Welcome to Photoshop Essentials, where everyone can learn Photoshop! We offer fun, exclusive, step-by-step tutorials for all skill levels, and all written with beginners in mind. From Photoshop Basics to Photo Editing and Retouching, Photo Effects, Text Effects and more!
Check out our latest Photoshop tutorials below. Or download our tutorials as PDFs and get exclusive bonus content!
Adobe has completely redesigned the New Document dialog box in Photoshop CC 2017, but the original, legacy version is still around. Learn how to easily switch between the two versions, and how the legacy version works!
Learn all about the hidden Recent Files workspace in Photoshop CC and how it can help us when viewing and selecting our recently-opened files!
The Start workspace is a great feature in Photoshop, but not everyone will want to use it. Learn how to disable the Start workspace while still being able to create new documents and open your images!
Learn all about the updated Start workspace in Photoshop CC and how it lets us create new documents, open images and re-open our recent files, all from one convenient screen!
Learn how to easily make Adobe Photoshop your default app for viewing and editing images in Windows 10!
Learn how to easily replace Apple’s Preview app with Photoshop as your default photo viewer and image editor in Mac OS X!
From creating, copying and selecting layers to blend modes, clipping masks and more, learn how to speed up your Photoshop workflow with these essential layers shortcuts!
Need to quickly free yourself from Photoshop’s Background layer limitations? Learn how to replace your default Background layer with a new one from scratch and how to save the steps as a time-saving action!
In this tutorial in our Photoshop Layers series, learn all about the Background layer in Photoshop CC, why it’s different from normal layers, and how to get around its limitations.
Take a whirlwind tour of Photoshop’s Layers panel and learn the essential skills you need for working with layers!
New to Photoshop layers? In this easy-to-follow, step-by-step lesson, learn the basics of what layers are, how they work, and why knowing how to use layers is such an essential Photoshop skill.
Learn all about the Healing Brush in Photoshop and how to use it to reduce the appearance of dark and distracting wrinkles.
Learn how to easily make your text flow along the shape and direction of a path! Fully updated for Photoshop CS6 and CC!
Learn how to easily change the color of objects in your photos using the Color Replacement Tool in Photoshop! Now fully updated for Photoshop CS6 and CC!
Learn all about the Background Eraser Tool in Photoshop, including how it works and how it can easily remove unwanted background areas in your photos! Now fully updated for Photoshop CS6 and CC!
Learn how to reshape a person’s eyes, nose, mouth and more with Face-Aware Liquify in Photoshop CC. Every feature, fully explained! Plastic surgery has never been easier!
Learn how to apply editable filter effects to live, editable type in Photoshop using Smart Objects and Smart Filters!
Previously, we learned how to pass raw files from Lightroom to Photoshop for further editing. In this tutorial, learn how to move JPEG photos between Lightroom and Photoshop just as easily!
Learn how to easily pass a raw image file from Adobe Lightroom over to Photoshop for further editing, and then how to send the edited version back to Lightroom!
The Oil Paint filter is back! Learn step-by-step how its Brush and Lighting options make it easy to turn any photo into an oil painted masterpiece.
Learn how to turn any photo into a sketch with lots of fine detail, great for landscapes, architecture photos, still lifes, and more! And, learn how to complete the entire effect from start to finish in 60 seconds!
In this second of two tutorials, learn how Smart Objects and Smart Filters in Photoshop can help us create the same soft glow effect as in the previous tutorial, but this time, keeping the effect fully editable from start to finish!
In this first of two tutorials, learn how to easily enhance your photos with a soft glow effect that softens skin, boosts contrast and makes colors more vibrant!
Learn how to customize the Toolbar in Photoshop CC using the Customize Toolbar dialog box, and how to save your custom Toolbar layout as a preset. You’ll learn how to remove and restore tools, group and ungroup tools, how to reorder the tools in the Toolbar, and more!
Learn all about the new darker dialog boxes in Photoshop CC, one of several changes to Photoshop’s interface that Adobe made as part of the November 2015 Creative Cloud updates.
Learn all about the new Start screen and Recent Files panel recently introduced to Photoshop CC in the November 2015 Creative Cloud updates.
Our complete guide to learning the many ways of transforming objects and selections with Free Transform in Photoshop, from Scale and Rotate to Skew, Distort, Perspective, Warp, and more!
Learn how to add lens flare to your photos without harming the original image using Photoshop’s Lens Flare filter and the non-destructive power of layers and blend modes!
Learn how to easily blend two or more photos into a single composite image using layer masks and gradients in Photoshop!
Learn how to create and edit your own custom gradients and save them as presets using the Gradient Editor in Photoshop!
Learn everything you need to know to start drawing gradients in Photoshop with the simple yet powerful Gradient Tool!
Go beyond simple geometric shapes and learn how to add more interesting custom shapes to your designs and layouts with the Custom Shape Tool in Photoshop CS6!
In this first tutorial in our series on drawing and working with shapes in Photoshop CC, learn the important difference between vector shapes and pixel shapes!
Learn the essentials of creating vector art in Photoshop CS6 with its easy to use shape tools, including the Rectangle, Rounded Rectangle, Ellipse, Polygon, and Line Tools!
Learn the important difference between vector shapes and pixels shapes in Photoshop. Now fully updated for Photoshop CS6!
In this photo effects tutorial, learn how to divide a single photo into multiple sections and display it as a cluster of shapes! Now fully updated for Photoshop CC!
Tired of dragging guides out from the rulers? Learn how the New Guide Layout feature in Photoshop CC lets you quickly add rows and columns, gutters, and margins to your documents, and save your guide layouts as presets!
Learn how Photoshop’s improved Auto button makes correcting the tonal range of your photos using a Levels image adjustment easier than ever!
Add more interest and creativity to your images by learning how to easily blend textures with your photos using layer blend modes in Photoshop!
Take your first step into the world of professional-level image correction by learning how to easily improve the tonal range of an image, boosting contrast and restoring detail, using a Levels image adjustment in Photoshop!
In this second tutorial on understanding histograms in Photoshop, we look at different types of images with their naturally darker (low-key) and lighter (high-key) tonal characteristics and learn why there’s no such thing as a standard, typical or ideal histogram.
Learn how to easily read and evaluate an image histogram, one of the most important and essential skills for retouching and restoring images!
Learn how to take the normally sharp, straight edges of a photo and make them look worn, torn and faded. Now fully updated for Photoshop CS6 and CC!
No Shadows/Highlights adjustment layer in Photoshop? No problem! In this tutorial, learn how to get all the benefits of an adjustment layer by applying Shadows/Highlights as a fully editable Smart Filter!
Too much contrast in an image? Learn how a Shadows/Highlights adjustment in Photoshop can easily fix it by bringing out hidden detail in the darkest and lightest areas! Part 5 in our tone and color correction series.
In this tutorial, the fourth in our tone and color correction series, we take everything we’ve learned so far about how Photoshop’s Brightness/Contrast command works and learn how to apply it as a fully editable adjustment layer!
In this third tutorial in our series on tone and color correction in Photoshop, learn how a simple Brightness/Contrast image adjustment can quickly improve the overall brightness and contrast in your photos!
Trying to merge multiple layers set to different blend modes and getting strange results? In this tutorial, we look at the problem, explain why it happens, and learn a secret, hidden trick to get around it!
In this photo effects tutorial, learn how to easily add rays of light to an image and make a beautiful sunset photo even more magical!
Need to merge two photos together to create that perfect shot? Learn how Photoshop’s Auto-Align Layers command and a layer mask make it easy to composite images!