Adobe Certified Professional Photoshop cheat sheet
Adobe Certified Professional Photoshop · Keep the key ideas within reach.
Photoshop Fundamentals and Workspace
The Toolbar groups tools into sections; a small triangle in a tool's corner indicates hidden tools accessible by long-press or right-click.
The Options bar content changes to reflect the currently selected tool and controls that tool's settings.
Panels live in the dock on the right; the Window menu toggles panel visibility, and dragging a panel tab out creates a floating panel.
Workspaces (Window > Workspace) save panel and toolbar arrangements; the default is Essentials, and custom workspaces persist across sessions.
Tab key toggles panel visibility, and Shift+Tab toggles only the right-side dock; F cycles screen modes (Standard, Full Screen with Menu Bar, Full Screen).
Bracket keys [ and ] decrease and increase brush size; adding Shift changes brush hardness instead.
Non-destructive editing relies on adjustment layers, layer masks, and smart objects rather than direct pixel edits such as destructive filters or erasing.
Preferences (Edit > Preferences) control units, history states, scratch disks, and cache levels; History states default to 50 and cap the undo depth.
Document Setup, Layers, and Selections
Image > Image Size changes pixel dimensions and resolution; with Resample off, only resolution metadata changes and total pixel count stays constant.
Canvas Size (Image > Canvas Size) changes the visible canvas area without scaling existing pixels; the anchor grid determines which edges expand or crop.
Bit depth of 8 bits/channel gives 256 levels per channel; 16 bits/channel gives 65,536 levels and supports smoother gradients and edits.
Layer blend modes operate on the underlying composite; Multiply darkens, Screen lightens, Overlay and Soft Light increase contrast, and Color applies hue/saturation while keeping luminosity.
Clipping masks (Alt/Option-click between layers) confine the upper layer's visibility to the alpha of the layer directly below.
Selection tools: Marquee for geometric shapes, Lasso for freehand, Polygonal Lasso for straight edges, and Object Selection or Quick Selection for subject-based selection.
Refine Edge/Select and Mask uses Edge Detection (Smart Radius), Global Refinements (Smooth, Feather, Contrast), and Output Settings to produce a layer mask or new layer.
Select > Modify offers Border, Smooth, Expand, Contract, and Feather; Feather softens the selection edge and is destructive once applied.
Shift adds to a selection and Alt/Option subtracts; holding Shift while dragging with a Marquee constrains to a square or circle.
Image Adjustments, Retouching, and Color
Levels maps input black/white points to output; the middle gray slider adjusts gamma, and the histogram shows tonal distribution per channel.
Curves offers the most control: an S-curve increases contrast, and individual channel curves correct color casts.
Shadows/Highlights recovers detail in underexposed shadows or blown highlights without clipping the opposite end.
Vibrance boosts less-saturated colors more than already saturated ones and protects skin tones; Saturation scales all colors equally.
Black & White converts to grayscale with per-color-channel mix sliders, allowing control over how each source color renders.
Hue/Saturation can target individual color ranges (Reds, Yellows, etc.) and offers a Colorize option for tinting grayscale images.
Dodge and Burn lighten and darken; with Range set to Shadows, Midtones, or Highlights and Exposure controlling strength, they mimic traditional darkroom techniques.
Clone Stamp copies pixels from a sampled source (Alt/Option-click); Healing Brush and Spot Healing blend sampled texture with surrounding color and tone.
Content-Aware Fill (Edit > Fill) and the Spot Healing Brush in Content-Aware mode reconstruct missing areas using surrounding image data.
Masks, Compositing, and Smart Objects
A layer mask uses grayscale: white reveals, black hides, and gray produces partial transparency; painting on the mask edits visibility without deleting pixels.
A vector mask uses paths for hard, resolution-independent edges; shape layers carry a vector mask by default.
Clipping masks and layer masks differ: clipping uses the alpha of the layer below, while a layer mask uses painted grayscale values on the same layer.
Smart Objects (Layer > Smart Objects > Convert to Smart Object) preserve source data; filters applied become Smart Filters that can be re-edited or hidden.
Double-clicking a Smart Object thumbnail opens the source document; saving it updates every instance of that Smart Object.
Smart Objects can be linked (source file referenced) or embedded (data stored in the document); linked objects update when the external file changes.
Layer > Smart Objects > Replace Contents swaps the source while preserving filters and transforms applied to the Smart Object.
Blend If sliders in Layer Style separate the current layer from underlying tones; Alt/Option-dragging a slider handle splits it for smooth transitions.
Compositing requires matching perspective, lighting direction, and color temperature; Match Color (Image > Adjustments > Match Color) can harmonize tonal balance between layers.
Output, Export, and File Formats
PSD preserves layers, masks, and Smart Objects; TIFF supports layers and lossless compression and is the standard for print handoff.
JPEG is lossy and 8-bit only, with no alpha channel; PNG-24 is lossless with alpha, and PNG-8 supports indexed color up to 256 colors.
GIF supports animation and 1-bit transparency; WebP offers lossy or lossless compression with alpha for web delivery.
Export As (File > Export > Export As) produces JPEG, PNG, GIF, and WebP with scale and quality controls; Save a Copy retains the original format.
Save for Web (legacy) optimizes for web with a 2-up or 4-up preview and per-format quality/size estimates.
PDF export can preserve Photoshop editing capability; the PDF/X presets are intended for print with specific color and bleed requirements.
Print resolution is typically 300 ppi for offset print and 72-150 ppi for screen; upsampling beyond native resolution adds no real detail.
Color settings: sRGB is the web default, Adobe RGB has a wider gamut for print, and ProPhoto RGB is the widest; assign vs. convert profile differ in whether pixel values change.
