58 photoshop tips for paint tools - By Trevor Morris

Paint Tools

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1. To draw a straight line with any paint tool, click on the image, move the mouse, and then Shift-click – Photoshop will join the two points with a straight line using the current tool.

2. While using any of the paint tools, press Enter to display / dismiss the Preset Picker (at the current mouse location). To access a list of available brush modes while painting, Shift-right-click on the image. To change the current brush / preset options, click directly on the brush / preset preview in the Options palette (or choose Edit Brush from the Shift-right-click menu).

3. Use the Caps Lock key to turn Precise Cursors on / off.

Note: This does not work if Precise Cursors are already enabled in the Preferences [Ctrl+K, Ctrl+3] (Edit » Preferences » Display & Cursors).

4. Use the hotkeys in the following table to vary the brush for the current paint tool:

HotKey Result
[ / ] decrease / increase brush size
Shift+ [ / ] decrease / increase brush hardness by 25%
< / > previous / next brush
Shift+ < / > first / last brush
Enter display Preset Picker (press Enter to dismiss)

5. Use the options available in the Brush Dynamics button menu ( Brush Dynamics ), on the Options palette, to fade the size, opacity, and color of the various brush tools.

Note: For people who use tablets, the above options may also be configured to recognize a stylus.

6. With the Auto Erase options enabled for the Pencil tool [B], if you begin painting on an area that contains the foreground color, the background color will be used instead, and vice versa. This is really useful for cleaning up line art, since it alleviates the need to continuously switch between the Pencil [B] and Erase [E] tools.

7. While using the Eraser tool [E], hold the Alt key to erase back to the source history state – similar to the behaviour of the History Brush tool [Y].

Note: You must establish a source history state in the History palette in order for this to work.

8. When using the Smudge tool [R], hold the Alt key down to include the foreground color in the smudge.

9. New! Use the Paint Bucket tool [G] to delete (instead of filling) by changing its blending mode to Clear [Alt+Shift+R] (in the Options palette).

10. New! To fill the transparent regions of an image, choose Edit » Fill [Shift+Backspace] and choose Behind from the Mode drop-down.

11. Duplicate Gradient Stops New! Alt-drag color stops, in the Gradient Editor, to duplicate them.

12. New! Hold down the Alt key while using the Blur tool [R] to sharpen, or to blur while using the Sharpen tool [R].

13. New! Hold down the Alt key while using the Dodge tool [O] to darken, or to lighten with the Burn tool [O].


Selection Tools

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14. When using the Marquee tools [M], use the Shift key to create perfect circles or squares: use the Alt key to draw them from their centers.

15. Use the Reselect command [Ctrl+Shift+D] (Select » Reselect) to restore your last selection.

16. You may alternate between Polygonal and Freehand Lasso [L], while you are creating a selection, by holding down the Alt key.

Example: See Selection Secrets 2 (Polygonal / Freehand Lasso) for a comprehensive description.

17. Use the Space Bar to move a selection while drawing it.

Example: See Selection Secrets (Moving Selections) for a comprehensive description.

18. Hold the Shift or Alt keys to add or subtract selections, respectively. Hold down both Shift and Alt together to intersect two selections.

Tip: Ctrl-click on a layer thumbnail (in the Layers palette) to load its transparency mask, and then Ctrl+Alt+Shift-click a second layer to intersect the two layers‘ transparency masks.

Example: See Selection Secrets (Intersecting Selections) for a comprehensive description.

19. Retain your selections while scaling or duplicating an image by first switching to Quick Mask mode [Q] (or click on the Quick Mask icon ( Quick Mask Mode ) near the bottom of the toolbar).

20. Alt-click the Quick Mask button to toggle between masked ( Quick Mask ) and selected areas ( Quick Mask ).

21. After editing a selection in Quick Mask mode, Alt-click the Standard mode (Quick Mask off) button ( Standard Mask ) to invert the current selection.

22. Ctrl-clicking on a layer thumbnail in the Layers palette is a convenient way to load the transparency mask for the active layer: however, if the contents of the layer extend beyond the edges of the canvas, so too will the resulting selection. To restrict the selection to the document bounds, invert the selection [Ctrl+Shift+I ] (Select » Invert) twice.

