Photoshop is the program for retouching photographs and image processing par excellence. With the help of this manual you will learn how to use the different tools, filters and functions in order to improve the appearance of your digital photos and create amazing compositions. Using this book: Learn how to correct typical defects in photographs taken by inexperienced photographers (overexposure, underexposure, blurs, keystoning, etc.) Practice using the new crop tools and the duplication of elements called Crop in perspective and Content-Aware Move. Discover simple but extraordinary techniques to retouch small defects in portraits of people (dark circles, flaws, wrinkles, etc.) Learn how to remove people and objects by replacing the deleted item which has an integrated content with the background of the image and extract people and objects to carry out photomontages with other photographs. Learn how to properly apply the different filters (among which the new blur filters Field blur, Iris blur and Tilt-Shift can be found) in order to obtain fantastic effects on your photos.

1. 14
Resizing an image
DIGITAL CAMERAS TEND TO PRODUCE large images even with
a resolution that could be considered low in comparison to its
size. The resolution, which is normally set at 72 ppi (pixels per
inch), is sufficient if the images are to be viewed on a computer
screen, but insufficient if you want to obtain hard copies via ink
jet or laser printers. With Photoshop it’s possible to reduce the
size of a photograph while at the same time increasing its resolu-
tion and maintaining the picture quality.
1. We recommend using a photograph that fulfills the charac-
teristics mentioned in the introduction. (You can use the ex-
ample image 001.jpg.) Open your Photoshop workspace and
choose an image you would like to resize.
2. Go to the Image menu and select Image Size. 1
3. In the dialog box Image Size you can find the image’s di-
mensions and resolution. 2
Make sure that you really want
to change the resolution of an image because changes could
cause the image to become out of focus, blurred, or pixelated.
This effect is caused by an automatic function of the program
called resampling of the image, which sometimes changes the
dimensions disproportionally to its resolution. Therefore, be-
In Photoshop CS6 it is possible
to change the color of the
renewed interface by clicking
on Interface in the Preferences
dialog box, which can be found
in the Edit menu.
IMPORTANT
2
You can check the resolution of the image in the
field Resolution in the Image Size box.You can also access the Image Size box by pressing the key
combination Alt + Ctrl + I.
1
You heck the olutio f the ima in the

2. 15
001
Learning Image processing with Photoshop CS6 with 100 practical exercises
fore you continue, deselect Resample Image by clicking on its
checkbox. 3
This is how you can avoid the loss of the image’s
quality.
4. Now you can change the resolution value. In this example,
and always thinking that our purpose is to print the image on
paper, double-click the Resolution field and enter the value
150. 4
5. You have decreased the dimensions of the image proportion-
ally while achieving a higher resolution. Be aware of the fact
that you could still gain a little more resolution if the target of
the photograph was a press printer, any further action would
reduce the size of the image while mantaining its quality.
Click OK to accept the process.
6. Apparently there hasn’t been any changes made to the image,
so you should print it to check the quality. If it is okay, you
may return to the Image Size dialog box and keep the Resa-
mple Image check box enabled: the loss of the quality will be
visible on the photograph as you apply all changes.
The Resample Image option is enabled by
default. This can cause the loss of definition
of the image or it can be blurred or
pixelated while changing its resolution.
The appropriate value to print a photo on an
inkjet color printer is 150 pixels per inch.
By activating the Resample
Image option you can choose
from different resampling
methods according to the
destination of the image.
The Scanned images have a
higher resolution than those
you took with a digital camera,
so if you want to resize them,
you have to keep the Resample
Image option enabled.
IMPORTANT
3
The appropriate value to print a photo on an
By
Ima
fro
met
des
4
5

