Discover how to prepare your Photoshop project for export and presentation to a client. This article guides you through the process of transforming text layers to smart objects, duplicating layers, and preparing an image for screenshot.
Key Insights
- The article describes the need to convert text layers into smart objects when preparing an image for export. This step is vital as text layers can only be seen with the specific font if it is available in the computer's library.
- The process of duplicating the text layer can be done by first selecting the layer and using ctrl C to copy, then pasting it on top with ctrl shift V. Afterwards, the original text layer is hidden and the top layer is converted into a smart object.
- The article further details how to prepare an image for screenshot, which includes re-adding guides onto the file, ensuring all groups and layers are displayed, and capturing the screenshot. This screenshot, displaying all layers, guides, and properties, is to be uploaded for final grading.
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In this video we're going to prepare our image for export to our client, as well as take a screenshot as part of our final project. The only change that we need to make to save this as a photoshop file, pdf, or other vector file to be shown to our client is we need to convert our text layers from text to smart objects.
This is because as text they can only be seen with this specific font if the font is within the library of the computer. Therefore instead we need to change our text layer so that it's shown as a shape or a smart object. To do this we need to duplicate our layer, first clicking it and hitting CTRL C, and then we're going to paste it right on top hitting CTRL shift v on the keyboard.
From there we're going to hide our bottom text layer and now we can make a destructive change right clicking on the top text layer and converting it to a smart object. From here strategy skyline is now a smart object with a hidden text layer below. We'll do the same thing for our title, expanding title bar and selecting building the future skyline.
We'll then hit CTRL C and to paste it right on top we'll hit CTRL shift v on the keyboard. Again we'll hide the text layer, right click the top layer and select convert to smart object. We now have our image ready and our file prepared to be shared with another individual.
So let's hit CTRL S on the keyboard to save our work and now let's prepare our image for our screenshot. To do this we're going to make a couple changes. The first is we're going to re-add our guides onto our file.
So let's re-add guides at one inch from the right hand side holding shift and releasing at five inches and let's add another guide on the bottom releasing it at 3.25. This is because we'll remember that our image logo has to be within the bottom right inch of our image and in this case it fits within that although it's a bit close on the left hand side. Next we're going to click outside of the layers so that properties is shown. We can see that it's six inches by 4.25 inches and when we don't have any of our layers selected we can see the properties.
Finally as our last change we're going to want to make sure that all of our groups are expanded and our layers are shown. Within this we have the elements of our logo within logo and the text and gradient layers and title bar within title bar. We also have our Austin background image behind.
With all of these shown our properties panel shown and our guide shown we're now prepared to take a screenshot. If you're on a windows computer on the keyboard we'll hit the windows key and holding that we'll hit print screen. This will take a screenshot located within our pictures folder.
If you're on a mac hit command shift 4 and this will create the ability to drag a box creating a screenshot that will be saved to your desktop. Within the pictures folder or on a mac on your desktop please edit the image so that it shows the entire interface. Please make sure that you have your properties panel showing all of the layers expanded and the guides showing on your image.
With all of this please upload that screenshot to the portal and there's no need to upload the psd or photoshop file. Simply the screenshot will be necessary as part of your final grade. I hope you've enjoyed this photoshop course and I wish you the best of luck in your future photoshop endeavors.