on and with all of them, try minimizing the windows by
clicking the minimize button (for Windows users) in the upper-right corner (see Figure
1.19).
Figure 1.19
The Minimize, Maximize, and Close buttons.
To keep your minimized windows organized, select Window+Arrange Icons. Use the
Window+Close All command to close all window. You will be prompted to save. Choose
Yes or all of the work you have done on a file will be lost.
Magnifying Views
This is an incredibly useful feature for viewing as well as editing images. When
you magnify an image, it enables you to do precision work. You can edit on a pixel-by-pixel
basis, which gives you very fine control over your subject.





NOTE: Pixel is short for picture element. These are the little squares
on your screen that make up an image. If you zoom in really close (say around 1000%),
you can see them. If you still can't see them, magnify higher. Photoshop enables
you to zoom up to 1600%.





There are two ways you can zoom, one of which is under the Window menu. Select
Window+Zoom In or Window+Zoom Out to move into and out of the image.





NOTE: The shortcut key for zooming is Ctrl-+ in Windows and Command-+
for the Macintosh. To zoom out, use Ctrl- - in Windows and Command- - for Macintosh.






The Zoom Tool
The Zoom tool is found at the bottom of the toolbox. It resembles a magnifying
glass with a (+) sign in it. To magnify an image, select this tool and click in the
canvas.
There are several modifier keys that go along with the Zoom tool. If you press
Alt (Command on a Macintosh), the (+) sign changes to a (-) sign. This reduces, or
zooms out, of an image.
The primary difference between this tool and using the menu commands is that with
the Zoom tool you can zoom into particular areas of an image, whereas the Window+Zoom
In affects the entire image.
To zoom into a specific area of an image with the Zoom tool, click and hold the
mouse button down. This will enable you to drag a marquee (a selection sometimes
referred to as the "marching ants") to the area you want to magnify. When
you have selected the desired area, simply release the mouse button and the magnification
will occur.
Let's experiment with using the Zoom tool to magnify specific sections of an image:


1. Select File+Open.

2. In the Open File dialog box, navigate to the CD-ROM.

3. From the Images folder, open sub folder for Chapter 1 and then double-click the
file 01file02 (see Figure 1.20).


Figure 1.20
Baseball glove and ball.


4. Now that you have the image of the baseball and glove in an active window,
click the Zoom tool in the toolbox (or type Z).

5. Position the Zoom tool at the upper left of the ball.

6. Click once and drag the Zoom tool's marquee around the ball. Try to get just the
ball in the marquee without leaving anything out. Your canvas should now contain
a picture like the one you see in Figure 1.21.


Figure 1.21
Magnification of the baseball.


7. Now let's make another magnification. Click and drag the Zoom tool's marquee
around the baseball's seams. You should see a section of the ball much like the one
in Figure 1.22.


Figure 1.22
Magnification of the seams.
Note the blocky appearance of the seams. Things get pretty blurry and blocky at
this level of magnification. Those blocks are pixels. And although it may
not look like much, if you need to do some very precise work, you'll appreciate this
capability. We'll use this technique again on Day 10, "Photo Repair and Special
Effects," when we do some photo repairs.





NOTE: Pressing Control-+ (Alt-+ on the Mac) zooms in to the maximum
magnification (a ratio of 1:16). You'll know when you are at the maximum magnification
because there will no longer be a (+) sign in the Zoom tool. Press Control- - (Alt-
- on the Mac) to zoom out to the minimum magnification. Just double-click the Zoom
tool to return to 100% (1:1).





The Zoom Options Palette Open the Zoom options palette by selecting the
Zoom tool in the toolbox and selecting Window+Show Options (see Figure 1.23). This
palette will enable you to control certain Zoom tool behaviors.
Figure 1.23
Zoom Tool Options palette.
Click the Fit on Screen button to zoom out precisely enough so that the canvas
fits exactly within the active window. The Actual Pixels button will adjust the magnification
to 100%. The Fit on Screen and Actual Pixels options are rarely equivalent.
Keep an eye at the top of the image window for information on the zoom ratio.





