Web Shop Design: Plugging into Photoshop By Helen Bradley
July 22, 2008
For almost any task that you can perform in Photoshop chances are somebody has done it before. Luckily for you, many people who do great work in Photoshop either artistically or in a production environment like to share their work with others. Using the various technologies available in Photoshop features, such as actions, brushes, shapes, gradients and filters can be created and then saved as files and distributed as downloadable add-ins.
In this article I'll look at some of the add-ins that you might consider using in Photoshop, how to get them and how to install and use them. These "extras" will help you spruce up the design of your e-commerce site, whether you're editing product shots, adding watermarks to photos, creating film strips or collages or adjusting other design elements.
Finding the Right Stuff
Adobe Exchange is one of the best sites for finding help when working with Photoshop. At the Photoshop Exchange portion of this site, you can preview lists of actions, add-ins and plug-ins that people have created to perform tasks in Photoshop. For example, you can search for freeware only and then preview examples of the actions and see how other Photoshop users have rated the tools so you can get some indication as to how well they accomplish certain functions.
Get Extra Photoshop Goodies at the Adobe Exchange.
So, for instance, if you are looking for an action that will convert an image into a faux infrared or one that creates a faux Polaroid style image, you can probably find it on this site. Not only will you find creative applications here, but there are also tools for speeding up day-to-day tasks. One example is an action that can apply a watermark to a batch of images at one time and one that creates a frame effect that floats an image over an enlarged and blurred duplicate of the same image.
You can also find downloadable brushes, custom shapes, gradients and patterns that you can use to add to those that come shipped with Photoshop.
Installing the Tools
Most downloadable add-ins will come with some instructions for installing them — these are often included in the .zip file as readme.txt files or on the Web site from which you download the files.
Each file that contains a Photoshop add-in element has an extension that indicates the contents and type of file. So, for example, brushes are .abr files, actions are .atn files, custom shapes are .csh files, gradients are .grd files, styles are .asl files and filters are .8bf files. Once you know the type of file you are dealing with you can copy or move it to the appropriate folder in Photoshop. For example, filters can be installed in your c:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CS3\Plug-Ins\Filters folder. Actions, brushes, styles, patterns, gradients and custom shapes should all be installed in the appropriately named subfolder of the presets folder which you will find at c:\Documents and Settings\\Application Data\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CS3\Presets\.
Once you store the file in the appropriate folder you can load the file into Photoshop. Most filters require you to close Photoshop and reopen it as filters are loaded automatically by Photoshop when it is launched. Other files stored in subfolders of the Presets folder won't generally require you to close and restart Photoshop as you load these manually.
So, to load a new set of brushes, display the Brushes Palette, click the flyout menu and select the brushes set from the foot of the palette menu. If you choose Load Brushes, you'll be taken automatically to the c:\Documents and Settings\\Application Data\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CS3\Presets\Brushes folder. Select the file to load and then choose to Append the elements to the current collection or replace them.
Digging for Downloads: Our Favorites
Virtual Photographer is a group of handy filters you can use to enhance your photos.
One popular plug-in available for free download is OptikVerve Lab's Virtual Photographer. This plug-in includes a lot of handy tools for Photoshop. It lets you instantly apply high quality, professional photographic styles to your digital images.
Virtual Photographer includes over 50 presets that automatically apply combinations of film grain, color modification, soft focus, high contrast and many artistic effects to achieve the same professional-looking images that used to take hours of photo editing.
It is available for PC only as a .zip download or an executable that will run from the OptikVerve Lab's Web site. Whichever way you choose to install the program, you will need to add the 8bf file to your filters folder to make the application available inside Photoshop.
In addition to the options that come bundled with the application itself, you can download additional .vph files to add to the application. Store these in a place they'll be easy to find as you need to select them individually to use them in conjunction with Virtual Photographer. Virtual Photographer brings with it a custom designed interface from which you can select various options to use.
Another handy plug-in is the icon format plug in from www.telegraphics.com.au/sw/go.php3 that lets you open and save .ico format files from Photoshop. The .ico format is used for Windows icons and for web Favicons so, with this plug-in you can create these tiny images yourself in Photoshop.
Lights, Camera, Action: Photoshop Action! creates an instant filmstrip using three of your images.
A handy source for brushes and some patterns is Obsidian Dawn and there are lots available too at V-brush. Typically, you will find that brushes made for earlier versions of Photoshop will work fine with later versions.
Find some freely downloadable actions at Shutterfreaks — we like Rob's Bleach action — and more still at PanosFX and FinesseFX. There is a great filmstrip action at this link . If you're interested in Web 2.0 graphics, there are gradients and styles you can download from DezinerFolio.
Whatever you need to enhance your Photoshop experience, chances are that the product already exists in the form of an add-in file. Using these can help you be more productive and give you the tools you need to create wonderful graphics for your Web site.
Helen Bradley is a respected international journalist writing regularly for small business and computer publications in the USA, Canada, South Africa, UK and Australia. You can learn more about her at her Web site, HelenBradley.com.
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