Photoshop Tool Basics

up one image into smaller ones when saving out. It’s

kind of an advanced tool, and since you’re in here for
the basics, we’ll kind of skip over it.
Rectangular Marquee Tool (M)
Use this tool to make selections on your image, in a
rectangular shape. This changes the area of your
image that is affected by other tools or actions to be
within the defined shape. Holding the [Shift] key Healing Brush Tool (J)
while dragging your selection, restricts the shape to This is a really useful tool. Mildly advanced. You can
a perfect square. Holding the [Alt] key while use this tool to repair scratches and specs and stuff like
dragging sets the center of the rectangle to where that on images. It works like the Brush tool (see
your cursor started. below). You choose your cursor size, then holding the
[Alt] key, you select a nice/clean area of your image.
Let go of the [Alt] key and paint over the bad area. It
basically copies the info from the first area to the
second, in the form of the Brush tool. Only, at the end,
Move Tool (V) it averages the information, so it blends.
Use this tool to, move things. Usually you use it to
move a Layer around after it has been placed. Hold the
[Shift] key to limit the movements to
vertical/horizontal.
Brush Tool (B)
This is one of the first tools ever. It’s what Photoshop
is based off of. Well, not really, but it’s pretty basic. It
paints one your image, in whatever color you have
Polygon Lasso Tool (L) selected, and whatever size you have selected. There’s
this should be the Lasso Tool, but I use the Polygon a lot of options for it, but this is basic, so you don’t get
Lasso a lot more often. Use this to draw selections in to learn them.
whatever shape you would like. To close the selection,
either click on the beginning point (you’ll see the
cursor change when you’re on it), or just double-click.
When holding the [Ctrl] key, you’ll see the cursor
change, and the next time you click, it will close your Clone Stamp Tool (S)
selection. This is very similar to the Healing Brush Tool (see
above). You use it the exact same way, except this tool
doesn’t blend at the end. It’s a direct copy of the
information from the first selected area to the second.

Magic Wand Tool (W)

Use this to select a color range. It will select the block
of color, or transparency, based on wherever you click.
In the Options Bar at the top, you can change the History Brush Tool (H)
Tolerance to make your selections more/less precise. This tool works just like the Brush Tool (see above)
except the information that it paints with is from the
original state of your image. If you go
Window>History, you can see the History Palette. The
History Brush tool paints with the information from
Crop Tool (C) whatever History state is selected.
The Crop Tool works similarly to the Rectangular
Marquee tool (see above if you have no short-term
memory). The difference is when you press the
[Enter/Return] key, it crops your image to the size of
the box. Any information that was on the outside of the Eraser Tool (E)
box is now gone. Not permanently, you can still undo. This is the anti-Brush tool. It works like an eraser
(duh) and erases whatever information wherever you
click and drag it. If you’re on a Layer, it will erase the
information transparent. If you are on the background
layer, it erases with whatever secondary color you
have selected.
Slice Tool (K)
This is used mostly for building websites, or splitting
Gradient Tool (G) Rectangle Tool (U)
You can use this to make a gradiation of colors. By default it draws a Shape Layer in the form of a
Gradiation doesn’t appear to be a word, but it makes rectangle. It fills the rectangle with whatever
sense anyway. It creates a blending of your foreground foreground color you have selected. It’s pretty
color and background color when you click and drag complicated, don’t hurt yourself with this one.
it. Like a gradient.

Notes Tool (N)

Like post-it notes, but digital. You can use this tool to
Blur Tool (R) add small little note boxes to your image. These are
The Blur tool is cool. It makes things blurry. Click and useful if you’re very forgetful or if you’re sharing your
drag to make things blurry. The more you click and Photoshop file with someone else. I’m pretty sure it
drag, the blurrier things get. only works with .PSD files.

Dodge Tool (O) Eyedropper Tool (I)

This tool isn’t as crappy as the car brand. It’s actually This tool works by changing your foreground color to
used to lighten whatever area you use it on. As long as whatever color you click on. Holding the [Alt] key will
it is not absolute black. Absolute black won’t lighten. change your background color.

Hand Tool (T)

Path Selection Tool (A) You can really make short work of your job with the Hand
You use this tool when working with paths. Since this Tool. It’s for moving your entire image within a window. So
is all about the basics, I won’t go into details. It’s if you’re zoomed in and your image area is larger than the
related to the Pen Tool (see below) though. window, you can use the Hand Tool to navigate around your
image. Just click and drag. You can get to this tool at any
time when using any other tool by pressing and holding the
[Spacebar].

Horizontal Type Tool (T)

It makes type. Or text. Or whatever you want to call it.
You can click a single point, and start typing right
away. Or you can click and drag to make a bounding Zoom Tool (Z)
box of where your text/type goes. There’s a lot of Pretty obvious what this tool does. It allows you to zoom
options for the Type Tool. Just play around, it’s fairly into your image. Don’t be dumb, it doesn’t actually change
straight-forward. the size of your image. Hold the [Alt] key to zoom out.
Holding the [Shift] key will zoom all of the windows you
have open at the same time. Double-click on the Zoom Tool
in the palette to go back to 100% view.

Pen Tool (P)

I mentioned this tool above. It’s for creating paths, in
which you would use the Path Selection Tool to select
FOREGROUND Color
the path. Paths can be used in a few different ways,
These are your color boxes. Foreground (in the front) and
mostly to create clipping paths, or to create selections. Background (in the back). Click on either one to bring up
You use the tool by clicking to add a point. If you click the color select dialog box.
and drag, it will change the shape of your path,
allowing you to bend and shape the path for accurate
selections and such.