Make Photoshop Yours – Part 2: Photoshop Keyboard Shortcuts for Mac and Pc

Photoshop keyboard shortcuts cheat sheet, a free spreadsheet download, plus a tutorial on how to create and modify your own keyboard shortcuts!

In part one of the series, I gave instructions on how to setup a custom workspace that suits your preferences and workflow style.

Now that you know how to work efficiently with customized workspaces, we will now look at a way to work efficiently with Photoshop keyboard shortcuts.

Photoshop’s Keyboard Shortcuts allows users the ability to quickly access tools, functions and effects without scrolling for them through menus, “more options” fly out panels and Tool Bar icons.

Some people consider mastery of Keyboard Shortcuts essential for professional imaging artists and believe that it’s mandatory to memorize and use them.

However, there are hundreds of them; a daunting task, plus most artists’ brains are visually oriented; they like to see and click on things and it’s perfectly acceptable to do so.

That being said, mastering Keyboard Shortcuts that are relevant to the style of work at hand speeds up workflow and eliminates the monotony of repetitive seeking and clicking.

In this article I am providing the ones most commonly used by photographers who use Photoshop to adjust and retouch their images.

I’m also confining the shortcuts to those that consist of 2-3 keys because I like to assign multiple key shortcuts to a Function key or as an option on my Wacom tablet.

Photoshop Keyboard Shortcuts

When going for Keyboard Shortcuts that access specific tools and panels, press the first key and quickly the other as if you were playing a piano.

When using them to affect the way a tool or function is working, hold the key while accomplishing the task.

For File Handling

For File Navigation

The Rotate Tool in the Tool Bar can be selected with Shift + R, but it requires another Keyboard Shortcut to get back to the Hand Tool, so pressing and holding the R key is generally faster.

For Image Adjustments

The above shortcuts apply the change to the selected layer as an all over adjustment.

To apply adjustments over the selected layer with the option to use Layer Masks, opacity, etc, select adjustment options from the Adjustment button located at the bottom of the Layers Window.

It looks like a circle, half white and half black.

Working With Layers

Working With Selections

Working With Brushes

The tools located in the Vertical Tool Bar may also be accessed using Keyboard Shortcuts, or by just clicking on the one you want visually.

Many of these tool boxes contain multiple options within that may be scrolled through just by repeatedly clicking the Keyboard Shortcut for that tool.

Photoshop Tool Shortcuts

When you are learning to use Keyboard Shortcuts, take it easy! Don’t try to learn them all at once; master a few of them and then add a few more.

I’d suggest starting with easy navigation shortcuts, like:

• Zoom In
• Zoom Out
• Fit on Screen
• File Save
• File Close

Toggle Screen Mode (I suggest working in Full Screen Mode with Menu Bar)

Then add:

• Brush Opacity
• Brush Size
• New Layer
• New Layer via Copy
• Add Layer Mask
• Edit / Transform
• Add Adjustment Layer

From there, add more according to the tools and functions you use the most.

Create/Modify Your Own Custom Photoshop Shortcuts

If you want to modify an existing Photoshop shortcut or create custom Photoshop shortcuts for commands that have no default shortcut, follow the instructions below:

In Photoshop, go to Edit > Keyboard Shortcuts, or hit Alt + Shift + Ctrl + K (a shortcut to access the shortcut!)

Within the Keyboard Shortcuts window, choose a shortcut type from the “Shortcuts For:” drop down menu.

• Application Menus: Customize keyboard shortcuts for items in the menu bar
• Panel Menus: Customize keyboard shortcuts for items in panel menus
• Tools: Customize keyboard shortcuts for tools in the toolbox

Once you find the command that you want to create/modify, click on the blue arrow to view the existing shortcuts.

To modify – click on an existing shortcut and you’ll be able to modify it with your own personalized shortcut.

To create – click on the blank space next to a command and you’ll be able to create your own personalized shortcut.

If you want to undo a change, press the undo button, or Ctrl + Z.

Once you’re finished with customizing your own shortcuts, click on the OK button and it will save into the Photoshop Defaults set.

If you want to create your own set (not save into the Photoshop Defaults set), simply click on the save icon on the top and you’ll be able to name and save your personalized set.

Closing Thoughts

Keyboard Shortcuts are designed to help you cut down on the time spent navigating the software so you can concentrate on the creative part of imaging.

Don’t feel like a dummy if you don’t know them all – the important part of digital imaging is the beautiful results you produce with your imagination and mastery of the tools and functions to create art.

Keyboard Shortcuts just help you get there a little faster!

Jane Conner-ziser is an award winning photographer, digital artist, premier educator and independent consultant. With over 25 years of experience, 19 of them in digital imaging and evolving technologies, the techniques Jane developed for facial retouching and enhancement and portrait painting from photographs are widely emulated by photographers and digital artists worldwide through her classes, online training and educational products.