Edit images with ease

Photoshop delivers high-powered image editing, photo retouching, and compositing tools to help you get professional-quality results.

Color correction

Photoshop offers two basic methods for adjusting color in an image. Use the options in the Image > Adjustments menu--including the Auto Color command, which analyzes the image to make instant and reliable color corrections--to change the image permanently. Or use an adjustment layer to apply editable color and tonal corrections. See Making color adjustments, Using the Auto Color command (Photoshop), and About adjustment layers and fill layers.

Healing brush

Effortlessly remove dust, scratches, blemishes, and other flaws with a single tool. The healing brush automatically preserves the shading, lighting, and texture of the original photo. See Using the healing brush tool (Photoshop).

Selection tools

From the click-and-drag marquee tools, to magnetic selection tools that snap to the edges of an element, to the pen tool that lets you define a shape precisely, Photoshop offers a range of shape-selection options. You can also select by color, using the magic wand or the Color Range command. And the Extract command provides a sophisticated way to isolate a foreground object from the background. See About selections.

Precision masking

Masks let you hide part of an image, or protect and preserve one section while you apply color changes, filters, or other effects to the rest of the artwork. You can also use masks to save complex selection borders for reuse. See Masking layers and About masks (Photoshop).

Clipping paths

Use a clipping path to cut a foreground element away from the background--without actually altering the original image. See Using image clipping paths to create transparency.

Sharpening controls

Photoshop's sharpening tools include the powerful Unsharp Mask filter, based on traditional film compositing techniques. Use Unsharp Mask after scaling, rotating, color correcting--any process that affects the pixel structure of an image--to bring the artwork into crisp focus. See Sharpening images.

Edge smoothing

Use the anti-aliasing option to smooth the jagged edges of a selection, or apply feathering to create soft edges. See Softening the edges of a selection.

Contact sheet generation

Export an entire folder of images on a single page to allow easy cataloging, previewing, and printing. Or use the Picture Package feature to print photos of different sizes on the same page. See Creating multiple-image layouts (Photoshop).

Web photo display

Showcase your work online by posting a Web photo gallery. You'll find a collection of ready-made templates on the Photoshop CD to make the job quick and easy--and you can stamp each image with copyright text to help protect against illegal downloads. See Creating Web photo galleries (Photoshop).