With elements of the digital world creeping its way into every industry, it’s more important than ever to have some understanding when it comes to photo editing, especially if you work in digital marketing. Photoshop is one of the best platforms out there, as you can do practically anything and as it is so popular, there are tutorials out there to teach you how to do practically anything! Although it might seem quite overwhelming to start with, when you get used to a few of the basics, you will soon realise what is possible! So, let’s get started and find out 3 simple photoshop tips for beginners. 

Understand Your Layers

The first thing you need to understand when it comes to Photoshop is the layers. This feature allows you to separate parts of the images and edit them without impacting the rest of the image. You can add a foundation layer, retouching layers and then a layer to allow you to add text, gradient features, lenses and colour toning. This is an integral feature, so understanding how it works is important. 

You can create layers, lock them to prevent them from being changed, unlock them to change them, view and un-view the layer to see if the previous version was better and so much more. The main purpose is to allow you to add new components to see how they look without actually editing the original images. When you add a new component to your Photoshop document, it will automatically be added as a new layer. Just make sure that you have the correct layer selected in the layers menu in the bottom right-hand corner and you can start making the adjustments! 

You Can Merge Layers

Another tip for beginners in Photoshop is knowing that you can merge layers together. As mentioned above, you need to make use of layers in Photoshop. However, once you are happy with a few of the different layers and want to continue to make edits to other components, you can merge layers together. For example, say you have your original image layer and you created another layer to make the original image more opaque, you can then merge those two layers and continue creating new layers. 

There are a few benefits to this. Firstly, it will make sure that you won’t accidentally be moving layers around that you don’t want to, as Photoshop can be quite sensitive in this way. Also, it can help you to see the layers that you are actually working on more clearly by tidying up the Layers panel. Finally, it will reduce the file size of your document. Generally, it just simplifies the process! 

Magnetic Lasso Tool

One of the best tools (we believe) in Photoshop is the Magnetic Lasso Tool. This allows you to easily select part of a layer or image with the assistance of the tool. It does this by detecting the edges of an object that you are close to where you are highlighting. An example would be if you have a product in an image that you wanted to remove from the background and discard of the background. This tool works especially well if you have a very clear background and a clear object that you want to select, as the tool will find it more difficult to highlight the object. 

If the selection isn’t quite accurate, then there is a “+” and “-” option to help you either add to the selection or take parts away to make it what you were looking for. This is so easy to get the hang of and is a go-to tool for most people using Photoshop. 

Final Thoughts

Photoshop can be daunting to begin with, but once you know how to use a few of the basics, you will continue learning and make the most of the programme. A professional graphic design agency Manchester or London based can offer quick and professional results for a particular project, but if you want to be able to offer something new in your job role long-term, this is a great skill. If you are unsure of anything, there is a tutorial somewhere out there to help you. You’d be surprised at how quickly you are able to pick up new things and learn a new skill that you can make use of. If you’re looking for a new skill, this is definitely a good one to go for!