| Review of Adobe Photoshop 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||
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I have been using Photoshop on the Windows platform since my first exposure with version 2.5 LE. This review only addresses Photoshop on the Windows platform using Windows 2000 and Windows XP. Having finished the review, I returned to the first paragraph to state that this new version of Photoshop is absolutely fabulous. The requirements for the Windows version are:
The street price for a full edition is $600.00 and for an upgrade is $135. However, I noticed that some catalog companies are offering other bundled software with it for a nominal additional price. Included in the box is of course, ImageReady 7, a large user manual, a detailed reference card, and extra goodies on the CD. I had been anxiously awaiting Photoshop 7 for a few weeks. Even though I used some of the features in version 6, I still preferred version 5.5. That changed, however, as soon as I put Photoshop 7 on my machine and saw the customizable interface, especially the brushes. Finally, I had the best of both versions 5.5 and 6. I could use the features of the Preset Manager, but leave the brushes palette open if I desired. Since I work on two monitors, this was perfect for me. I arranged my interface so that my palettes that I keep open all the time were on the monitor on my right and the ones I wanted to open occasionally were right below the the upper menu bar called the Wall Palette . (The area circled in red). Once one customizes an interface either for the task at hand or for personal use, should one happen to share a computer, each person can then save their own version of the interface and label it so it can be accessed when Photoshop 7 is opened.
Wherever one looks at the interface one finds information about the tools in use. Just under the main menu bar are context sensitive information transmitters. Also, there are fly-outs that further identify tools. A good example is shown whenever a brush is selected. There are at least three separate indicators of the characteristics of the brush that is being selected. This is just one example of the information available. In addition, this information is not set up so that it clutters up the screen. The brush palette above-right, for example, can be condensed in many ways.
A look at the tools will indicate some changes. There is a
new tool called a Healing I was able to minimize some green shadows on a picture of a bird. The first row "After" picture reflects about 5 minutes of work. Had I worked longer, I could have refined the process considerably. The second "After" picture also took under 5 minutes. What impressed me was the ability of the Healing Tool to blend the change with the original picture.
The Airbrush Tool has not been lost. Instead, it has been incorporated into the expanded Brush Palette. One can enable the Airbrush for various tools such as the brush or the eraser. And one can use it with many different types of brushes as well. Prior to version 7, one had to use a painting program or various plugins in order to use natural media brushes. However, Photoshop 7 changes that with the introduction of natural media brushes. Just a very few of the new ones can be seen below. In addition, Photoshop 7 gives the user the tools to truly customize the brushes. And once again, Adobe provides a tutorial on how to do it. There are a number of choices available to use to create one's own brush. Two of the screens are shown below - Brush Tip Shape and Shape Dynamics. As one can see there are many more screens available to use to create one's own brush. The brushes , then, can be saved in brush libraries.
The following represents a very few of the new preset brushes in Photoshop 7. In addition to the brushes in Photoshop 7, one can bring in any favorites created in Photoshop 6 and they will appear in the preset menu.
A new and extremely useful feature of Photoshop
7 is the File Browser. Finally one does
Not only can one customize brushes, but one can customize tools and save them in the Tools Presets Palette which I have docked in the Wall Palette. Thus, if I use one tool a certain way, for example, the eraser, I can create a preset of the eraser and save it to the Tools Presets Palette. I can save as many presets as I like.
Sometimes when I run across an interesting aspect of a program that is not really part of a review, I like to insert it anyway. I ran across a discussion of TIFFs in an Adobe tech document. In Photoshop 7, a TIFF can be saved keeping its layers in tact. When opened in another program, it loses its layers, but when opened again in Photoshop 7, it is still in its layered state. The "layered" file wherever it is opened is always larger than the flattened file even when opened in Photoshop 5.5, for example, where it appears to be flattened. As one will notice, when choosing various file formats other than PSD, many options as to compression, etc. are available.
Some other features new to Photoshop 7 are:
Before this review is concluded, one cannot forget the new additions to ImageReady 7 and its tight integration with Photoshop 7. Both programs give many options for saving files for the web. One can simply save for the web or one can choose which elements are optimized and which are left to remain extremely sharp. For example, vector art or text can have a higher priority than a background image. In other words, a background image can be compressed more than a vector foreground image. Another area that has been improved involved creating transparent Gifs. This can now be done by simply eliminating the colors in a background, for example. The good news is, that these pixels can easily be restored. In addition, both programs offer a dither transparency option so that web graphics can be more easily blended into the background of a page. The best way to describe how to remap an image's transparency is through a series of simplified pictures. The left most picture is the original image. The next image shows its color map. The square on the bottom second from the right represents the color of the border. That square was dragged to the transparency box. The resultant image lacks the red border. Thus the whole image background becomes transparent.
The ImageReady 7 Rollovers Palette contains all the
information about slices, image maps, animations, and
rollovers in one spot I have always been very picky about how my colors on my monitor matched my printers and also matched outside sources. In the past, before color management became "popular" I went to great lengths to calibrate my equipment in an affordable manner. While I did not use the default color setting for Photoshop 7 which was set for a "Web Default," it was very easy to select another setting that worked extremely well. I was also leery about how well the Auto Color Command would work. I usually do not like to use any "Auto" commands. Well I had taken a picture that had a very pink cast to it. I applied the Auto Color Command and was very pleased with the results.
I guess one could say I am very excited with this version of Photoshop 7 and ImageReady 7. Actually very excited doesn't even do justice to this terrific version. I know that as I keep using it I will keep finding even more new additions and modifications. All I can say is good-bye 5.5 and 6 and hello version 7. More information about Photoshop 7 can be found on the Adobe website at http://www.adobe.com/. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Tool. And there is no Airbrush Tool on
the tool bar. The function of the Healing Tool is
rather unique. Instead of using the Rubber Stamp to fix up a
blemish on a face, for example, the Healing Tool can be
used instead. This tool will preserve more of the
image's inherent characteristics . There is even a 
not have to exit from Photoshop to look for an
image. One can just call on the File Browser to look
for it. I docked my File Browser in the Wall Palette
so I could open and close it at will and I would not have
to clutter up my desktop. Below is pictured a screen capture
of the File Browser pointing to my file of Egret
pictures. One can open a window in many ways including in its
own window, docked, or undocked, etc. The File Browser
also integrates with a digital camera. As I stated
earlier, Photoshop 7 allows for extreme customization.
There are other new or improved tools in Photoshop
7. One is the Pattern Maker which allows the user to
create all over background patterns from any image; another is
an improved Liquify Command. One can save low
resolution meshes and, then, apply them to a higher resolution
version of the same image. Once again, there are many
parameters that can be manipulated to distort an image such as
jitter, brush pressure, etc. Some of the different types of
tools or brushes that can be used are shown on the left.
so that a quick over view of the contents of a
document is possible. Creating Rollovers has also been
simplified in this edition of ImageReady by allowing
layer-based rollovers to be made with the simple click of a
button. See the blue circle. And adding animation frames has
never been easier. See the red circle.
