Learning the Basics of Adobe Photoshop in 25 Minutes

For those looking to get into photo editing, or any type of image manipulation, Adobe’s Photoshop is always the quickest-recommended solution. But to most people just starting out, Photoshop can seem a bit overwhelming, and it’s of no surprise… it is a professional tool, after all. That doesn’t mean that it’s hard to learn, though, and to prove it, Lifehacker has posted a simple guide to help you get to know Photoshop in under 25 minutes.

The tutorial doesn’t just tackle what each of the tools in the toolbox does, but also the other elements that a lot of people tend to overlook at first, including the adjustments box, layers, color channels, and even the menus. After reading through and familiarizing yourself with the program, you’ll be off on a good foot, ready to create some amazing images.

The video above is your lesson. It’s short considering how much it covers and long considering it’s on the internet. In the video, we take a look at every tool in the toolbar, your palettes on the right side of the screen, and what you’ll find in the menus. Below you’ll find a reference for this lesson. Once the lessons are over, we’ll provide everything all in one place and a downloadable PDF file containing references for each lesson.