Recording a Simple Action to Automate Common Tasks


I remember the first time I discovered actions in Photoshop. I was like a kid in a candy store. I was creating actions left and right and downloading them from every website possible (which wasn't many at the time). Needless to say, things have changed since then but I still love actions and I love to do cool things with them. But we have to start with the basics, so let's take a look at how to create a simple one-step action.

Step One

In Photoshop, open a photo that needs sharpening. We're going to create an action that not only sharpens this photo but will sharpen other photos for you, as well. If you don't already see the Actions palette, open it by choosing Window>Actions or press Option-F9 (PC: Alt-F9).

Step Two

Now, click the Create New Action icon at the bottom of the palette to begin creating a new action. The New Action dialog will appear. Here's where you can enter a descriptive name for your action. For this example, call this action Sharpen Photos.

©MATT KLOSKOWSKI

Step Three

Choose which set you'd like to add this action to from the Set pop-up menu. A set is like a folder for actionsit helps keep them organized. You can just put this one into the Default Actions set for now.

Turbo Boost

If you use actions a lot, you'll probably begin to hate the shortcut for the Actions palette (Option-F9 [PC: Alt-F9]). Don't forget you can always change this under Edit>Keyboard Shortcuts.


Step Four

Next, you can choose a function key to assign as a shortcut for your action. This will allow you to just press a single key to run your action, instead of always opening the Actions palette. Choose F3 from the Function Key pop-up menu for this action. Leave the Color setting to None, and click Record to start recording your action.

Step Five

You're now ready to start actually recording steps in the action. Since you already have a photo open from Step One, choose Filter>Sharpen>Smart Sharpen. In the Smart Sharpen dialog, in Basic mode, enter the following settings and click OK to close the dialog: Amount 150%, Radius 2, Remove Lens Blur, and turn on the More Accurate checkbox.

Step Six

After you click OK, look in the Actions palette. You'll see that there is one step that has been recorded in the action for the Smart Sharpen filter. You can press the Stop Recording icon (it's the little square icon on the bottom left of the palette) to stop recording the action. Your photo is sharpened and the action is stored in the Actions palette. You can now open another photo and press F3 to run the action on it (remember, that was the shortcut key we assigned back in Step Four). Your photo will automatically get sharpened using the same settings and you won't have to lift a finger (well, you'll only have to lift one finger).

Turbo Boost

Using the function keys as shortcuts for actions isn't always a possibility, especially when you're using a laptop. Try assigning the Command (PC: Control) and/or Shift key to give you a lot more options for shortcut keys.




Photoshop CS2 Speed Clinic
The Photoshop CS2 Speed Clinic: Automating Photoshop to Get Twice the Work Done in Half the Time
ISBN: 0321441656
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2006
Pages: 113

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