Introduction 1
About This Book 1
Icons Used in This Book 3
Beyond the Book 3
Where to Go from Here 3
Part 1: Getting Started with Photoshop Elements 2019 5
Chapter 1: Getting Started with Image Editing 7
Getting Familiar with the New Home Screen 8
Launching the Photo Editor 9
Making Basic Edits in Quick Mode 10
Sharing a Photo 12
Retracing Your Steps 14
Using the History panel 14
Reverting to the last save 15
Getting a Helping Hand 16
Saving Files with Purpose 17
Using the Save/Save As dialog box 17
Saving files for the web 18
Chapter 2: Taking Pictures 21
Understanding the Importance of Lighting 22
Identifying the Different Kinds of Photography 23
Focusing on the Phases of Photography 24
Setting up 24
Shooting the picture 25
Processing your images 26
Choosing Your Camera Equipment 26
DSLR cameras 26
Mirrorless cameras 27
Point-and-shoot cameras 27
Cellphone cameras 28
Working with Color Profile Equipment 28
Getting Familiar with Indoor Lighting Equipment 29
Inexpensive lighting equipment 29
Professional lighting equipment 31
Working with Common Lighting Patterns 32
Split lighting 32
Loop lighting 32
Broad lighting 32
Short lighting 33
Butterfly lighting 34
Rembrandt lighting 34
Reflecting the Light 34
Working with Flash 35
Understanding flash units and equipment 35
Using flash as a fill light 36
Chapter 3: Basic Image-Editing Concepts 37
Grappling with the Ubiquitous Pixels 38
Understanding resolution 38
Understanding image dimensions 41
The Art of Resampling 41
Changing image size and resolution 42
Choosing a Resolution for Print or Onscreen 43
Working with File Formats 44
JPEG (*.JPG, *.JPEG, *.JPE) 45
PNG (*.PNG) 46
TIFF (*.TIF, *.TIFF) 46
Getting Familiar with Color 47
Getting Color Right 48
Color the easy way 49
Calibrating your monitor 49
Choosing a color workspace 50
Understanding how profiles work 51
Chapter 4: Exploring the Photo Editor 53
Examining the Photo Editor 53
Examining the image window 57
Uncovering the contextual menus 60
Selecting the tools 61
Selecting from the Tool Options 64
Playing with panels 64
Using the Photo Bin 67
Creating different views of an image 68
Viewing filenames 68
Using Photo Bin Actions 69
Finding Your Bearings in Guided Mode 69
Controlling the Editing Environment 71
Launching and navigating preferences 72
Checking out all the preferences panes 73
Part 2: Managing Media 77
Chapter 5: Navigating the Organizer 79
Organizing Photos and Media on a Hard Drive 80
Adding Images to the Organizer 81
Adding files from folders and removable media 81
Downloading camera images with the Elements Downloader 83
Importing additional photos from folders 85
Navigating the Media Browser 86
Using a Scanner 87
Understanding image requirements 88
Using scanner plug-ins (Windows) 88
Scanning on the Mac 90
Scanning many photos at a time 90
Phoning in Your Images 92
Setting Organizer Preferences 93
Chapter 6: Organizing Your Pictures 95
Touring the Organizer 96
Organizing Groups of Images with Tags 99
Creating and viewing a tag 99
Adding icons to tags 101
Working with custom tags 102
Working with default tags 103
Working with subcategories 104
Sorting photos according to tags 105
Auto Curating Images 106
Working with Auto Creations 106
Auto-generating creations 106
Adding new events 107
Rating Images with Stars 107
Adding Images to an Album 108
Creating an album 108
Using albums for temporary work 110
Editing an album 110
Finding out more about sharing your albums 111
Adding People in the Media Browser 111
Placing Pictures on Maps 113
Working with Events 115
Chapter 7: Viewing and Finding Your Images 117
Cataloging Files 117
Using the Catalog Manager 118
Working with catalogs 119
Backing up your catalog 120
Backing up photos and files (Windows) 121
Switching to a Different View 122
Viewing Photos in Memories (Slideshow) 123
Searching for Photos 125
Using Search 125
Searching for untagged items 127
