How To Using plug-in modules In Photoshop

Plug-in modules are software programs developed by Adobe Systems and by other software developers in conjunction with Adobe Systems to add features to Photoshop and ImageReady. A number of importing, exporting, and special-effects plug-ins come with your program; they are automatically installed in folders inside the Photoshop Plug-ins folder.

You can select an additional plug-ins folder to use compatible plug-ins stored with another application. You can also create a shortcut (Windows) or an alias (Mac OS) for a plug-in stored in another folder on your system. You can then add the shortcut or alias to the Plug-ins folder to use that plug-in with Photoshop and ImageReady.

Once installed, plug-in modules appear as options added to the Import or Export menu; as file formats in the Open, Save As, and Export Original (ImageReady) dialog boxes; or as filters in the Filter submenus. Photoshop and ImageReady can accommodate a large number of plug-ins. However, if the number of installed plug-in modules becomes great enough, Photoshop or ImageReady may not be able to list all the plug-ins in their appropriate menus. Newly installed plug-ins will then appear in the Filter > Other submenu.

To install an Adobe Systems plug-in module:

Do one of the following:

• Use the plug-in installer, if provided.
• (Windows) Copy the module into the appropriate Plug-ins folder in the Photoshop program folder. Make sure that the files are uncompressed.
• (Mac OS) Drag a copy of the module to the appropriate Plug-ins folder in the Photoshop program folder. Make sure that the files are uncompressed.

Important: For Macintosh, the plug-ins that come with Photoshop 7.0 are compatible with both Mac OS 9.x and Mac OS X. However, any plug-in originally intended to work on Mac OS 9, such as plug-ins from previous versions of Photoshop and some third-party plug-ins, can only be used on Mac OS 9.x or in the Classic environment on Mac OS X. You can place such plug-ins in the Plug-ins folder for the Mac OS X version of Photoshop, but they will not appear unless you launch Photoshop in the Classic environment.

To install a third-party plug-in module:

Follow the installation instructions that came with the plug-in module.

If you cannot run a third-party plug-in, the plug-in may require a legacy Photoshop serial number.

To specify a legacy serial number (Photoshop):

1. Do one of the following:

·         In Windows and Mac OS 9.x, choose Edit > Preferences > Plug-Ins & Scratch Disk.

·         In Mac OS X, choose Photoshop > Preferences > Plug-Ins & Scratch Disk.

                        Enter the serial number from Photoshop 6.0 or earlier in the Legacy Photoshop Serial Number text box.

To select an additional plug-ins folder:

1. Do one of the following:

·         In Windows and Mac OS 9.x, choose Edit > Preferences > Plug-Ins & Scratch Disk.

·         (Photoshop) In Mac OS X, choose Photoshop > Preferences > Plug-Ins & Scratch Disk.

·         (ImageReady) In Mac OS X, choose ImageReady > Preferences > Plug-Ins & Scratch Disk.

                        Select Additional Plug-ins Folder.

Click Choose, and select a folder or directory from the list. Make sure that you do not select a location inside the Plug-ins folder. To display the contents of a folder, double-click the directory (Windows) or click Open (Mac OS).

When you have highlighted the additional plug-ins folder, click OK (Windows), Select (Mac OS) or Choose (Mac OS 9.0 and later).

                        Restart Photoshop or ImageReady for the plug-ins to take effect.

To suppress the loading of a plug-in or folder of plug-ins:

Add a tilde "~" character at the beginning of the plug-in name, folder, or directory. That file (or all files in the folder) will be ignored by the application.

To view information about installed plug-ins:

Do one of the following:

• In Windows, choose Help > About Plug-In and select a plug-in from the submenu.
• In Mac OS 9.x, choose Apple menu > About Plug-In and select a plug-in from the submenu.
• (Photoshop) In Mac OS X, choose Photoshop > About Plug-In and select a plug-in from the submenu.
• (ImageReady) In Mac OS X, choose ImageReady > About Plug-In and select a plug-in from the submenu.

To load a plug-in in only Photoshop or ImageReady:

Install the plug-in either the Adobe Photoshop Only folder or the Adobe ImageReady Only folder inside the Plug-ins folder.

Note: Use this procedure when you want to use a plug-in within only Photoshop or ImageReady, or when a plug-in may only be compatible with one of the two applications.

