By Elizabeth Dubos
Adobe Photoshop is a photo and design software where you can create, composite, or edit beautiful graphics, paintings, and images on your laptop, desktop, or iPad. Whether you’re a novice trying to learn about Photoshop’s tools or an expert looking to brush up on your skills, there are thousands of Photoshop tutorials out there for you to watch and listen to! However, there’s a lot of diversity; some tutorials only have background music, some require payment, some are over an hour long, some have clickbait titles, and some are using outdated software that don’t apply today. After a while, this can become daunting as it feels like you can never find the right tutorial. So, for today’s blog post, I’m going to provide a list of my favorite Photoshop tutorial resources.
PHLEARN. Aaron, the creator of PHLEARN has over 15+ years of Photoshop experience and 10+ years of teaching it. Here are the pros of PHLEARN:
- First, there’s free Photoshop tutorials available on their YouTube channel, so they’re easily accessible.
- Second, you’ll never feel constrained on time because the tutorials are available in different time increments from 1-20,and sometimes over 30, minutes.
- Third, I think Aaron has an enjoyable voice because his tone is informative and encouraging. If you don’t have a budget and are looking to master Photoshop, then I would highly recommend going to phlearn.com. If you pay the $99.99 annual subscription fee, users can access 200+ PRO tutorials, 500+ presets and actions, and new content every week.
Blue Lightning TV Photoshop. Marty Geller is the founder of Blue Lightning TV on YouTube. He’s very experienced as he’s designed for NBC, ABC, and VH-1. He’s also won Emmy Awards for his work. Marty has been creating Photoshop tutorials since 2011. Therefore, you don’t have to worry about which software version you have; more than likely it’ll be on his channel. Here are some of the reasons why I enjoy Blue Lightning TV:
- First, his YouTube content is free! If you pay for the channel’s memberships, you’ll receive access to loyalty badges and VIP early access to new videos.
- Second, I love of the diversity and simplicity of his tutorials. He covers a range of topics such as portrait effects, typography effects, patterns, and more!
- When I began learning how to master Photoshop, Blue Lightning TV was my go-to because the tutorials are simple and easy to learn from. Plus, Marty explains the tools utilized in MAC and PC terms, so viewers don’t have to worry about what kind of computer they’re on.
Lastly, like Aaron from PHLEARN, Marty also has an extremely relaxing voice which enhances the tutorial experience.
Adobe Photoshop Reference Guide.
If you’re not into watching or listening to tutorials, maybe this PDF guide will help you out. It was created by Adobe, so it’s a trustable document. This PDF is extremely helpful if you’re trying to learn about Photoshop’s tools and on different devices too. For example, chapter three is titled, “Photoshop on the iPad.” This chapter discusses how to work with layers, touch shortcuts and gestures, crop and rotate your composites, and more! The PDF document features pictures as well. If you want to print out this document, be sure to keep in mind that it’s over 1000 pages long. So, maybe print out specific chapters. You could also go to your local print shop, have it professionally printed, and have it bound together to ensure it’s readable and the pages are tightly secured.
TikTok.
This is a quick and simple solution if you’re looking to experiment with Photoshop’s tools. If you type “photoshop tutorials” or “photoshop hacks” into the app’s search bar, then you’ll access hundreds of Photoshop tutorials. All you have to do is click the video & enjoy watching. However, there are a couple of cons to utilizing Tiktok:
- First, it’s not the most reliable source and can often have clickbait material.
- Second, you cannot rewind parts of the clip; you can only pause it or wait for it to restart. The clips are very short, so it shouldn’t be too much of an issue.
Edited by Sierra Tufts-Sicard