NOTE: You can save yourself a special trip to the toolbox if you
need the Zoom tool while you are working with another tool. Press Ctrl-Spacebar and
click your mouse. Alt-Spacebar invokes the Zoom-out tool.





The Navigator Palette
Open the Navigator palette by selecting Window+Show Navigator (see Figure 1.24).
This palette offers a smaller display of the entire image that is on the canvas in
your active window.
Figure 1.24
The Navigator palette.
Open the file 01file01 from the CD-ROM. As you can see, the entire image is displayed
in the Navigator palette. Now, click the Zoom-in button or drag the slider to the
right. The image in your active window will increase and a view box will appear in
the Navigator.
Move your cursor over the imagine the Navigator palette (but not directly over
the view box). This is the Proxy Preview area. The cursor changes to a pointer. Click
and the view box immediately appears in that area.
If you move your cursor over the view box, it will change into a fist icon with
which you can drag the view box wherever you want. A real-time (meaning simultaneous)
update will occur in the active window. This is a real help when you are searching
for an element while zoomed in.
Now click the Navigator palette's menu (the small arrow in the upper-right corner)
and select Palette Options. This command enables you to change the color of Navigator's
view box. There might come a time when you are looking at an image that is the same
color as the box, so this feature comes in very handy.
The Hand Tool
The last thing that I want to point out to you in regard to the Navigator palette
is that it has an equivalent in toolbox. In fact, the Navigator palette serves as
this item's options palette. I am referring to none other than the Hand tool.
This is one of the features of Photoshop that you will learn to love, because
when you have an image at a high magnification, navigating with scroll bars (the
horizontal and vertical bars on the right and bottom of the active window) is unwieldy.
Let's experiment a little with the Hand tool:


1. Open the file 01file02 from the CD-ROM.

2. Now, select the Hand tool from the toolbox, and select Window+Show Navigator.

3. The Hand tool can be transformed into the Zoom tool by pressing Ctrl to zoom in
and Alt to zoom out.

4. Press Ctrl and click to zoom in.

5. Now, release Ctrl and click and drag with the Hand tool.


The canvas moves however you move. This is very intuitive, and depending on how
fast a machine your have, very smooth. Notice the Navigator's view box. It moves
as you move. Use the Navigator as a guide.
Saving Files
Photoshop, like most software, requires you to save your work. Few applications,
however, offer you the number of options for saving as Photoshop. Saving enables
you to save your work, save your work with a different name, or save your work in
a different file format. Above all, save often. If your machine locks up or crashes,
you will lose all of your work back to the last time you saved. If you saved five
minutes ago, you lose five minutes of work. If you saved this morning, and it's quitting
time...well, let's just say I've been there, and it hurts.
Open a file of your own or one from the CD-ROM accompanying this book. Any file
will do. Here are the different Save options:


You can then choose to save with File+Save. This writes any changes you made
to the file over the existing file.


You also have the option of File+Save As. This gives you the opportunity to save
your file in a different location on your hard drive and also as a different file
format altogether.


Finally, you can choose File+Save a Copy. This is an option for you to consider
when you have reached a point in editing an image of which you might want a copy--like
when you are about to do something dangerous that might crash or hang your machine.
This gives you the opportunity to save a backup copy while still working on your
current image. On the Macintosh, it automatically appends the title "copy"
to the file name.







NOTE: There is one more option for moving files out of Photoshop.
This one is File+Export. There are a variety of options. Probably the most useful
is the Export Paths to Illustrator. This enables Illustrator, Photoshop's vector-based
sister application, to read Photoshop generated files easily.





Saving your work is essential. Save before you try something new. That way, if
the technique turns out rotten, you have a file to revert back to.
Just make sure that you save early and often. Photoshop is a powerhouse program.
It takes a lot of system power to run it, so don't be surprised if you Mac users
get a frozen mouse on occasion, or you Windows users get a Application not Responding
warning. So save your work.
Exporting Files
Another way of moving images out of Photoshop instead of merely saving them is
to export them. You can export Paths, discussed on Day 8, to Illustrator.
Remember from the Introduction that Illustrator is Adobe's vector drawing program.
When you export the paths, Illustrator can then open that file.
The other important option is File+Export+GIF89a Export, which is an extremely
important file format. It is used for the creation of web graphics (for more information,
see Day 14.
The other option is File+Export+QuickEdit Save. To do this, you must have imported
the file via Quick Edit. See the section in this chapter devoted to importing files.
Image Acquisition
Let's turn our attention now, nearing the end of Day 1, to the question of where
to get images. This is a good question. Images and ideas for images are all around
us--the problem is getting them into the computer where we can change them, enhance
them, and make them our own.





