Top 10 Killer Photoshop Combo Moves for Windows

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Tom Giannattasio happily makes things at nclud. He works as an Editor for Smashing Magazine and teaches at Boston University Center for Digital Imaging Arts. He … More about Tom ↬

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Is time kickin’ your ass? Well, learn to defend yourself! Master these killer Photoshop keyboard combos and you’ll find yourself with more time for the important things (e.g. Facebook trivia questions). These combos assume you’re using Photoshop CS3 on Windows platform with default keyboard shortcuts.

Is time kickin’ your ass? Well, learn to defend yourself! Master these killer Photoshop keyboard combos and you’ll find yourself with more time for the important things (e.g. Facebook trivia questions). These combos assume you’re using Photoshopon Windows platform with default keyboard shortcuts.

Legend:
( ) = Repeat as desired { } = Manual Input Required

Top 10 Killer Photoshop Combos

10. Cloak of Invisibility

Remove everything from the screen except for your file.

F, F, F | Cycle through Screen Modes
Tab | Remove Tools and Palettes
Ctrl+H | Hide/Show Extras (Grid, Guides, Slices, etc.)
Ctrl+R | Show/Hide Rulers

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9. Quick Brush Jab

Quickly and easily customize a brush. This combo is a staple for digital painting.

B | Brush Tool
Right-Click and Select or F5 and Select | Open condensed or full Brush Palette
. or , or Shift+. or Shift+, | Cycle through brushes or jump to first or last brush
Alt+Right-click | Shrink or enlarge brush radius and decrease (drag left and right) or increase brush hardness (drag up and down)
{Numeric Input} | Change brush opacity (e.g. ‘5’ = 50%, ‘55’ = 55%)

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8. Quick Brush Jab Path Stroke

Stroke a path with a customized brush.

{Draw Path} | Use Pen tool to draw a path
B | Select Brush Tool
Quick Brush Jab | Use the Quick Brush Jab Combo to customize brush
Pen Tool+Right-click on Path | Stroke path with your customized brush

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7. Gaussian Attack

Apply a filter, fade it and apply again. Good combo for fine-tweaking filters.

{Apply a Filter} | Manually choose and apply a filter
Ctrl+Shift+F | Fade the filter
(Ctrl+F or Ctrl+Alt+F) | Reapply filter with or without dialog box

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6. Shadow Maker

Create a basic shadow based on a chosen layer.

{Select Layer} | Select the layer the shadow will be created after. The transparency of this layer needs to resemble the desired shape of the shadow.
Ctrl+J | Layer via Copy
Ctrl+[ | Move layer down
D | Reset color defaults
Alt+Shift+Backspace | Fill with black and preserve transparency
Ctrl+T | Free transform
{Transform} | Modify to your liking
Enter | Commit (and use Filter > Blur > Gaussian Blur)

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5. Layer Catcher

Select, group and mask layers. Often easier than using the layers palette.

V | Selection Tool
Ctrl+Click or Ctrl+Shift+Click or Right-Click | Select your layers
Ctrl+G | Group Layers

4. Layer Sort

Rearrange your layers quickly and easily. Great cure for you neuroticism.

F7 | Hide/Show Layer Palette
Alt+[ or Alt+] or Alt+, or Alt+. | Select a layer
Shift+Alt+[ or Shift+Alt+] or Shift+Alt+, or Shift+Alt+. | Select more layers
Ctrl+[ or Ctrl+] or Shift+Ctrl+[ or Shift+Control+] | Move layers down or up or send to bottom or bring to top

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3. Ultimate Flattener

Merge All Layers (even those hidden). Quick way to flatten a file.

Alt+. | Select Top Layer
Alt+< | Select all layers between currently selected and bottom layer
Ctrl+E | Merge the selected layers

2. Infinite Dupe

Duplicate and evenly distribute or transform items. Nice way to distribute something like nav buttons.

Ctrl+T | Transform
{Transform/Move} | Manually Move or Transform
Enter | Commit Transform
(Ctrl+Alt+Shift+T) | Duplicate and transform relative to the newest item

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1. Finishing Move - The Web Extractor

Extract a selection and save it for the web. Extremely useful when pulling individual elements from a design, such as buttons or rules.

{Create Selection} | Select the area you want to extract
Ctrl+Shift+C | Copy Merged to clipboard
Ctrl+N | Create New Image based on selection size
Enter | Confirm New Image
Ctrl+V | Paste from clipboard
Ctrl+Alt+Shift+S | Save for the Web