This week I attended a Photoshop conference in DC, put on by Mogo Media. It was phenomenal. In two days, I learned a wealth of information that I have already begun to put into practice. Keep in mind that I have been using Photoshop for years, and I am already highly skilled. It just goes to show you how quickly software is updated and how much Photoshop can do. I encourage everyone to keep learning, whether it is through online tutorials, webinars, blog posts, conferences, or any other form of communication.

Here are a few things I came away with:

1. Keyboard shortcuts are your friend. It is amazing how much faster one can work when they have memorized many standard shortcuts. Huge timesaver, especially for switching between different tools, and also knowing how to get around problematic situations.
2. What you don’t know can hinder your creativity. The more technical knowledge you have, the more opportunities open up to you, particularly in design. It can be hard to bring your ideas to life when you don’t know what is possible, or how your idea can be executed.
3. Adobe Bridge and Camera Raw are very useful and powerful tools. I have never really seen the need to use Bridge, and I really never knew much about Camera Raw until this class. The options available for photo manipulation in Camera Raw are extraordinary, and the organizational benefits of Bridge are eye opening.
4. Non-destructive adjustment layers are the only way to design. Once you learn how to take an image and make tons of adjustments without ever affecting a single pixel of your original image, you will have improved your workflow tenfold. It is a faster way to work, especially when clients come back and make changes throughout a project.
5. Don’t be afraid to try different things. There really is no right or wrong when it comes to making adjustments to your images. It comes down to whether or not those choices support your end goal, so be creative and don’t be afraid to experiment a little. You will be amazed at what you can come up with.
6. If you can think it, most likely you can do it. Photoshop is unbelievably powerful, and when used in combination with Illustrator and InDesign, the sky is the limit.

I hope I have encouraged everyone keep learning and update your skills, even if it is in another program such as Word or Excel that you might be using on a daily basis. The additional confidence is invigorating.

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 5th, 2009 at 5:33 PM and is filed under Design.