This is a session snippet from a tutoring session I had recently. My student was fairly familiar with Photoshop already, but wanted some Photoshop tips to help improve his graphic design workflow.
Photoshop is among one of the great tools on the market for graphic designers, but it can feel overwhelming if you’re just getting started.
Knowing how to organize your design, tweak layouts, bring in outside elements, and keep everything looking neat and tidy can make a huge difference.
Whether you’re a beginner, or just looking to sharpen up your graphic design and Photoshop skills, these handy tips will help you work smarter, not harder! (I hate that phrase by the way, but it is true!)
- Keeping Your Design Organized
Good design starts with good organization. If your workspace is a mess, making edits later on will be an absolute f***ing nightmare!
Keeping different elements separate lets you tweak things easily without affecting the whole project.
Managing Visibility and Effects
Not everything needs to be visible all the time. Hiding or showing certain elements when needed can help keep your project clean, easy to understand and make editing way easier.
You can also apply effects in a way that affects multiple elements at once, keeping everything consistent.
Pro Tips for Staying Organized:
Use different sections to keep things tidy.
Group related pieces together so you can move or edit them easily.
Collapse groups when you don’t need them to avoid clutter.
2. Expanding vs. Resizing—What the Hell is the Difference?
There’s a big difference between making your workspace bigger and actually resizing your design. Knowing when to do each will help you avoid blurry images or weird proportions.
Expanding Your Workspace
This technique adds more empty space without changing your existing design, which is great for adding backgrounds or making room for extra elements.
Resizing Your Design
This changes the size of everything, including text and images. Be aware though, this can make things blurry if you stretch your design too much.
How to Do It:
– Use tools to adjust your workspace if you need more room.
– Resize the whole design only when necessary, and be careful not to lose quality.
3. Playing Around with Text Placement
Text doesn’t always have to be in a straight line! You can make it follow a shape, curve, or custom path to add some creativity to your design.
Here’s How You Can Play Around with Text Placement:
Choose a shape or draw a path for your text.
Adjust where the text starts and ends.
Flip it inside or outside the shape for different effects.
Need a visual? Check out this video guide for a step-by-step breakdown!
https://youtu.be/sVfB5p2kRW4?si=SwiD1EK1x3GOegGV
4. Bringing in Outside Elements
Adding external images or graphics? You’ve got two main ways to do it, and choosing the right one depends on whether you need flexibility or a permanent addition.
Option 1: Embedding
Using this option, the file becomes part of your project. This works best for elements that won’t change later.
Option 2: Linking
The file stays separate but updates automatically if you edit the original. This is great for logos or graphics that might need revisions.
Both have their uses—just pick the one that fits your workflow best!
5. Making Everything Look Balanced
Nobody likes a messy layout. Aligning and spacing elements properly makes your design look polished and professional.
Why This is Important:
It’ll saves you time from moving things around manually, and it also helps your design look professional and well-balanced.
Final Thoughts
Photoshop can feel complex, but once you get the hang of these basic principles, your workflow will be so much smoother. Organizing elements, adjusting your workspace, experimenting with text, and keeping everything aligned will help your projects look more polished.
Keep practicing, and soon these tricks will feel like second nature!