3. 16
Tilting and rotating
an image
THE IMAGE ROTATION COMMAND, which can be found in the
Image menu, can quickly change the orientation of an image or
apply a specific degree of inclination. If you want to rotate the en-
tire image a half turn or quarter turn, use the options 180° or 90°
to the left or to the right. In order to apply a specific tilt angle it is
necessary to use the Arbitrary option.
1. In this exercise you will learn how to rotate and tilt an im-
age with Photoshop. This is a simple command, which can
be found in the Image menu. To begin, open the image you
would like to rotate in the program. (If you like, you can use
the sample image 002.jpg.)
2. Rotate the image 90° clockwise. To do this, open the Image
menu, then click on the Image Rotation option and choose the
90° CW command. 1
3. If you work with the sample image, you can see that its orien-
tation has now changed 90° to the right. Depending on the
orientation of the image you use, you may need to use the 90°
CCW command to rotate it 90° to the left. Now try to use the
180° command, which is also included in the submenu Image
Rotation in the Image menu. 2
The option included in
the Image Rotation
command in the
menu Image works
in individual layers,
a selection of layers,
paths, or selected
borders.
1 2
3

4. 17
Learning Image processing with Photoshop CS6 with 100 practical exercises
002
4. Now, the image is facing left. 3
To display the image in its
correct orientation again, open the Image menu, go to Image
Rotation and click on the 90° CW command.
5. Now let’s see how to apply a particular pitch to an image.
Open the Image menu, click on the Image Rotation option
and select Arbitrary. 4
6. This opens the Rotate Canvas dialog box, which you will use
to set the angle of inclination you want to apply to the image
and apply it to the left or right. In the field Angle you need
to enter a value between 0 and 359.99. For example, type the
value 45 and click on the °CCW option. 5
7. Thus, after accepting the command, the image is inclined 45
degrees to the left. Then press OK. 6
Note that if you want to rotate or tilt specific parts or layers of
the image, you should use the Rotate option, which can be found
in the Edit menu and then by clicking on Transform in the sub-
menu. Further, you can use the angled drawing tools, which ap-
pear on the element when selecting it, with the tool Free Trans-
form, which is also included in the Edition menu. 7
In addition,
to gently rotate the canvas and to get a non-destructive view from
any angle, you can use the Rotate View tool, which can be found
under Hand in the Tools panel. (This feature requires you to en-
able drawing OpenGL in the Photoshop preferences).
The options Flip Canvas
Horizontal and Flip Canvas
Vertical are used to flip an
image horizontally or vertically
along an axis.
You can restore the original appearance of the image from the
History panel, which can be displayed in the Windows menu, or
by closing the file without saving the changes.
In order to transform an image freely, you must convert
Background layer to Layer 0 prior to moving any layer, which is
an option in the context menu of the layer in the Layers panel.
IMPORTANT
4
5
67

5. 18
Converting a picture
into a poster
THE CHANGE IN SIZE OF AN IMAGE is directly related to its loss
of quality, more specifically, when we increase the size of an im-
age, the quality is reduced. Whereas if you reduce the size of an
image, its quality is not affected much, but when you increase the
size significantly, an image can become out of focus, blurred, or
pixelated. Photoshop can convert normal images into printable
poster sizes without losing even one pixel of the image quality.
1. To begin this exercise, open the image you want to enlarge
to poster size, go to the Image menu and click on the Image
Size option.
2. In a previous exercise you already had the opportunity to
check if the picture has the correct image dimensions and
resolution. Enable the Resample Image option. 1
3. Then, open the field under the Resample Image option,
which by default displays the Bicubic Automatic resampling
method, and choose Bicubic Smoother (best for enlarge-
ment). 2
Remember that the automatic adjustment of the image size in
proportion to the set resolution depends on the activation of the
Resample Image option.
Photoshop uses six
interpolation methods to
resample images: Nearest
Neighbor to preserve hard
edges and to produce smaller
files, Bilinear to produce
medium-quality files, Bicubic
to achieve smoother tonal
gradations, Bicubic Smoother,
which is ideal for enlargements
of images, Bicubic Sharper to
reduce the size of the image
by improving its focus and,
Automatic Bicubic which is the
selected option by default.
IMPORTANT
1
2

