All Questions
36,149
questions
20
votes
1
answer
6k
views
What are Color Profiles?
What are color profiles (in Photoshop) and how do they actually affect the printing?
- 3,426
7
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Save for Web using Photoshop Actions
I would like to create an action, at the end of which I would like to save the file using Save for Web option.
The problem is the action is not being generic as it is remembering the static path of ...
- 3,426
7
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Why are certain colors more prone to compression artifacts than others?
I most often see this with compressed video, but I've also seen it often enough with JPEG images. Many times blacks, reds, and other generally dark colors seem to be especially prone to compression ...
- 746
8
votes
1
answer
4k
views
Removal of scanning artifacts
I've had a couple of times when working with scanned images where the piece I need is obscured or otherwise blemished by things such as halftoning in the case of printed items or moire effects when ...
- 746
9
votes
3
answers
24k
views
How can I improve my drawing tablet skills?
I've tried using my fianceé's tablet a few times, but find it difficult looking at the screen instead of my hand as I'm working.
Does anyone have any tips for becoming more comfortable so I can make ...
- 746
5
votes
3
answers
2k
views
How can one create a design style?
How can a person create a style of graphics that uniquely identifies that person?
I've often heard of many forms of art the importance of creating a style, how does this apply to graphic design?
- 4,487
6
votes
6
answers
1k
views
I want to be a graphic designer. How should I approach learning Photoshop?
While reading a lot of design blogs and notable designers, I keep seeing the joke/statement come up over and over again that using Photoshop does not entitle one to the name Designer (or one who can ...
- 661
5
votes
2
answers
275
views
Info-graphics , Informative Graphics and Visualizations: Are they the same term ?
I was looking at Phil Gyford's Infographic and wanted some clarification on the proper way to develop and maintain an Infographic. The majority seen on Twitter and Graphic Design Blogs ... are they ...
- 661
19
votes
6
answers
32k
views
Can Photoshop be used for vector purposes?
Usually vectors are only created in vector-based programs such as Adobe Illustrator or Inkscape, with some limited support for drawing vectors in programs like Adobe Fireworks and Flash.
However, can ...
- 4,895
31
votes
11
answers
53k
views
What DPI should be used for what situations?
I've been seeing the word 'DPI' pop up quite a lot when I export my work out in Photoshop and Illustrator. While I know that DPI stands for 'dots per inch', and that if you have too low of a DPI on an ...
- 4,895
15
votes
4
answers
31k
views
What formats supporting animation are suitable for the web?
What formats supporting animation are suitable for the web and what are the pros and cons of each.
- 686
35
votes
14
answers
8k
views
Alternative to Adobe Illustrator
Can you recommend a good alternative to Adobe Illustrator?
I am learning vector based graphic design, but I am not ready to make such a large investment as to purchase a copy of Adobe Illustrator. ...
- 557
14
votes
9
answers
7k
views
What programs can be used to make animations?
I am specifically interested in software that can be used to combine existing sets of images (frames in the animation) into an animation. Having the ability to add transitions/effects between the ...
9
votes
2
answers
883
views
Design OpenCourseWare course recommendation
I have alway been creative and interested in Graphic Design but never had any formal training. Ideally I would like to return to University to do a degree in Graphic Design, but due to time and ...
- 557
2
votes
2
answers
788
views
What are some good resources for tablet drawing? [closed]
What are some good resources for tablet drawing? Doesn't matter what media ... books, articles, video tutorials, anything else.
- 800
45
votes
10
answers
108k
views
What is the difference between CMYK and RGB? Are there other color spaces I should know?
I'm a photographer, who dabbles in graphic design from time to time as well. What are the differences between the various color spaces?
- 4,487
71
votes
17
answers
6k
views
What is the single most influential book every designer should read?
What is the single most influential book every designer should read?
14
votes
6
answers
2k
views
What free/open source image design programs can you recommend?
Are there any free/ open source image designing programs that you can recommend?
- 4,487
11
votes
4
answers
556
views
What image tablet can you recommend on a budget?
I'm looking for a tablet to use in illustrating on a computer, priced between $150-$200. Any recommendations?
- 4,487
50
votes
6
answers
223k
views
What font types are good for a technical document?
What are some good fonts to use for a highly technical document? Is there any specific type that should be used/avoided?
- 4,487
27
votes
7
answers
1k
views
What are some good resource for programmers to design icons?
I'm a programmer and find myself needing to draw icons frequently. Does anyone have any good resources for both the tools and how to design icons?
- 4,487
10
votes
4
answers
266
views
How to get images' filesizes as low as possible?
I usually use photoshop's save for web and devices, but it has no options for compressing pngs and I also wonder if there are superior compression algorithms available?
- 3,183
25
votes
7
answers
67k
views
Turning off slices in Photoshop's "Save for Web & Devices" without deleting them
I have a document set up with slices in Photoshop. If I want to export the whole PSD as one large JPG and no other files, can I do it? I don't see any option to select combine all the slices into one ...
- 3,183
44
votes
13
answers
4k
views
What web graphics formats to use?
Web sites can contain JPEG, GIF,PNG, SVG format graphics. Which ones should be used, and when?
- 1,966
64
votes
6
answers
18k
views
Are "web-safe" colors still important?
Years ago, it was always strongly recommended that web designers should only use web-safe colors.
Have studies been done to see if this is still the case? If so, what's the answer?
Does anyone know ...
- 1,966
193
votes
15
answers
20k
views
Tips and resources for beginning designers
Thanks to the internet, graphic design and programming are becoming increasingly overlapping fields.
As a programmer, I constantly find myself needing basic knowledge of Graphic Design, but have ...
