Adobe Photoshop CS5 for Photographers - Martin Evening [12]
In the Figure 1.25 example, the tabbed image documents fill the horizontal space between the Tools panel on the left and the three panel columns on the right. I have also shown here how you can mouse down on the column edge to adjust the column width (see the double arrow icon that's circled in red). Photoshop panels can be grouped into as many columns as you like within the application window, or positioned separately outside the application window, such as on a separate monitor (see ‘Working with a dual monitor setup’ on page 26).
Figure 1.25 This shows a multi column workspace layout with some of the panels grouped in a docked, compact icon layout, outside the main application window. Note that the application frame is always topmost and can sometimes obscure any floating panels.
Panel positions remembered in workspaces
In CS5 there has been a subtle improvement to the way Photoshop remembers panel positions after switching workspaces. Now when you select a workspace and modify the panel layout, the new layout position is remembered when you next return to using that particular workspace. In the past it was always necessary to resave the workspace setting after you had made any refinements to the layout of the panels.
Closing panels
To close a panel, click on the Close button in the top right corner (or choose ‘Close’ from the panel options fly-out menu).
Customizing the menu options
As the number of features in Photoshop has grown over the years, the menu choices have become quite overwhelming and this is especially true if you are new to Photoshop. However, if you go to the Edit menu and choose Menus…, this opens the Keyboard Shortcuts and Menus dialog shown in Figure 1.27, where you can customize the menu options and decide which menu items should remain visible. This Customize menu feature is like a ‘make simpler’ command. You can hide those menu options you never use and apply color codings to the menu items you use most often so that they appear more prominent. For example, if you select the ‘Basic’ workspace, this setting abbreviates the menu lists in Photoshop and hides the more advanced features. This is therefore a useful workspace for someone who is just beginning to learn Photoshop since they will find it easier to locate the menu commands they need when starting out. The philosophy behind this feature is: ‘everything you do want with nothing you don't’. Another example is the ‘New in CS5’ workspace (Figure 1.26). This applies a custom menu setting in which all the new Photoshop CS5 menu items are color coded blue.
Figure 1.27 The Keyboard Shortcuts and Menus dialog.
Figure 1.26 The Custom workspace menu options, which are shown here using the ‘New in CS5’ setting that color codes all the new menu items in blue.
Show All Menu Items
In Basic mode, a Show All Menu Items command will appear at the bottom of each menu list. You can select this menu item to restore the menus so that they show the full list of menu options.
Help menu searches
Here is an interesting tip for Mac users who are running Mac OS X 10.5 or later. If you go to the Photoshop Help menu and start typing the first few letters for a particular menu command, the Help menu lists all the available menu options. Now roll the mouse over a search result: Photoshop locates the menu item for you and points to it with an arrow.
Customizing the keyboard shortcuts
While you are in the Keyboard Shortcuts and Menus dialog, you can click on the Keyboard Shortcuts tab to reveal the keyboard shortcut options shown below in Figure 1.28 (or you can go to the Edit menu and choose Keyboard Shortcuts…) In this dialog you first select which kinds of shortcuts you want to create, i.e. Application Menus, Panel Menus or Tools. You can then navigate the menu list, click in the Shortcut column next to a particular menu item and hold down the combination