Working non-destructively in Photoshop
Getting to know Photoshop takes time and to truly understand every aspect of the software takes years. Many people will work in many different ways but in my opinion the best way to work is with an approach that keeps your original file “untouched”. Here are a few tips to work non-destructively in Photoshop.
Make a duplicate of your background layer.
If all else fails simply making a duplicate of your background layer to work on can save you time if your work goes bad.
Get Smart
Upgrade to CS3 or wait a little longer and upgrade to the soon to be released CS4 and take advantage of Smart Objects and their Smart Filters. Using Smart Filters rocks, Mask them out, turn them off, go back and adjust them later, such a great way to work.
Layer masks
Put that eraser down! Using layer masks is a much more efficient way to work. Using layer mask can save you so many headaches, your layer contents remain untouched and can be rearranged or adjusted at any time after.
There is probably a hundred other tips but to me these are the main ones. I’ll be writing a Smart Filter tutorial very soon so watch this space!!
Posted on September 26th, 2008 under Photoshop tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