23. By default the Select » Color Range command dialog box displays the entire image in the preview area. For a more accurate preview and greater control, create an approximate selection around the area of interest. The selected area will be displayed in the preview area.

Tip: Hold the Shift key while choosing Select » Color Range to add the resulting selection to the current selection. Hold down Alt to subtract the results from the current selection.

Tip: Hold down the Ctrl key to toggle between Selection and Image previews in the Color Range dialog box. Use the Shift key to add colors and the Alt key to subtract colors from the selection.

Tip: Hold down Alt when choosing Quick Mask from the Selection Preview drop-down in the Color Range dialog box to adjust your Quick Mask Options without leaving the dialog.

24. Use a selection to stroke only a portion of a path.

25. When transforming a selection / layer, use the following buttons in the Options palette for added control:

* use the "Reference point location" image ( Reference Point Location ) to position the reference / pivot point
* press the "Relative positioning" button ( Relative Positioning ) to switch from absolute (canvas) positioning to relative positioning
* press the "Maintain aspect ratio" button ( Maintain Aspect Ratio ) to maintain a 1:1 aspect ratio while transforming


26. You can use the Marquee tool [M] (or Lasso tools [L]) to drag a selection outline from one document into another.

Tip: Hold the Shift key down (after initiating the drag – after clicking with the left mouse button) to have the selection centered in the destination document.

27. When dragging selections or layers from one document to another, hold down the Shift to have them centered on the destination canvas.

Note: If the source and destination documents are the same size (dimensions), the dragged elements are placed in the same relative position as they were in the original document (instead of being placed in the center of the canvas).

Note: If the destination canvas contains a selection, the dragged item will be placed into the center of the selection.

28. New! Here are some useful shortcuts for use with the Magnetic Selection tool [L] and Magnetic Pen tool [P]:

HotKey Result
[ / ] decrease / increase the Width
< / > decrease / increase Edge Contrast
Shift+[ / ] minimize / maximize the Width
Shift+< / > minimum (1%) / maximum (100%) Edge Contrast
Alt-drag Freeform tool
Alt-click draw straight lines
Alt+Shift-click draw straight lines at 45° increments
Alt-double-click close selection
Alt-double-click close selection with a straight line

29. New! When using the Lasso tool [L], hold the Alt key to draw a selection beyond the canvas boundaries.

30. New! To quickly change the Tolerance setting for the Magic Wand tool [W], press Enter, type the desired tolerance (or use the up and down arrow keys) and then press Enter again.


Color Tools

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31. Hold down the Alt key while using any paint tool to temporarily access the Eyedropper tool [ I ].

32. Hold down the Alt key when selecting a color with the Eyedropper tool [ I ] to define a background color.

33. Color Sampler Info Use the Color Sampler tool [Shift+I ] with the help of the Info palette [F8] (Window » Show Info) to monitor color changes in the current image. The before / after color values are displayed next to their respective color sampler number (e.g. # 1). Specify the sampler color mode via the Color Mode Pop-up Menu pop-up menu on the Info palette.

To add a new color sampler simply click anywhere on the canvas (with the Color Sampler tool). Remove a sampler by Alt-clicking on it.

Note: You may only have a maximum of four color samplers per image.

Tip: To use the Color Sampler tool from within a dialog box (such as Levels, Curves, etc.), hold down the Shift key. Alt+Shift-click on a sampler to delete it.

34. New! Place a color sampler with the Eyedropper tool [ I ] by Shift-clicking on the canvas.

35. Access the Color Sampler while using any paint tool by holding down both Alt and Shift.

36. The Eyedropper tool [ I ] allows you to copy the hexadecimal value of a color to the Clipboard. Simply right-click over the desired color (in the image window) and choose Copy Color as HTML from the context menu. You may then paste the color value into your favorite editor.

Note: You may also copy the current color as HTML (e.g. COLOR="#448CCB") by choosing Copy Color as HTML from the Color palette menu (Palette Menu).


Path & Shape Tools

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37. The table below provides several hotkeys that are useful for working with paths:

HotKey Result
Enter stroke a visible path with current paint tool and options 1
Ctrl+Enter turn a path into a selection 2
Ctrl+Shift+Enter add the current path's selection to the existing selection 3
Ctrl+Alt+Enter subtract the current path's selection from the existing selection 3
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+Enter intersect the current path's selection with the existing selection 3

1 Equivalent to clicking the Stroke Path button ( Stroke Path ) at the bottom of the Paths palette.

2 Equivalent to clicking the Path to Selection button ( Load Path as Selection ) at the bottom of the Paths palette.

3 These keys (omitting Ctrl and Enter) also work when clicking on the Path to Selection button ( Load Path as Selection ) at the bottom of the Channels palette.