Searching captions and notes 127
Searching by history 128
Searching metadata 128
Searching similarities 130
Grouping Files That Get in the Way 131
Marking files as hidden 131
Stackin' 'em up 131
Creating versions 133
Part 3: Selecting and Correcting Photos 135
Chapter 8: Making and Modifying Selections 137
Defining Selections 137
Creating Rectangular and Elliptical Selections 138
Perfecting squares and circles with Shift and Alt (Option on the Mac) 140
Applying Marquee options 140
Making Freeform Selections with the Lasso Tools 142
Selecting with the Lasso tool 143
Getting straight with the Polygonal Lasso tool 145
Snapping with the Magnetic Lasso tool 145
Working Wizardry with the Magic Wand 148
Talking about Tolerance 148
Wielding the Wand to select 149
Modifying Your Selections 151
Adding to, subtracting from, and intersecting a selection 151
Avoiding key collisions 152
Painting with the Selection Brush 153
Painting with the Quick Selection Tool 155
Selecting with the Auto Selection Tool 157
Fine-Tuning with the Refine Selection Brush 158
Working with the Cookie Cutter Tool 160
Eliminating with the Eraser Tools 162
The Eraser tool 162
The Background Eraser tool 163
The Magic Eraser tool 165
Using the Select Menu 165
Selecting all or nothing 165
Reselecting a selection 166
Inversing a selection 166
Feathering a selection 166
Refining the edges of a selection 167
Using the Modify commands 168
Applying the Grow and Similar commands 169
Saving and loading selections 169
Chapter 9: Working with Layers 171
Getting to Know Layers 171
Converting a background to a layer 172
Anatomy of the Layers panel 173
Using the Layer and Select menus 176
Working with Different Layer Types 178
Image layers 178
Adjustment layers 179
Fill layers 181
Shape layers 182
Type layers 183
Tackling Layer Basics 183
Creating a new layer from scratch 183
Using Layer via Copy and Layer via Cut 184
Duplicating layers 185
Dragging and dropping layers 186
Using the Paste into Selection command 186
Moving a Layer's Content 187
Transforming Layers 188
Adding Layer Masks 189
Flattening and Merging Layers 192
Flattening layers 192
Merging layers 193
Chapter 10: Simple Image Makeovers 195
Cropping and Straightening Images 195
Cutting away with the Crop tool 196
Fixing distortion with the Perspective Crop tool 198
Cropping with a selection border 200
Straightening images 200
Recomposing Images 201
Employing One-Step Auto Fixes 203
Auto Smart Tone 204
Auto Smart Fix 205
Auto Levels 206
Auto Contrast 206
Auto Haze Removal 207
Auto Color Correction 207
Auto Shake Reduction 208
Auto Sharpen 209
Auto Red Eye Fix 209
Editing in Quick Mode 210
Fixing Small Imperfections with Tools 214
Cloning with the Clone Stamp tool 214
Retouching with the Healing Brush 216
Zeroing in with the Spot Healing Brush 219
Repositioning with the Content-Aware Move tool 220
Lightening and darkening with Dodge and Burn tools 222
Smudging away rough spots 224
Softening with the Blur tool 225
Focusing with the Sharpen tool 226
Sponging color on and off 227
Replacing one color with another 229
Chapter 11: Correcting Contrast, Color, and Clarity 233
Editing Your Photos Using a Logical Workflow 234
Adjusting Lighting 235
Fixing lighting with Shadows/Highlights 235
Using Brightness/Contrast 236
Pinpointing proper contrast with Levels 237
Adjusting Color 239
Removing color casts automatically 240
Adjusting with Hue/Saturation 241
Eliminating color with Remove Color 242
Switching colors with Replace Color 244
Correcting with Color Curves 245
Adjusting skin tones 247
Defringing layers 249
Eliminating haze 250
Adjusting color temperature with photo filters 251
Mapping your colors 252
Adjusting Clarity 253
Removing noise, artifacts, dust, and scratches 253
Blurring when you need to 254
Sharpening for better focus 257
Opening closed eyes 260
Adjusting Facial Features 261
Reducing shake 262
