Earn Your Adobe Photoshop Certification

Official guidelines

• 1.1 Identify the purpose, audience, and audience needs for preparing images.
• a. Determine whether content is relevant to the purpose, audience, audience needs, user experience, and has an appropriate design for target devices.
• i. Key Terms: client goals, target audience, demographics, accessibility, etc.
• b. Identify requirements based on how the image will be used, including video, print, and web.

Resources & Tutorials

How to succeed as a digital designer

An introductory guide to design thinking

Designing Accessible Experiences at Scale

Official guidelines

• 1.2 Communicate with colleagues and clients about design plans.
• a. Demonstrate knowledge of techniques for communicating about design plans with peers and clients.
• i. Key Terms: sketches, specifications, design process, wireframes, prototypes, iterations, change orders, drafts, feedback loop, etc.
• b. Demonstrate knowledge of basic project management concepts
• i. Key Terms: project scope, scope creep, cloud utilization and file management

Resources & Tutorials

Project Management Basics

Best Practices for Presenting Design Concepts to Stakeholders

Design Business & Ethics

Official guidelines

• 1.3 Determine the type of copyright, permissions, and licensing required to use specific content.
• a. Identify legal and ethical considerations for using third-party content, such as copyright, permissions, and licensing.
• i. Key Terms: Creative Commons, public domain, intellectual property, derivative work, commercial use, attribution, work for hire, fair use, fair dealing, stock images, etc.
• b. Identify when and how to obtain permission to use images of people and locations.
• i. Key Terms: model release, location release, etc.
• ii. Key Concepts: permission to use a photo is separate from permission to use a person’s face or restricted location, etc.

Resources & Tutorials

Intellectual Property

About CC Licenses

What’s a model release, and when do you need one?

Official guidelines

• 1.4 Demonstrate knowledge of key terminology related to digital images.
• a. Demonstrate knowledge of digital image terminology.
• i. Key Terms: image resolution, image size, file types, pixel, raster, bitmap, vector, path, object, type, rasterizing, rendering, resampling, resizing, image size measured in pixels vs document size measured in inches/centimeters, etc.
• b. Demonstrate knowledge of how color is created in digital images.
• i. Key Terms: color mode, bit depth, gamut, CMYK vs. RGB vs. grayscale, etc.

Resources & Tutorials

Work with raster and vector images

About color

Change the image size

Official guidelines

• 1.5 Demonstrate knowledge of basic design principles and best practices employed in the design industry.
• a. Communicate visually by using the elements and principles of design and common design techniques.
• i. Key Terms: space, line, shape, form, color, texture, emphasis/focal point, unity/harmony, variety, balance, alignment, proximity, repetition, rhythm, scale, movement, negative space, gestalt, etc.
• b. Identify and use common typographic adjustments to create contrast, hierarchy, and enhanced readability/legibility.
• i. Key Terms: font, size, style, color, alignment, kerning, tracking, leading, horizontal and vertical scale, line length, etc.
• c. Demonstrate knowledge of common photographic/cinematic composition terms and principles.
• i. Key Terms: aspect ratio, rule of thirds, foreground, background, color, tone, contrast, framing, depth of field, field of view, white balance, etc.

Resources & Tutorials

Principles of Design

Typography 101: A crash course of terms to know

Photoshop Masterclass: Applying Design Principles

Official guidelines

• 2.1 Create a document with the appropriate settings for web, print, and video.
• a. Set appropriate document settings for printed and onscreen images.
• i. Key Concepts: width/height, orientation, artboards, resolution, color mode, bit depth, background, etc.
• b. Create a new document preset to reuse for specific project needs.

Resources & Tutorials

Create, open, and import images

Artboards

Bit depth and preferences

Official guidelines

• 2.2 Navigate, organize, and customize the application workspace.
• a. Identify and manipulate elements of the Photoshop interface.
• i. Key Concepts: Options bar, menus, panels, toolbar, artboards, etc.
• b. Organize and customize the workspace.
  
• i. Key Concepts: tabbed documents; showing, hiding, nesting, and docking panels; saving and resetting workspaces; shortcuts and menus; etc.
• c. Configure application preferences.
  
