Question on Adobe Photoshop?

[WaterWolf 0]

I was hoping to get some advice on installing photoshop. When I clicked to the "page" where they asked whether to open the different type of file formats in Photoshop vs Image Reader vs no change (and I am not sure what is meant by "no change") I wasn't sure for my purposes what is the best to check off for installing the software. I have a Nikon 5700 (as of now) and take photos in NEF, TIF and JPEG format. Should I choose photoshop, image reader or no change - or just go with the default settings. I can't seem to find anything in the manual on this so any help is much appreciated. There are these 3 options for all types of file formats as well but these are the only ones I am really familiar with right now. In fact I guess I do not understand the difference between photoshop and image reader.

 

Thanks in advance!!

 

Regards

Lee

[Graham 0]

Hey WaterWolf,

 

Are you trying to install Photoshop CS2? Or right clicking on a file and deciding which program to open a graphic file with? I shoot in NEF anf JPG Fine, and use Nikon Caputure for RAW NEF files or more typically just open the JPEG's with Photoshop. Did you install Adobe Bridge as well?

 

Graham

[Graham 0]

I think I know what you mean... I would choose to open all graphic files with Photoshop. CS2 has RAW processing as well.

 

I think I remember that page that comes up in the installation. You might just want to use the default settings, or choose the file formats you would typically want to process graphic files with. I think Windows XP will allow you to later choose which program to use for opening different file formats. Just right click on a file and then click on "open with" then choose a program...

[WaterWolf 0]

Graham

 

Thanks. I am trying to load Adobe Photoshop CS. I am not sure what Adobe Bridge is..but would appreciate any info. I guess I just want to make sure that even if I choose the default I can still load, open and save files in jpeg, tif and nef in the software installed. I have been using Nikon Editor since I bought the camera but am now switching to photoshop.

 

Thanks

Lee

[Graham 0]

Hey Lee,

 

Once a file is opened in Photoshop, you have many options for saving files. For the web, click on save for web, and you can optimize the image, and choose gif or jpeg. jpeg's are best for photos and gif's for line art drawings.

 

If you try to save a file using "save as" and jpeg is not shown as an option, go back and click on "layer" then "flatten image", then you can save it as a jpeg. JPEG will not support layers.

 

Every time you open a JPEG, and re-save it as a JPEG you loose photographic details. I figured you know all this stuff since you mentioned working with TIFF. I like to save my best shots as TIFF, but each pic is about 50MB, same file in RAW is about 15MB, and JPEG about 2MB, and optimized for the web, often about 60KB...

[WaterWolf 0]

Thanks Graham - much appreciated! I will go for the default but change the jpeg files to photoshop rather than the default of no change. Quite honestly I am not sure what checking off "no change" means in the end..maybe I should leave it at that??? I always heard that Photoshop is not particularly user friendly..and I am only trying to install it at this point. I can't wait to start using it

 

Regards

Lee

[Graham 0]

Hi Lee,

 

I think Photoshop could be looked at from two perspectives, the most user friendly photographic manipulation software available as well as the least friendly. The program is capable of so many things that it can seem over whelming at first. I consider myself at amateur hobbyist level, even after spending hundreds of $ on classes and books, but the investment was worthwhile. Scott Kelby has authored a number of books that show clear step by step instructions of how to use the program. Without his books and a few of his classes I would not feel as comfortable with the program as I do now.

 

Please feel free to ask questions and hopefully some of us can learn something. I know there are people who lurk here that have much more experience than me, and hopefully they will chime in….

 

 

Cheers,

Graham

[mhackney 0]

Hey guys, I just wanted to respond with some potentially useful information. The TIF file format actually does support several different compression algorithms - both lossless and lossy compression. Currently, JPG is what is referred to as a lossy compressor - the quality of the image degrades each time you apply the compression - even at the highest quality. The ZIP format that you are probably familiar with is lossless - you get back exactly what you put in. TIF supports ZIP compression as well as LZW as lossless compressors and actually supports JPG as a lossless compressor too. You can select these in Photoshop when you do a file save/save as and choose TIF. The 2nd dialog allows you to select the compression. There is no harm in using the LZW and it does a great job on most images - usually halving the size while maintaining full fidelity.

 

One final point, there is a new flavor of JPG called Lossless JPEG that is supported in JPEG 2000. Photoshop CS comes with JPEG 2000 as a plug in but you must install it manually. It does a great job at lossless jpeg and can save a lot if disk space.

 

cheers,

Michael

[kargen 0]

When I installed photoshop I switched any file that was going to open in illustrator over to photoshop. I use photoshop much more and it is really easy to export between the two programs.

 

I like to keep my original photos in their own folder (I have a hard drive that is pretty much just for photos) and back them up on DVDs. I think of the originals kind of like a negative. If I want to make changes I copy the file and do all my work on that. Something important to do is decide how you will sort your photos early before you get so many it becomes a chore. Photos I manipulate so I can print all go into one folder. I include the size of the final print as part of the file name. If I am doing different size prints of the same photo I crop each size from the original and save every copy, and make sure I still have the original.

 

I also submit photos to magazines. Each magazine has their own preference as to what pixels and size they want so when I change a photo to meet their requirements I save it in a folder named for the magazine. In that folder I keep a text file that has the caption for each photo, when it was submitted, whether it was used or not and all that fun stuff. I might have five or six different copies of one photograph somewhere on my computer. I always make sure though that I start with the original and I always have a copy of the original backed up on disk.

 

Also on my computer if I have to many photographs in one folder Photoshop really slows down. To keep that from happening I create a folder for the photos I am about to transfer from my camera. Inside that folder I create more folders.

If I spent the day shooting at the Black Hole ( a spring nearby) I would name the folder Black Hole and the date. Inside that folder would be a favorites folder that would have what I think were the best. Then I might have a sunsets folder a water folder, clouds folder, turkey and other wildlife, whatever. Just something to seperate the photos so they are not all in one folder but I can find what I want.

 

trust me, eventually you are going to want some kind of filing system! Might as well get it started whe nthe number of photos you have is more easily managable.

 

Almost forgot. A really good book for learning Photoshop is Photoshop Classroom in a Book. Bes ure to get the correct version. The book Graham mentioned is also good.

[Isonychia 0]

Graham,

 

Thanks for the tip on the Scott Kelby books. I bought a copy of his CS2 for Digital Photographers tutorial and it arrived today. WOW! It beats every other book I've seen on CS2 six ways from Sunday. He even explained camera RAW processing in a way that even a doofus such as I could understand!

 

Thanks again! Your recommendation has renewed my hopes of getting more than the basics out of a really powerful program.

 

John

[Graham 0]

Hey John,

 

Glad you like it. I've been to a couple of Scott's classes and watching him do his stuff in person is almost unbelievable. His class in L.A. is huge, has many hundreds of students in large room at the convention center, he’s up front doing his magic on a computer, and his monitor is viewable on a huge screen for everyone to see. His class moves around the country, maybe in your area soon? Photoshop User, a monthly magazine is also a great read.

 

Graham