NOTE: There are, of course, legal questions and copyright issues.
Someone owns those images out there on the web and although they might seem free
for the taking, they really are not. One piece of advice--do unto others as you would
have them do unto you. I've heard horror stories, so check with the appropriate sources
and get the permissions you need before you take an image that's not yours.





Of course, if you create your own images from the ground up, you will have no
legal problems, but I would guess that most of us are only marginal artists and sometimes
need a little help from the pros. There are a number of sources from which we can
draw inspiration as well as actual images to manipulate. Listed below are just a
sample of what is out there.
The World Wide Web
The web is teeming with illustrations, graphics, and art. Web pages without at
least a couple of graphics are few and far between.
All of these images are available to be downloaded from their residence on some
far away server right to your hard drive, but, like I said earlier, there are legal
restrictions. Just because you can download and manipulate an image, it doesn't mean
that you should. Think before you download.
Web images might look crisp and clear on your monitor screen, but they actually
are at a low resolution (72 DPI). The reason for this is that computers cannot display
a higher resolution. Most monitors display something around 72 DPI, so anything higher
wouldn't look any better and would take much longer to download because the higher
the resolution, the higher the file size. Their low resolution makes web images poor
choices for reproduction in print, but a great source of experimental images, and
they are usually small so your machine won't get bogged down as you play with them.





NOTE: As a taxpayer of the United States of America, you are entitled
to vast archives of information and images from our National Government. Visit the
NASA web site (http://images.jsc.nasa.gov) or try the Library of Congress
(http://lcweb.loc.gov).





When you have found an image that you would like to download and use for experimentation
(never to be seen by any other eyes than your own, right?), click on the image and
hold. Most web browsers will display a menu of choices. Choose to save the image.
When it is finished downloading, open it up, and edit away. We will look more at
creating web graphics on Day 14.
Scanning
The only way to make a physical image, such as a photograph or a drawing on paper,
a digital image is by scanning it. To put it very simply, scanners use light
to look at an image. They then break this light down into discrete units, which is,
after all, how a computer presents images--via light.
These devices range in price from inexpensive consumer-level scanners for photographs,
to moderately priced flat-bed and slide scanners, to prohibitively expensive drum
scanners.
If this is something you might be interested in purchasing, one thing you need
to beware of is interpolation. Scanner resolution is measured in DPI (Dots
Per Inch). Sometimes manufacturers will tout a scanner as having an interpolated
resolution at 600 DPI. Although this is not necessarily bad, it does misrepresent
the scanner's capabilities. Interpolation is a means by which the scanner guesses
at pixel values in between pixels that were actually scanned. Therefore, interpolation
means that the scans might be somewhat less crisp and less faithful to the original.
Scanners are a powerful tool for image acquisition. Try scanning different items
for different effects. Try placing a physical object on the scanner (careful on the
glass). Sometimes if you scan, say, a leaf or a wristwatch, you might get a texture
or a special highlight that is perfect for a background or to add realism to a scene.
You can also try scanning with different backdrops behind the object in the focus
of the scan.
Remember, although Photoshop gives you extensive control over an image's appearance,
if you start with a bad scan, you will most likely end up with a bad image. Try to
get the best scan possible (this may mean curling up with the scanner manual and
a cup of cocoa).
If you do end up with a less than perfect scan, which is easy to do, try using
Photoshop's Sharpen filters. These will bring a crispness back into the image. They
do have their drawbacks, however, so don't rely on them to fix a terribly blurry
image. Photoshop can only work with what's there. It can invent a few pixels here
there as a fix, but it can't create a perfect reproduction of a Porsche 944 from
an image scanned out of a newspaper.
Digital Cameras
Still relatively new to the market, digital cameras offer fast ways to acquire
digital images, and they are reasonably priced.
Digital cameras capture images digitally, so there is no time wasted in translating
an image from the physical into digital. All you have to do is click the picture,
which is then stored in the camera's memory, and then download it to your computer.
From here, all you have to do is open it in Photoshop and go to work.
This is an especially good solution for web-based publishing for two reasons.
One is that it is fast. Images can be web-ready in moments after the download. The
second reason is that the image resolution of digital cameras (at least at the consumer
level) leaves a bit to be desired. Since the web only requires images to be at 72
DPI, this makes digital cameras a natural choice for working in web publishing.
Most photographers suggest for the best quality taking traditional photos and
having them professionally scanned. Another method is to use stock photography and/or
photo CDs.