• i. Key Concepts: Units & Rulers, Guides, Grids & Slices, Performance, Scratch Disks, Interface; etc.

Resources & Tutorials

Get to know Photoshop

Grid and guides

Workspace basics

Official guidelines

• 2.3 Use non-printing design tools in the interface to aid in design or workflow.
• a. Navigate a document.
  
• i. Key Concepts: panning, zooming, rotating canvas, etc.
• b. Use rulers.
  
• i. Key Concepts: showing and hiding rulers, changing the measurement unit on rulers, etc.
• c. Use guides and grids.
  
• i. Key Concepts: adding/removing and locking/unlocking guides, setting color, showing/hiding guides and grids, using snap or align options, creating guide layouts, etc.

Resources & Tutorials

Show or hide non-printing Extras

Tips for Working with Guides in Photoshop

Align objects with guides

Official guidelines

• 2.4 Import assets into a project.
• a. Open or import images from various devices.
• i. Key Concepts: file, camera, scanner, etc.
• b. Place assets in a Photoshop document.
  
• i. Key Concepts: embedded, linked, copy and pasted, etc.
• c. Use the Adobe Camera Raw interface to import images.
  

Resources & Tutorials

Acquire images from cameras and scanners

Place files

Open, process, and save images in Camera Raw

Official guidelines

• 2.5 Manage colors, swatches, and gradients.
• a. Set the active foreground and background color.
• i. Key Concepts: Color Picker, swatches, Eyedropper tool, hexadecimal value, etc.
• b. Create, customize, and organize gradients.
  
• i. Key Concepts: Gradient panel, editing color and transparency stops, gradient options (i.e. radial and elliptical), grouping etc.
• c. Create, edit, and organize swatches.
  
• i. Key Concepts: grouping, creating, importing, and exporting

Resources & Tutorials

Use color

Gradients

Customize color pickers and swatches

Official guidelines

• 2.6 Work with brushes, styles, and patterns.
• a. Open, browse, and search libraries of included brushes, styles, and patterns.
• b. Create, use, edit, and organize brushes, styles, and patterns.
  

Resources & Tutorials

Photoshop Masterclass: Brushes

Create and modify brushes

Create patterns

Official guidelines

• 3.1 Use layers to manage design elements.
• a. Use the Layers panel to manage visual content.
• i. Key Concepts: adding, deleting, hiding/showing, locking/unlocking, and duplicating, etc.
• b. Manage and organize layers in a complex project.
• i. Key Concepts: renaming layers, creating layer groups, deleting empty layers, keeping the Layers panel organized, selecting, grouping vs. linking, flatten and merge, tradeoffs with editability and file size, etc.
• c. Recognize the different types of layers in the Layers panel.
• i. Key Concepts: background, pixel, adjustment, type, fill, shape, vector, Smart Object (embedded and linked), active/inactive (hidden), artboard layers, etc.

Resources & Tutorials

Layer basics

Work with layers

Work more efficiently with Linked Smart Objects

Official guidelines

• 3.2 Modify layer visibility using opacity, blending modes, and masks.
• a. Adjust a layer's opacity, blending mode, and fill opacity.
• b. Create and edit masks.
  
• i. Key Concepts: layer masks, clipping masks, frame tool, applying, deleting, disabling, and link/unlink, etc.

Resources & Tutorials

Layer opacity and blending

Combine images

How to Make a Neon Light Effect in Photoshop

Official guidelines

• 3.3 Differentiate between and perform destructive or nondestructive editing to meet design requirements.
• a. Nondestructive editing: Smart Objects, Smart Filters, and adjustment layers.
• b. Destructive editing: painting, adjustments, erasing, and rasterizing.

Resources & Tutorials

Nondestructive editing

Work with Smart Objects

When to rasterize your type and shape layers

Official guidelines

• 4.1 Use core tools and features to create visual elements.
• a. Create and edit raster images.
• i. Key Tools: Crop, Perspective Crop, Pencil, Clone Stamp, History Brush, Eraser, Background Eraser, Magic Eraser, Gradient, and Paint Bucket
• b. Create and edit vector images.
  