38. While using the Pen [P], Path Selection [A], or Shape [U] tool, you can press Enter or Esc to hide the current path.

39. Enable the Magnetic Pen tool by turning on the Magnetic option in the Freeform Pen tool's [Shift+P] Options palette. Configure its behaviour via the Magnetic Pen Options drop-down button menu ( Magnetic Pen Tool Options ).

Tip: Toggle between the Magnetic and Freeform Pen tools by holding down the Alt key.

40. Add arrowheads to the Line tool [U] (Shape tool) using the Geometry Options button (menu) in the Options palette.

Arrowheads
41. Use paths as tracing guides for the Rubber Stamp tool [S] to remove such things as wires and power lines from images.

42. New! Use the Add [ + ] ( Add Shape ) or Subtract [ - ] ( Subtract Shape ) buttons in the Options palette to invert a path (i.e. to turn a Reveal All (clipping) path into a Hide All (clipping) path and vice versa).

Note: You must first select the path(s) using the Path Component Selection Tool [A].

43. New! Here are some useful shortcuts for use with the Pen [P] and Path Selection [A] tools:

Pen Tool [P] Result
Alt-click and drag node handle * redirect second handle before placing next point
Ctrl-click and drag node handle * redirect both handles before placing next point
Alt-click and drag create combination point (and redirect handle before placing next point)
Ctrl access Direct Selection tool
Ctrl+Alt access Path Component Selection tool
Alt-click on end point close path with corner point

Freeform Pen Tool [P] Result
Alt-click draw straight line / add a corner point
Ctrl-release close shape with straight line
Ctrl access Direct Selection tool
Ctrl+Alt access Path Component Selection tool

Direct Selection Tool Result
Ctrl+Alt-drag anchor point * access Convert tool
Ctrl access Path Component Selection tool
Alt-drag * duplicate selected sub-path

Path Component Selection Tool [A] Result
Ctrl+Alt-drag * duplicate selected sub-path
Alt-drag * duplicate selected path

Add Pen Tool Result
Alt access Remove Pen tool
Ctrl access Direct Selection tool
Alt-drag * duplicate selected sub-path
Ctrl+Alt access Path Component Selection tool

Remove Pen Tool Result
Alt access Add Pen tool
Ctrl access Direct Selection tool
Alt-drag * duplicate selected sub-path
Ctrl+Alt access Path Component Selection tool

Convert Point Tool Result
Alt-click convert to combination point
Alt-drag * convert to corner point and redirect handle
Ctrl access Direct Selection tool
Ctrl+Alt-drag * duplicate selection sub-path
Ctrl+Alt-drag * duplicate selection sub-path

* Add the Shift key to constrain motion to 45° increments.

44. New! To avoid anti-aliasing along horizontal and vertical edges of the Rectangle and Rounded Rectangle Shape tools [U], turn on the Snap to Pixels option in the Geometry Options drop-down (in the Options palette).

45. New! To combine two or more shapes into a single path, select the shapes with the Path Component Selection tool [A]. Then, select the desired shape blending options (in the Options palette) and press the Combine button.

Use the shape blending options to add ( Add to shape area ) [ + ], subtract ( Subtract from shape area ) [ - ], intersect ( Intersect shape areas ) or exclude ( Exclude overlapping shape areas ) two or more overlapping shapes.

46. New! To extract a simple object, try creating a path and then stroke the path with the Magic Eraser tool [E]. The nice thing about this technique is that you can continually refine and stroke the path until you are happy with the results – plus, you can save the path with your image.

Note: The results of this technique are often unpredictable and typically not as good as those obtained by other, more conventional methods of extraction, such as using the Extract command [Ctrl+Alt+X].


Visualization Tools

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47. Press the Space Bar to access the Hand tool [H] at any time.

48. Updated! Access the Zoom tool [Z] at any time by holding Ctrl+Space to zoom in, and Alt+Space to zoom out. You can even drag out a region to magnify while holding down Ctrl+Space.