Working Intelligently with the Smart Brush Tools 263
Part 4: Exploring Your Inner Artist 267
Chapter 12: Playing with Filters, Effects, Styles, and More 269
Having Fun with Filters 269
Applying filters 270
Corrective or destructive filters 271
One-step or multistep filters 271
Fading a filter 272
Selectively applying a filter 272
Working in the Filter Gallery 273
Distorting with the Liquify filter 275
Correcting Camera Distortion 277
Exploring Element's Unique Filters 278
Creating a comic 279
Getting graphic 280
Using the Pen and Ink filter 281
Dressing Up with Photo and Text Effects 282
Adding Shadows, Glows, and More 284
Applying styles 285
Working with styles 286
Using the Graphics panel 287
Mixing It Up with Blend Modes 288
General blend modes 289
Darken blend modes 289
Lighten blend modes 291
Lighting blend modes 291
Inverter blend modes 294
HSL blend modes 294
Using Photomerge 295
Photomerge Panorama 296
Photomerge Group Shot 298
Photomerge Scene Cleaner 300
Photomerge Exposure 301
Photomerge Compose 303
Chapter 13: Drawing and Painting 307
Choosing Color 307
Working with the Color Picker 308
Dipping into the Color Swatches panel 309
Sampling with the Eyedropper tool 311
Getting Artsy with the Pencil and Brush Tools 312
Drawing with the Pencil tool 312
Painting with the Brush tool 314
Using the Impressionist Brush 316
Creating your own brush 317
Filling and Outlining Selections 319
Fill 'er up 319
Outlining with the Stroke command 320
Splashing on Color with the Paint Bucket Tool 321
Working with Multicolored Gradients 322
Applying a preset gradient 322
Customizing gradients 324
Working with Patterns 327
Applying a preset pattern 327
Creating a new pattern 328
Creating Shapes of All Sorts 329
Drawing a shape 330
Drawing multiple shapes 331
Specifying Geometry options 332
Editing shapes 333
Chapter 14: Working with Type 335
Understanding Type Basics 335
Tools 336
Modes 336
Formats 337
Creating Point Type 337
Creating Paragraph Type 339
Creating Path Type 340
Using the Text On Selection tool 340
Using the Text On Shape tool 341
Using the Text On Custom Path tool 343
Specifying Type Options 344
Editing Text 346
Simplifying Type 347
Masking with Type 348
Stylizing and Warping Type 351
Adjusting type opacity 351
Applying filters to your type 351
Painting your type with color and gradients 353
Warping your type 354
Part 5: Printing, Creating, and Sharing 355
Chapter 15: Getting It on Paper 357
Getting Pictures Ready for Printing 358
Working with Color Printer Profiles 359
Printing a photo with the printer managing color 360
Printing a photo with Elements managing color 366
Printing a picture package or contact sheet 368
Getting Familiar with the Print Dialog Box 369
Using Page Setup 371
Creating transfers, borders, and more with More Options 371
Chapter 16: Sharing Your Work 373
Getting Familiar with the Elements Sharing Options 373
Planning ahead 374
Understanding photo sharing in Elements 375
Using the Share Panel 376
Emailing photos 377
Working with Adobe Premiere Elements 379
Sharing your photos on social networks 379
Creating Facebook Cover Images 381
Chapter 17: Making Creations 385
Checking Out the Create Panel 385
Grasping Creation-Assembly Basics 386
Creating a Memories Video 390
Creating a PDF Slideshow 391
Making Additional Creations 391
Part 6: The Part of Tens 393
Chapter 18: Ten Tips for Composing Better Photos 395
Find a Focal Point 395
Use the Rule of Thirds 396
Cut the Clutter 396
Frame Your Shot 397
Employ Contrast 398
Experiment with Viewpoints 398
Use Leading Lines 399
Use Light 399
Give Direction 400
Consider Direction of Movement 401
Chapter 19: Ten (Or So) More Project Ideas 403
Screen Savers 403
Flyers, Ads, and Online Auctions 404
Clothes, Hats, and More 406
Posters 407
Household and Business Inventories 407
Project Documentation 407
School Reports and Projects 408
Blogs 408
Wait - There's More 408
Index 409