How To Placing files in Photoshop

You can use the File > Place command to place artwork into a new layer in an image. In Photoshop, you can place PDF, Adobe Illustrator, and EPS files; in ImageReady, you can place files in any supported format, with the exception of Photoshop (PSD) files containing CMYK images.

When you place a PDF, Adobe Illustrator, or EPS file, it is rasterized; you cannot edit text or vector data in placed artwork. Keep in mind that artwork is rasterized at the resolution of the file into which it is placed.

To place a PDF, Adobe Illustrator, or EPS file (Photoshop):

1. Open the Photoshop image into which you want to place the artwork.

2. Choose File > Place, select the file you want to place, and click Place.

3. If you are placing a PDF file that contains multiple pages, select the page you want to place in the provided dialog box, and click OK.

The placed artwork appears inside a bounding box at the center of the Photoshop image. The artwork maintains its original aspect ratio; however, if the artwork is larger than the Photoshop image, it is resized to fit.

4. If desired, reposition the placed artwork by doing one or more of the following:

·         Position the pointer inside the bounding box of the placed artwork, and drag.

·         In the options bar, enter a value for X to specify the distance between the center point of the placed artwork and the left edge of the image. Enter a value for Y to specify the distance between the center point of the placed artwork and the top edge of the image.

·         To adjust the center point of the placed artwork, drag the center point to a new location, or click a handle on the center point icon in the options bar.

                        If desired, scale the placed artwork by doing one or more of the following:

·         Drag one of the handles at the corners or sides of the bounding box. Hold down Shift as you drag a corner handle to constrain the proportions.

·         In the options bar, enter values for W and H to specify the width and height of the artwork. By default, these options represent scale as a percentage; however, you can enter another unit of measurement. To constrain the proportions of the artwork, click the Constrain Proportions icon ; the option is on when the icon has a white background.

                        If desired, rotate the placed artwork by doing one or more of the following:

·         Position the pointer outside the bounding box of the placed artwork (the pointer turns into a curved arrow), and drag.

·         In the options bar, enter a value (in degrees) for the Rotation option .

The artwork rotates around the center point of the placed artwork. To adjust the center point, drag it to a new location, or click a handle on the Center Point icon in the options bar.

                        If desired, skew the placed artwork by holding down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac OS), and dragging a side handle of the bounding box.

                        Set the Anti-alias option in the options bar as desired. To blend edge pixels during rasterization, select the Anti-alias option. To produce a hard-edged transition between edge pixels during rasterization, deselect the Anti-alias option.

                        To commit the placed artwork to a new layer, do one of the following:

·         Click the OK button in the options bar.

·         Press Enter or Return.

To cancel the placement, click the Cancel button in the options bar, or press Esc.

To place a file (ImageReady):

1. Open the ImageReady image into which you want to place the file.

2. Choose File > Place, select the file you want to place, and click Open.

3. Select offset options:

·         From the Horizontal pop-up menu, choose an option for placing the file horizontally with respect to the image. In the Pixels text box, enter the number of pixels to offset the placed image horizontally.

·         From the Vertical pop-up menu, choose an option for placing the file vertically with respect to the image. In the Pixels text box, enter the number of pixels to offset the placed image vertically.

Note: To enter a negative number (and offset the placed file to the left or below the image), type a hyphen (-) before the number.

                        Click OK.

                        If you are placing a PDF file that contains multiple pages, select the page you want to place, and click OK.

                        If you are placing a PDF or EPS file, select Rasterize options, and click OK:

·         Enter Width and Height values for Image Size.

·         Select Anti-aliased to minimize the jagged appearance of the artwork's edges as it is rasterized.

Select Constrain Proportions to maintain the same height-to-width ratio.

Learn What is resampling

Resampling refers to changing the pixel dimensions (and therefore display size) of an image. When you downsample (or decrease the number of pixels), information is deleted from the image. When you resample up (or increase the number of pixels), new pixels are added based on color values of existing pixels. You specify an interpolation method to determine how pixels are added or deleted.

Resampling examples: A. Downsampled B. Original C. Resampled up (Selected pixels displayed for each image) 

Keep in mind that resampling can result in poorer image quality. For example, when you resample an image to larger pixel dimensions, the image will lose some detail and sharpness. Applying the Unsharp Mask filter to a resampled image can help refocus the image's details.  

You can avoid the need for resampling by scanning or creating the image at a high enough resolution. If you want to preview the effects of changing pixel dimensions on-screen or print proofs at different resolutions, resample a duplicate of your file.