49. Zoom in and out by using Ctrl+Plus ( + ) and Ctrl+Minus ( - ), respectively: have the window resize to fit by also holding down the Alt key (Ctrl+Alt+Plus and Ctrl+Alt+Minus).

Note: You may also have the document window zoom to fit while using the Zoom tool [Z] by enabling "Resize Windows to Fit" in the Options palette.

50. Measure Angles While the Measure tool [Shift+I ] is pretty handy for measuring distances (especially on a diagonal), you can also use it to measure angles (like a protractor). Make sure the Info palette [F8] (Window » Show Info) is visible; then use the Measure tool [Shift+I ] to drag / draw a line. Hold down the Alt key and drag a second line out from one of the end nodes (note the angle and length of the two lines in the Info palette).

Tip: Move a measure line (or protractor) by dragging it with the Measure tool (you may even reposition the endpoints independently). Delete a measure line (or protractor) by dragging it off the canvas.


Miscellanious

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51. Alt-click on tool icons (in the toolbar) to cycle through the available tools. This is a little faster than holding the left mouse button down to wait for the tool list to pop up.

Note: You may also right-click on a tool (in the toolbar) to see a list of the hidden tools (as well as their associated hotkeys).

52. Press Enter (or double-click on a tool icon in the toolbar) to reveal the Options palette for the currently active tool. Alternatively, you may choose Window » Show Options from the menus to reveal the Options palette.

Tip: Pressing Enter also highlights the first field in the Options palette (regardless of whether or not the Options palette is already visible) so that you may immediately enter a value or choose an option.

53. To restore the default settings for one (or all) of the tools click on its icon on the left side of the Options palette (Window » Show Options) and choose Reset Tool (or Reset All Tools). A dialog box will appear to confirm that you wish to reset the tool(s).

Tip: You may also restore all tools to their defaults via the Reset All Tools button in the General Preferences dialog box [Ctrl+K] (Edit » Preferences » General). A dialog box will appear to confirm that you wish to reset all tools.

54. Updated! Use the following keys while using any of the paint or selection tools:

HotKey Result
Ctrl access the Move tool [V]
Ctrl+Alt-drag * create duplicate of the current layer or selection
Ctrl+Alt+right-click select the top-most layer under the mouse pointer
Ctrl+Alt+Shift-right-click (un)link the selected layer to the active layer
Shift constrain movement to 45º increments

* Add the Shift key to constrain motion to 45° increments.

55. New! Using the Move tool [V], Ctrl-click to select the layer under the mouse. Add the Shift key to (un)link the selected layer to the active layer.

56. Updated! Hold down the Ctrl key to temporarily invert the behaviour of the View » Snap [Ctrl+; ] option. For example, if the View » Snap option is turned on, hold down the Ctrl key to disable it and vice versa.

Example: Hold down the Ctrl key to stop the Crop tool [C] from snapping to the image borders. Alternatively, you may stop the Crop tool from snapping by turning off View » Snap To » Document Bounds (or None); or turn off snapping altogether [Ctrl+ ; ] (View » Snap).

57. You can use the Crop tool [C] to enlarge, rotate and even to add perspective to the current document! To increase the canvas size, choose full screen mode [F] (using one of the Full Screen Mode buttons ( Full Screen Mode ) near the bottom of the toolbar), and then drag any side / node of the crop marquee beyond the canvas boundaries. Rotate the image by dragging anywhere outside the crop marquee. Add perspective to the cropped region by first enabling the Perspective option in the Options palette and then dragging any corner node.

Note: To accept the crop results you may double-click inside the crop region, press Enter, right-click on the image window and choose Crop, or click the Commit button ( Commit Changes ) in the Options palette. To cancel the crop, press Esc, right-click on the image window and choose Cancel, or click the Cancel button ( Cancel Changes ) in Options palette.

58. When specifying dimensions for the Marquee [M], Crop [C], Shape [U], and Type [ T ] tools, you may use a variety of different units including: px = pixels, in = inches, cm = centimeters, pt = points, pica = picas, and % = percentages. Simply type the number followed by one of the above abbreviations (e.g. 5cm, 50%, 2 pt, etc.)

Note: Photoshop will also accept the full name of the above units (e.g. 5 centimeters), but it is much simpler to use the abbreviations!