• i. Key Tools: Pen, Freeform Pen, Curvature Pen, Add Anchor Point, Delete Anchor Point, Convert Point, Rectangle, Rounded Rectangle, Ellipse, Triangle, Polygon, Line, and Custom Shape

Resources & Tutorials

Retouch and repair photos

Learn How to Work with Shape Tools in Photoshop

Draw straight lines and smooth curves with precision and ease

Official guidelines

• 4.2 Add and manipulate text using appropriate typographic settings.
• a. Use type tools to add typography to a design.
  
• b. Adjust character and paragraph settings in a design.
• i. Key Concepts: using font, size, style, alignment, and color to enhance legibility, readability, and hierarchy; kerning, tracking, leading, and horizontal and vertical scale, etc.
• c. Convert text to graphics.
  
• i. Key Concepts: rasterizing type

Resources & Tutorials

Add text and shapes

Design with great-looking typography

Photoshop Masterclass: Typography Manipulation

Official guidelines

• 4.3 Make, manage, and manipulate selections.
• a. Make selections using a variety of tools.
  
• i. Key Tools: Quick Selection, Lasso tool, Magic Wand, marquee selection tools, Select Subject, Object Selection tool, Select Sky, etc.
• b. Modify and refine selections using various methods.
• i. Key Concepts: keyboard modifiers, feather, expand, contract, inverse, select and mask workspace, refine hair, add to and subtract from selection, deselect, etc.
• c. Save and load selections as channels.
  

Resources & Tutorials

Make selections

Clean up a selection in the Select and Mask workspace

Channel basics

Official guidelines

• 4.4 Transform digital graphics and media.
• a. Modify the canvas or artboards.
  
• i. Key Tools: resizing, cropping, expanding, resampling, etc.
  
• ii. Key Concepts: understanding the difference between resize and resample, etc.
  
• b. Rotate, flip, and modify individual layers, objects, selections, groups, and graphical elements.
• i. Key Concepts: transforming, warping, distorting, skewing, etc.

Resources & Tutorials

Adjust crop, rotation, and canvas size

Advanced cropping, resizing, resampling

Transform objects

Official guidelines

• 4.5 Use basic reconstructing and retouching techniques to manipulate digital graphics and media.
• a. Apply basic auto-correction methods and tools.
  
• b. Use various tools to repair and reconstruct images.
  
• i. Key Tools: healing tools, clone tools, Content-Aware tools, liquify, etc.
• c. Evaluate or adjust the appearance of objects, selections, or layers using various tools.
  
• i. Key Concepts: adjustments, adjustment layers, histogram, opacity, Eyedropper tool, etc.
• d. Apply photographic changes to images using tools and adjustments.
  
• i. Key Tools: Burn tool, Dodge tool, Desaturate options, etc.
  

Resources & Tutorials

Retouch images

Adjust the image quality

Dodge or burn image areas

Official guidelines

• 4.6 Modify the appearance of design elements by using filters and styles.
• a. Use filters to modify images destructively or non-destructively.
  
• i. Key Concepts: Smart Filters vs filters, etc.
  
• c. Create, manage, and save custom layer styles.
  
• b. Apply, modify, copy, and remove layer styles.
  

Resources & Tutorials

Apply filters

Layer effects and styles

How to Make a Color Split in Photoshop

Official guidelines

• 5.1 Prepare images for export to web, print, and video.
• a. Check document for errors and project specifications.
• i. Key Concepts: setting color space, resolution, pixel dimensions, metadata, etc.

Resources & Tutorials

Understanding color management

Image size and resolution

Metadata and notes

Official guidelines

• 5.2 Export or save digital images to various file formats.
• a. Save in the native file format for Photoshop (.psd).
  
• i. Key Concepts: compatibility, saving as a copy, saving locally vs. in the Cloud, etc.
• b. Save in appropriate image formats for the intended purpose.
• i. Key Concepts: file format, bit depth, color space, resolution, pixel dimensions, etc.
• c. Export project elements.
  
• i. Key Concepts: exporting layers, exporting selections, exporting to files, exporting to libraries, metadata. etc.

Resources & Tutorials

Export files in Photoshop

How to export files in various formats from Photoshop

Save a photo in the best format for your needs