The Benefits of Photoshop

Adobe Photoshop was first created in 1988 but wasn’t released to the public until February 1990. Since then, the program has undergone many changes due to advancements in technology, and today Photoshop is a useful tool for graphic designers, photographers, video editors, marketers, and more!

Unfortunately, Photoshop has gotten a bit of a bad reputation in recent years through no fault of its own. It’s fairly common knowledge that magazines, billboards, and other advertisements often edit their photographs, especially when it comes to celebrities and models. But some people argue that the use of Photoshop has gone too far in making people look “perfect.” It sets unrealistic expectations and an impossible standard of beauty.

Of course, there are some infamous Photoshop blunders as well, where whoever was editing the photo with the program didn’t doublecheck their work before publishing. One of the most recent slip-ups that caught public attention was a promotional photo of Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio, for their film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. When the photo was released, users were able to view the Photoshop history of edits and could see that everything from wrinkles to “extra chins” had been taken out of the picture.

In this world of Instagram filters and other editing programs that can retouch selfies in a matter of minutes, it’s true that Photoshop can be taken too far in some instances. But there are also many benefits to the program that show off its real worth.

Photoshop for Photographers

While some photographers are purists and will only use film cameras with no digital editing involved, many of them use Photoshop (or Adobe Lightroom) to edit photos and make them look more professional.

A photographer at a wedding can take up to 4,000 pictures throughout the day. Many of them will be snapped one right after another in order to make sure the photographer catches the right moment. Once the photographer goes back to look at those photos, they’ll have to pick a few of the best to work with. Then, they can use Photoshop to really highlight the look and feel of each particular moment and bring it to life. Using Photoshop gives them the chance to remember how they felt when they were shooting, and capture that with different presets and lighting tricks within the program.

There are certain editing skills every photographer should know when using Photoshop, including how to:

• Adding adjustment layers
• Switching to black and white
• Healing brush
• Dodge and burn
• Blending modes
• Cropping

Because updated versions of the program are frequently released, it’s important for photographers to stay on top of these skills and use Photoshop to showcase their creativity. Thankfully, there are Photoshop classes specifically dedicated to learning the ins and outs of the program, and you can even become certified in it, which can be used to beef up a photography resume.

Boosting Your Business

Businesses can benefit from Photoshop in a variety of ways, especially if you’re not a large corporation with a limitless design budget! If you have your own home business, a small business with a few employees, or even a side hustle that you’re trying to grow, Photoshop can really help you to look more professional and help your efforts stand out.

First, Photoshop can cut down on your marketing costs. Hiring out a marketing professional or an agency can get expensive quickly. Just by learning a few basic Photoshop skills, you can create banners, digital images, and upgrade any photographs your business uses to attract more potential customers. It’s especially great for boosting your social media content with eye-catching material.

Photoshop can even help the back end of your business by giving the documents you send out a little bit of ‘pop.’ Even something as simple as adding a logo to the top of your documents can help you to seem more professional and will make whoever is reading your document take note of who you are. It’s a good way to start building your brand.

A Non-Surgical Solution

While Photoshop sometimes gets criticized for making people look too perfect, there are ways you can use it to change your look — without having to change your look. For example, if you’ve been considering something like plastic surgery, you can take a picture of yourself and implement it into Photoshop.

Using tools like the healing brush, the pen tool, and other retouching tools in Photoshop, you can give yourself an idea of what you’d look like after a certain procedure. It can help to boost your confidence or help you determine whether or not you might want to consider a non-surgical nose job or other body-altering surgery.

Photoshop can even show you what you’d look like with whiter teeth, which might motivate you to practice dental hygiene that will actually get you those pearly whites. After adding whiter teeth to your selfie, be careful about what you’re ingesting and make sure you’re taking care of that smile.

Whether you use it for photography, business, or personal use, there are plenty of good reasons to bring Photoshop back into the light. It allows you to be creative in the best way possible, and it’s only when its features are abused that “scandals” and outrages occur. When you use the program how it was intended, it’s a great resource to have.