NOTE: If you want a killer, absolutely wonderful, informative and
extremely well-written book on digital photography, check Hayden's Teach Yourself
Digital Photography in 14 Days by Carla Rose (one of the authors of the very book
you hold in your hand).





Photo CDs and Stock Images
If you don't own a scanner or a digital camera, there is yet another option for
you. Numerous stock photography houses have blossomed onto the web. Usually, you
can browse their sites for previews and then buy direct. Sometimes they will even
provide free comp images (images used by designers to mock-up designs for
books, ads, and so on).
For some examples, point your browsers to these web sites:


Tony Stone Images: http://www.tonystone.com


PhotoDisc: http://www.photodisc.com


Corbis: http://www.corbis.com/


Kodak: http://www.kodak.com


If you want to use your own images, there are plenty of businesses that can scan
your images for you. Check your yellow pages or try using one of the web search engines,
such as Yahoo! (http://www.yahoo.com).
A number of companies out there are vying for this sort of business, so you will
have your pick.
Troubleshooting
For Macintosh Users Only: If you are having trouble with Photoshop--the program
can't open files or it refuses to open--you can drag your Photoshop Preferences file
(which is found in the general Preferences file within your System folder) to the
Trash.
After you have done this, try opening the Photoshop application again. As it opens,
it will create a new, albeit default, Preferences file. You will then have to reset
your Preferences the way you like them, but this is a good way to get a fresh start,
and can sometimes solve tricky, unexplainable problems.
If you get the warning, Primary Scratch Disk Full, your hard drive has run out
of memory. The scratch disk uses a portion of your hard disk as virtual memory.
That is to say, when you have an image that overflows your RAM, it flows onto your
hard drive.
To solve this memory problem, you should either specify a new scratch disk (if
you have another hard drive hooked up to your machine) via File+General Preferences+Plug-Ins
& Scratch Disks or free up space on your hard drive by deleting unneeded files.
Summary
Your first day of Photoshop is done. I hope that you are intrigued by the possibilities
of this astounding application. You have learned a little about how Photoshop works
with images, how to open existing images and how to create new files for your own
work.
We also discussed how you can configure your view of images, using the Window
menu and the Zoom tools. These tools enable you to get the best view of an image,
so that you can do your best work.
The Info palette and Navigator palette were discussed also. There are plenty more
palettes to go. You will see a greater discussion of these on Day 3 when we examine
the painting tools.
In concluding the chapter, we took a brief look at ways you can acquire images.
The web is a storehouse of images. Visit some of the stock photography web sites
for samples. Try using a search engine, such as Yahoo!, to search for other stock
photography houses. And don't forget to visit Uncle Sam. You can get a lot of good
low resolution images from the United States government. Just remember to always
check for permissions before you ever use an image. Someone somewhere probably
owns it, and if they find out that you used it without permission...
This is a good start, but there is still a ways to go. Photoshop is incredibly
fun. This book is set up to be read linearly. That is, from page 1 to the very last,
but I would be a liar if I said that was the way you had to read it. Get the most
out of it as you can. If you are already familiar with the topic of a certain chapter,
skip it. Learn however you want to and experiment.
Tomorrow you will begin working with selections. Selections are central to using
Photoshop effectively. They enable you to edit and manipulate portions of images
and are a fundamental part of building your Photoshop knowledge. See you tomorrow.








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