6. 19
Learning Image processing with Photoshop CS6 with 100 practical exercises
003
4. Then, in the Width field of the Document Size change the
unit Centimeters (or the unit you are using right now) to Per-
cent. 3
5. The reason for this change is that if you increase the image
size by a percentage, then there is absolutely no loss of qual-
ity, whereas you increase the size values for width and height,
this will cause the already mentioned effects of blur and fade.
Therefore, type in the Width field the value of 110 and accept
the changes. 4
6. At this point you should repeat this process about ten times
according to the initial image size and the poster size you
wish to obtain. To do this, you have two options: either re-
peat the steps mentioned above as many times as you wish or
create an action, which with just one button automatically
resizes the image. (If you want to create an action, see the
exercise in this manual on how to do it.) After changing the
size of the image, which previously was a simple picture and
now is a poster size, the image now has only a negligible loss
of quality. 5
Make sure that the Constraint
Proportions option is enable
so that the change also applies
proportionally in the field Height.
In the Status Bar of the image
you can check the display zoom
ratio applied to the image. Use
the View menu option to see
the image in full size or change
manually the value of that
percentage.
3
4
5

7. 20
Using the Crop Tool
It is possible to change the
orientation of the crop box by
clicking the curved arrow icon
in the dimensions fields.
CUTTING A PICTURE IS NOT THE SAME as reducing its size,
since in the second case the file dimensions are modified without
affecting the content and in the first case the areas of the image
are discarded. In Photoshop, there are different methods to crop
images: defining the content manually with the Crop Tool, indi-
cating the crop size and, form automatically.
1. You can use the sample image 004.jpg or any other image you
want to crop. After opening the image in Photoshop, select
the Crop Tool, which is the fifth tool on the Tools panel. 1
2. In Photoshop CS6, this tool has been noticeably improved:
now, when you click on the image it shows you a tag with
the actual size of the crop area and a practical guide for easier
operation. When you have decided which part of the image
you want to crop, use the drawing tool in the corners and on
the sides of the grid to frame the crop area. 2
3. In the Options Bar in the Crop Tool you can choose be-
tween different types of cuts. Original Ratio is enabled by
default. Pull down this menu and have a look at the available
options. 3
Notice that you can find the name of the layer you are working
on while using the crop mode in the Layers panel.
IMPORTANT
1
2 3

8. 21
Learning Image processing with Photoshop CS6 with 100 practical exercises
004
4. You can choose between different sizes of the predetermined
cut or choose your own size by using Save Preset, change the
size and resolution, and rotate the crop box. Keep Original
Ratio selected and click on the icon that shows a check mark
in the Options Bar and see the crop. 4
5. Taking advantage of the fact that we have not saved the
changes yet, you can reestablish the initial appearance of the
image. Open the Edit menu, and choose Step Backward. 5
6.
15 cm. Enter the values 10 cm and 15 cm in the fields, where
you can customize the size in the Options Bar, 6
and move
the image to the center of the crop area.
7. Before cutting the image, open the field View in the Op-
tions Bar of the Crop Tool in order to check which different
display options are available and enabled such as the Grid
option. 7
8. Depending on the image and type of cut you want to obtain,
one display mode can be more useful than the other. To con-
tinue with the cutting, click on the check mark in the Op-
tions Bar. If you are satisfied with the result, save the image.
You can also accept
the cut of the image
by pressing the
Return button.
You lso t
4
You can also use the Crop
Tool to straighten images
while cutting. To do this,
select the Straighten option
in the Options Bar of the tool
and draw a straight line on
the image to straighten it
automatically.
IMPORTANT
5
6
7
You can
reestablish
the original
appearance of
the crop box by
clicking on the
icon that shows
a curved arrow in
the options bar of
the Crop Tool.