- 2,033
34
votes
4
answers
4k
views
What technical/objective qualities do good logos have?
What objective (that is, not aesthetic) qualities should (almost) every logo have, that should you take into account when designing a logo or ask for when hiring someone to create a logo for you and ...
- 1,026
15
votes
3
answers
5k
views
How to draw attention to a specific area of a design?
What are the best practices for drawing attention to specific parts of a design?
- 800
20
votes
7
answers
62k
views
How to enlarge an image with as little pixelation as possible?
What technique(s) can I use to enlarge small digital (raster) image in order to best avoid pixelation? I can print the image and scan at high resolution, but I also want to preserve as close to exact ...
- 754
7
votes
1
answer
1k
views
Contrast ratio between foreground and background
What is an acceptable contrast ratio between a foreground and its background?
- 181
26
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What are standard ratios for typography on the web?
In laying out a web design, I often try to make sure that my typography is proportional and consistent. However, I haven't been able to find any definitive articles or resources on what ratios and ...
- 5,234
11
votes
4
answers
1k
views
Do high-content areas of a website need to be white/light-colored?
Many websites that are designed to be easy to read (eg. nytimes.com or ilovetypography.com) use white backgrounds with black fonts to make the content easy to read. Is it necessary to only use light ...
- 2,650
73
votes
7
answers
6k
views
What are best practices for choosing and pairing fonts?
I've always found font selection to be a little bit of a mystery. What factors should be considered when choosing a font? How does one successfully incorporate two fonts into a design?
I realize that ...
- 5,234
6
votes
2
answers
10k
views
How can I fix the edges of foreground objects pasted onto a new background?
How can I cut out a foreground object, e.g. a person, from one picture and superimpose it onto a new background without making the edges look bad?
The problem I've come across is that if I have for ...
- 568
4
votes
6
answers
1k
views
On which crowdsourced design site have you the best experience?
I'm looking to have a couple logos and website designs done. I've had some great local designers, but each one has moved or gone else where so I keep having to look for new designers. My thought and ...
- 245
34
votes
9
answers
29k
views
Are graphics tablets worth it?
I've always felt curious about graphics tablets, but I've never even used one. Most people I know either give up or love them.
I'm not a big illustrator myself, but I do the occasional doodle and ...
- 1,007
50
votes
8
answers
6k
views
Sources for Color Theory or Psychology of Color
Does anyone have a recommendation for a good book/blog/forum that focuses on design principles such as psychology of color, specifically where it relates to picking a color palette for a communication ...
- 1,382
32
votes
5
answers
62k
views
Exporting individual layers in Photoshop, keeping their sizes
I‘m trying to export individual layers in Photoshop as PNGs, keeping their size. So if I have a layer that is 200×200 in a composition that is 1000×1000, I want to export just that layer as a PNG at ...
- 1,901
14
votes
2
answers
65k
views
How do I turn off anti-aliasing while drawing shapes in Photoshop?
Whenever I create a square shape at 100% zoom, I get perfectly sharp edges. However, once I zoom in at any amount, drawing a perfect square (without anti-aliasing) is very difficult. Is there a way I ...
Joshua Sortino
13
votes
2
answers
4k
views
How to print photographic postcard/business cards
I'd like to produce my own double-sided mini post cards/business cards from my photos at 3x4" on 80 pound coated stock.
I used to send them to a print shop with odd-number front page, even number ...
- 305
11
votes
4
answers
17k
views
How does one turn a white background transparent in Photoshop but keep transparency?
In this image, I want to keep the drop shadow, but not the white background.
8
votes
3
answers
20k
views
How do I convert a color transparent PNG to white (not B&W) transparent PNG?
I'm trying to create two states for an image. I have a color transparent png icon and I need a duplicate of it that is a 'white' transparent png. This will be used in for a mouseover effect in CSS (...
chillster01uk
20
votes
6
answers
132k
views
How can I stop or disable anti-aliasing / feathering in Photoshop?
I've never really found a solution to an issue that's been plaguing me since I first experienced it in Photoshop CS, and now, five versions later, it's still bugging me!
What is it?
Well, seemingly ...
- 311
12
votes
3
answers
3k
views
Perspective manipulation
I'm trying to achieve the effect shown below, but with a photograph and I'm having some trouble maintaining the height width ratio so the photograph doesn't look too distorted - can anyone offer any ...
- 241
8
votes
1
answer
22k
views
Does the 'Other Dynamics' brush option exist in Photoshop CS5?
I have CS3 on one computer and CS 5 on another. On CS3 my dynamic brush options have a section called 'Other Dynamics' that allows me to change jitter opacity, but my CS5 does not have that option in ...
PangaeaEarth
38
votes
8
answers
269k
views
How do I change a single layer to grayscale in Photoshop CS4?
I know you can have the whole image turn grayscale: Image → Mode → Grayscale
What if I only want to make specific layers grayscale? There's gotta be an easier way than pulling out the layers you want ...
- 491
12
votes
2
answers
10k
views
Why are colors shifting when converting from CMYK to RGB in Photoshop?
I have an image that is CMYK and I have tried to convert it to RGB so that I can edit the colour of the image. However it won't let me work in 32 bit and asks me to convert the image to 16 or 8 bit to ...
Jodie
10
votes
1
answer
1k
views
if you accidently make a document in working CMYK how can you change it to RGB?
if you accidently make a document in proof setup 'working CMYK' is there any easy way to convert the document to RGB without the colours getting washed out?
significance
13
votes
1
answer
4k
views
Photoshop selection feather and cut/paste behavior (pixel loss)
When cutting(deleting) a selection with a feather it completely deletes all that is inside the selection and creates the feather with gradually increasing opacity outside the selection line.
On the ...
axk