When exporting with alpha, choose PNG or TIFF; JPEG flattens transparency onto a matte color, typically white.
Photoshop Fundamentals and Workspace
The Toolbar groups tools into sections; a small triangle in a tool's corner indicates hidden tools accessible by long-press or right-click.
The Options bar content changes to reflect the currently selected tool and controls that tool's settings.
Panels live in the dock on the right; the Window menu toggles panel visibility, and dragging a panel tab out creates a floating panel.
Workspaces (Window > Workspace) save panel and toolbar arrangements; the default is Essentials, and custom workspaces persist across sessions.
Tab key toggles panel visibility, and Shift+Tab toggles only the right-side dock; F cycles screen modes (Standard, Full Screen with Menu Bar, Full Screen).
Bracket keys [ and ] decrease and increase brush size; adding Shift changes brush hardness instead.
Non-destructive editing relies on adjustment layers, layer masks, and smart objects rather than direct pixel edits such as destructive filters or erasing.
Preferences (Edit > Preferences) control units, history states, scratch disks, and cache levels; History states default to 50 and cap the undo depth.
Document Setup, Layers, and Selections
Image > Image Size changes pixel dimensions and resolution; with Resample off, only resolution metadata changes and total pixel count stays constant.
Canvas Size (Image > Canvas Size) changes the visible canvas area without scaling existing pixels; the anchor grid determines which edges expand or crop.
Bit depth of 8 bits/channel gives 256 levels per channel; 16 bits/channel gives 65,536 levels and supports smoother gradients and edits.
Layer blend modes operate on the underlying composite; Multiply darkens, Screen lightens, Overlay and Soft Light increase contrast, and Color applies hue/saturation while keeping luminosity.
Clipping masks (Alt/Option-click between layers) confine the upper layer's visibility to the alpha of the layer directly below.
Selection tools: Marquee for geometric shapes, Lasso for freehand, Polygonal Lasso for straight edges, and Object Selection or Quick Selection for subject-based selection.
Refine Edge/Select and Mask uses Edge Detection (Smart Radius), Global Refinements (Smooth, Feather, Contrast), and Output Settings to produce a layer mask or new layer.
Select > Modify offers Border, Smooth, Expand, Contract, and Feather; Feather softens the selection edge and is destructive once applied.
Shift adds to a selection and Alt/Option subtracts; holding Shift while dragging with a Marquee constrains to a square or circle.
Image Adjustments, Retouching, and Color
Levels maps input black/white points to output; the middle gray slider adjusts gamma, and the histogram shows tonal distribution per channel.
Curves offers the most control: an S-curve increases contrast, and individual channel curves correct color casts.
Shadows/Highlights recovers detail in underexposed shadows or blown highlights without clipping the opposite end.
Vibrance boosts less-saturated colors more than already saturated ones and protects skin tones; Saturation scales all colors equally.
Black & White converts to grayscale with per-color-channel mix sliders, allowing control over how each source color renders.
Hue/Saturation can target individual color ranges (Reds, Yellows, etc.) and offers a Colorize option for tinting grayscale images.
Dodge and Burn lighten and darken; with Range set to Shadows, Midtones, or Highlights and Exposure controlling strength, they mimic traditional darkroom techniques.
Clone Stamp copies pixels from a sampled source (Alt/Option-click); Healing Brush and Spot Healing blend sampled texture with surrounding color and tone.
Content-Aware Fill (Edit > Fill) and the Spot Healing Brush in Content-Aware mode reconstruct missing areas using surrounding image data.
Masks, Compositing, and Smart Objects
A layer mask uses grayscale: white reveals, black hides, and gray produces partial transparency; painting on the mask edits visibility without deleting pixels.
A vector mask uses paths for hard, resolution-independent edges; shape layers carry a vector mask by default.
Clipping masks and layer masks differ: clipping uses the alpha of the layer below, while a layer mask uses painted grayscale values on the same layer.
Smart Objects (Layer > Smart Objects > Convert to Smart Object) preserve source data; filters applied become Smart Filters that can be re-edited or hidden.
Double-clicking a Smart Object thumbnail opens the source document; saving it updates every instance of that Smart Object.
Smart Objects can be linked (source file referenced) or embedded (data stored in the document); linked objects update when the external file changes.
Layer > Smart Objects > Replace Contents swaps the source while preserving filters and transforms applied to the Smart Object.
Blend If sliders in Layer Style separate the current layer from underlying tones; Alt/Option-dragging a slider handle splits it for smooth transitions.
Compositing requires matching perspective, lighting direction, and color temperature; Match Color (Image > Adjustments > Match Color) can harmonize tonal balance between layers.
Output, Export, and File Formats
PSD preserves layers, masks, and Smart Objects; TIFF supports layers and lossless compression and is the standard for print handoff.
JPEG is lossy and 8-bit only, with no alpha channel; PNG-24 is lossless with alpha, and PNG-8 supports indexed color up to 256 colors.
GIF supports animation and 1-bit transparency; WebP offers lossy or lossless compression with alpha for web delivery.
Export As (File > Export > Export As) produces JPEG, PNG, GIF, and WebP with scale and quality controls; Save a Copy retains the original format.
Save for Web (legacy) optimizes for web with a 2-up or 4-up preview and per-format quality/size estimates.
PDF export can preserve Photoshop editing capability; the PDF/X presets are intended for print with specific color and bleed requirements.
Print resolution is typically 300 ppi for offset print and 72-150 ppi for screen; upsampling beyond native resolution adds no real detail.
Color settings: sRGB is the web default, Adobe RGB has a wider gamut for print, and ProPhoto RGB is the widest; assign vs. convert profile differ in whether pixel values change.
When exporting with alpha, choose PNG or TIFF; JPEG flattens transparency onto a matte color, typically white.