Adobe Photoshop / Graphics editors please advise

Ok, I remember asking similar questions years ago when I first started.

The simple answer is it takes time to learn anything. But here's some ideas to get you started.

1. Fiverr is cheap. Pay someone $5 to edit PSDs for you.
2. Gimp is free software which can edit PSDs.
3. Youtube has tons of free tutorials to help you learn either Photoshop or Gimp
4. If you're serious about learning Photoshop, there's plenty of paid online courses which can give you a structured, classroom-like experience. Many also have forums with support feedback.
5. Facebook groups can also be a good way to ask specific questions if you get stuck.
6. Odesk or Freelance are good places to find a designer that you can pay as needed to help you with specific questions you can't find answers to anywhere else.

Again, these are all things I have done. And hope this gives you ideas to help you get started.

Good luck.

-Jeff

In my opinion, it's best to learn photoshop by doing it. I never really took any formal classes and was able to learn it by experimentation.

The best way to learn is to figure out what kind of image you need and look up a tutorial on how to manipulate it.

My best advice is to understand how to use layers. If you know layers, you can make anything.

Get an old copy of Photoshop CS5 & download some free files that include layers for practicing on edits (learn to use layers). That way you can simply swap out text/colors without much effort.

The main photoshop is all you need.

I taught myself years ago, and have been an addict ever since.

I agree with some of the advice above. There is no better way to get started than just to get started. Get the software, open your image, then google for help to figure out how to do what you need to do.

You'll find that a few common maneuvers will take you very far towards doing practically anything you'll need, and after you learn them, adding new skills is pretty straightforward.

Good luck!

I'm an Adobe Photoshop master and have taught others. Here are some facts (and repeats of some above).

1. As you know, the *.psd picture file format is the native format for photoshop.
2. Photoshop Elements will do about 90%+ of what the $700 full program will for under $100. Nowadays you can also subscribe by the month to the online version of any Adobe product and "work in the cloud". The cost is pretty low.
3. The free GIMP program will do everything Photoshop can (I think - I'm not a GIMP expert).
4.The main problem with Photoshop is that it takes the form of a large collection of individual tools, with zero explanation of how to use any of them.
5. There are hundreds of good books on Photoshop. Many go into fine detail on each and every tool and feature. Of course when you want to learn any single tool or feature YouTube is also good.

Yes, doing each step on a new layer is the least dangerous way of modifying images. You can turn on/off any layer to check it's effects, or delete it. You must make backup copies of your original as the first step in an image edit, in case of problems. Every change will not be an improvement - especially at first. You must understand image file formats and JPEG Compression to properly use images online.

I recommend my tutorial on image file formats (and others) at Art resource, tutorials, art lessons ebook, digital art skills.

Give me 15 minutes screen share on skype and I can make you a novice so you can do the basics of picking layers editing, splicing ect.

Oh did I say you dont even need photoshop.

I used to do my own editing in Photoshop. Nobody taught me, I watched a ton of tutorials on Youtube and tried every button and function in the program at least a hundred times. I am not a designer now but I am able to add a good shadow and to put two photos together. So take some time to try it and play with it. Enjoy.

Go for freelancer you will find many try this list https://www.odesk.com/o/profiles/bro...obe-photoshop/

If you really want to edit that PSD file, I recommend Photoshop it's the software I use to create amazing designs and drawings, I know what Im talking about, so trust me, use Photoshop absolutely.... If you just want to edit some files, just visit Fiverr.com and pay $5 to get that PSD edited, you can also visit my gig's page, I can do that for you

Hope that helps.

JimGraph

Adobe provide Adobe Photoshop CS2 for free.

Type Adobe Photoshop CS2 in google and you'll be able to get yourself a copy. As you know, and others have pointed out, it can be a steepish learning curve, but youtube really can be your friend in learning your way around it.

Whatever it is you want to do with it, type in youtube and something will come up which will help you out.

That is amazing... even Photoshop 2 is a rocketship compared to everything else out there.

There you go. I would grab it and get started yesterday.