Digital Collections

In order to learn how to use Adobe Photoshop, we will design this "summer camp" image by following the steps below.

Before we make this image, there are a few things to know about Adobe Photoshop.

1. Image Size

The size of the image that will be made can be choosen in centimeters (cm), pixels, or inches. The width and the height are asked for.

2. Colour Palette

A colour palette or mode is a set of colours of which the image consists. The most common choices for image colour palette are:

1. Grayscale which is colour from white to gray to black;
2. RGB which is all the colours made from mixing Red, Green, and Blue together;
3. CMYK which is all the colours made from mixing Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black together.

The choice of palette is up to the artist.

3. Basic Tools

Photoshop contains many of the basic tools of which any painting program consists. The tool bar can be seen on the left of the screen.

4. Layers

Layers are one of the most powerful features of Photoshop. Layers make it possible to do work on one part of the design at a time without affecting the entire picture. Each part of the design has its own layer. Layers can be put in different orders as well, so that one part of the layout overlaps another.

5. Filters

Filters change the look of the image or word to which the filter was applied. Some filters put ripples, camera flashes, or textures on designs.

Now let's make the summer camp image.

Steps to making the Summer Camp image in Photoshop

1. Go to File -> New
2. Enter in this box a height of 150 pixels and and width of 300 pixels for the image.
3. In this same box, choose the colour mode to be RGB. Select OK.
4. Go to View -> Show Layers
5. View -> Show Colour Palette
6. From the tool bar choose the paint brush tool.
7. From the colour palette showing, choose red.
8. Place the paint brush tool where the red dot needs to be and press it once. A red dot should appear. If it is not the right size, go to View -> Show Swatches and choose a different sized brush.
9. This dot is Layer 1 on the Layer box that is showing to the right of the image.
10. Make a new layer by going to Layer -> New.
11. Choose the paint bucket tool from the tool bar.
12. hoose blue from the colour palette.
13. Click on the image once with the paint bucket. Blue should fill the area.
14. In order to see the red dot once again, change the order of the layers. Layer 2 is the blue and Layer 1 is the red dot. In the layers box to the right, select Layer 2 with the mouse and drag it below Layer 1. The red dot should reappear on the image.
15. Now select Layer 1 from the layer box to the right by clicking on it once.
16. Apply a filter to this layer by going to Filter -> Render -> Ripples (if this filter is not there, choose another one). This should make the red dot into a red splatter.
17. Now apply the -> plastic wrap filter to this layer as well.
18. To make the strip at the bottom of the page, select the square selection tool at the top left of the tool bar. Use it to make a strip on the image. A dotted rectangle should be where the strip will be.
19. Make a new Layer to work on, Layer 3.
20. Choose the gradient tool from the toolbar. It is a rectangle shaded in on one side. Make sure that the two coloured squares at the bottom of the tool bar are the blue colour and the red colour you have used.
21. Go to the rectangle with the gradient tool and drag it from one end of the box to the other while holding down on the mouse. This will give the box the gradient look.
22. Now make Layer 4 and choose the text tool. Press the mouse where you want the "Come to" words to go. Type the text in the box that appears, press OK.
23. Now make Layer 5 and press the mouse where you want the words "Summer Camp" to appear.
24. It is done.

Note: To move any layer around in the image, choose the move tool, which is the arrow shaped tool at the top right of the tool bar.

Now the rest of the learning will come with you experimenting with Photoshop.