Monday, November 3, 2008

Introduction to Adobe Photoshop

By David Peters

Never before in the history of photography have more people been able to create such exciting and professional effects on their own. Using your computer you can purchase software at affordable prices which is used by veteran graphic designers and photographers around the world. While there is a large pool of programs to choose from, no programs can come close to Photoshop. The term 'to Photoshop' has been taken into everyday use to mean enhancing photographs, showing its popularity and celebrity reputation.

Do you want a picture of you, your family and a giraffe all dancing on the surface of Pluto? With Photoshop, anything you want is possible. With practice, you can make the vision of your wildest imagination come true. Effects that took large budgets and studios to create are now easy to produce with the click of a button.

Photoshop is also useful for taking things out of the picture that you don't want. Glaring physical flaws like skin blemishes can be removed to improve the image, and it is even possible to remove entire objects or figures that you want out of the image. Photoshop is so refined that it will be impossible to tell if your images have been enhanced at all.

Photoshop is essential for anyone interested in photography in today's digital world. The software is just as important and wide-spread as Microsoft Word and PowerPoint in the media industry. You may feel pressure to learn how to use the software, but the resources are easily available to anyone due to the popularity of the program. A lot of people know how to use Photoshop, so if you know anyone in college or high school, ask them if they could teach you.

The birth of Photoshop was in 1989 by the Knoll brothers. The software was being developed for their own use at the time, but the sophistication of the software made it clear that there was a market for Photoshop. They soon founded Adobe and began selling the program in 1990.

The success of Adobe is an outstanding example of the power of the internet. Software designed by Adobe is on nearly every computer in the world, as its free PDF reader has had such widespread popularity. The Adobe Reader is the standard PDF reader, just as Adobe Photoshop is the standard photo editor and is proof of Adobe's unique dominance of media-related software.

To gain experience with Photoshop you should find a copy you can experiment with. Perhaps a friend or relative has one. Go over and explore the program, browsing all the features and adding effects to images. Once you get a feel for how the software operates, ask your friend to show you the more advanced features. Then you'll see why Photoshop has its first-rate reputation. Within no time, you will be addicted to Photoshop.

Downloading a copy for your own use will make it easier to practice using Photoshop. You can get a free trial version, but it will have limited features. The best thing to do is to buy a full version from Adobe as then you don't have to worry anymore and can concentrate on learning how to use the product. Photoshop is used so much, that it makes sense buying a copy. Once you own a copy, you may find that you spend hours experimenting and exploring the features. While this is a great way to get used to the features, specific learning in a Photoshop class can improve your learning curve and make you understand Photoshop faster.

After you are used to Photoshop there is nothing stopping you from creating whatever images you want. There are infinite possibilities for what you can make. Experiment and remember to have fun! - 15437

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