| Forum Home | ||||
| Press F1 | ||||
| Thread ID: 34466 | 2003-06-13 23:57:00 | How to deselect tools in Photoshop Elements 2? | Neil McC (178) | Press F1 |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 152426 | 2003-06-13 23:57:00 | Just trying out the demo.Tried to get the Filter drop down menu to sharpen a photo,but after selecting a tool,the Filter menu is grayed out.How do I get out of the toolkit mode to get the filter function back?Messed around and somehow got it back but don't know how.And I have read through the help files.That's good for telling me how to select a tool and use it!! And of course trying closing the program and restarting it, it keeps the last settings. And comments on which is the nicest? one to use.Jasc,Photoshop etc. I would like to get a decent program and learn to use it and get rid of all the little hangers-on! Except Irfanview of course.Looking to get a digital camera for my wife after this video cam is paid off. :-) |
Neil McC (178) | ||
| 152427 | 2003-06-14 00:10:00 | I recommend Elements 2.0, and also I particularly recommend 'Photoshop Elements 2 for Dummies' to go with it (NOT 'Idiot's Guide to...'; the former is heaps better. I had to get mine thru Amazon as it was unavailable locally, at least last year). I can't reproduce the 'greyed out' problem you mention first. I don't normally use any of the drop-down menus anyway, but select the ones I want from the Palette Well, which is much more convenient. (You can select which palettes to put in the Well, so you only have the ones there that you use most). |
colmack (2939) | ||
| 152428 | 2003-06-14 01:11:00 | Very strange. The filter menu is grayed out with only a few photos I select to work on.And it doesn't seem to be tied in with size,as some of the bmp's are larger than the ones it will work with!And one of those it's grayed out with now,is one I managed to get it working with last night.So it doesn't look like it's tied in with the tools. Any more comments? Thanks,colmack. |
Neil McC (178) | ||
| 152429 | 2003-06-14 01:30:00 | I notice you mention bmp... is this the format you're using? I don't think this will solve the problem you first mention, but it's better to change your files to a different format (eg .psd, which is Photoshop's own, or TIFF) - you can always change back to another format when you've finished your enhancing). It's slightly possible - though again I doubt it - that the trial version has built-in 'bugs' that the fully registered version won't have. (I used the trial version first with no problems). I used Google to find free courses on how to use Elements - very helpful, before I bought the book I mentioned last time. You could try that. |
colmack (2939) | ||
| 152430 | 2003-06-14 01:35:00 | I've found that the ones I can't use the filter menu on are labelled (Index) in the title above the picture ,whereas all others are labelled (RGB).But one of them (the Index ones) I did manage to work on last night,and the altered saved copies are labelled (RGB)!But how did I do it? ?:| | Neil McC (178) | ||
| 152431 | 2003-06-14 01:58:00 | (RGB) is the standard one that you would expect, if the image is taken from (say) a digital camera. All of my pictures are, so all of mine are RGB. I'm not sure where (index) comes from - some different source from your other 'successful' pictures? To change, for what it's worth, go to Image>Mode>whatever. As you have discovered yourself, when it's in indexed color mode - I don't actually know what that means! - things on the main menu bar are grayed out. If you save this image, the format changes automatically to Photoshop's .psd, but the mode is still in (index), so - like you - I don't understand how you worked on one mode, and had them change to a different mode. So we're both stuck there. The good news is that the mode is not normally something you worry about, as it's 'always' (RGB) [and now you know how to change it if for some reason it isn't]: there are so many other fun things to play with which are less puzzling! |
colmack (2939) | ||
| 152432 | 2003-06-14 03:57:00 | Hi Neil, I have never looked at Photoshop Elements but I do have Paintshop Pro 7 and find it excellent. There are quite a few very good tutorials on the web to show you how to do things and give you ideas which I find invaluable. Regarding your greyed out menu I am wondering if it is because of the .bmp format of your file? In PSP most of the selections are greyed out with .jpg and similar files until the number of colours is increased. I usually save my files as .psp to edit them and when finished save them as .jpg or whatever again (keeping the original .psp file in case I need to edit it again). Not sure if Photoshop Elements would be the same but it may be worth investigating. |
Susan B (19) | ||
| 152433 | 2003-06-14 04:32:00 | Thankyou, colmack,you're a life saver.You know how it is with a new program,do I really need this thing if it won't work!!!Always a case of learning how to. As you said,when the (Index) image is on screen,I can go in to Image-Mode and change it to RGB to work on it. And the Photos are ones I've scanned as BMP.All the others bar 1 show as RGB,and they're mostly black and whites.Strange.Must watch out for that next time I scan one. Thanks Susan,I think it's the same in PE2.Lots of different formats to save in.So it's nothing to do with the format I think but this Index label on the photo! I've just checked a photo that's labelled Gray,but the filter options still show.(My poor hot Morry that I sold to a young(er) guy who wrapped it round a pole and nearly killed my cousin,who now wants a picture of it to show his kids!)Thanks again,both of you.Time to learn. |
Neil McC (178) | ||
| 1 | |||||