Adding Photoshop Actions

[rkynast]

Please forgive the second post.

Susan,
I was trying to get "natalie_sketch" and "Realsketch" to work, as well as one called "Coming Out of the Shadows". These seem to be very popular and I thought I might use them on some photos I can never make come out "right". I recently tried converting some similar "can't get right" photos to B&W and met with some success.

Rick

[DannyRaphael]

There's no doubt in my mind that the functionality of Elements can be extanded with by HPE2 [thx for the abbreviation, Susan] and in many cases workarounds can be crafted to achieve results similar to (or exactly) as produced by Photoshop. The ability to now run actions under Elements (modified or not) is a HUGE breakthrough.

One of Richard's previous posts caused a BIG lightbulb to come on for me: Though PE and PS have some common functionality, menu differences between products can cause problems action-wise. That part I get. (Out of curiousity, what are the functions and what are the workarounds?)

Here's where it's still foggy for me. Bud Guinn, who's converted a few actions to run under PE alerted me to the Select > Color Range incompatibility and his workaround, utilize the Magic Wand tool. So I'm thinking that some commands are flat out incompatible and for many, there are other command combinations that can be used.

Questions:

1. Assuming the HPE2 enhancements have been installed in ones PE environment, will actions that include commands like Channel Mixer, Curves (or their adjustment layer equivalents), Select > Color Range, Add Layer Mask, etc. run without further modification under PE or not?

2. Same question assuming HPE2 enhancements have NOT been applied.

Why do I care?

I'm in the process of writing a comprehensive actions tutorial and have a yet to be populated section on writing actions for PE. I'd like it to include concrete statements regarding action compatibility between PS and PE -- or [hint-hint, Richard ] a link to a site that addresses the specific differences and, better yet, alternative commands. [Richard, Susan: Would you like to review this section before it's published?]

If these differences and workarounds could be published, it would enable action makers to craft Elements' compatible actions going forward and and start moving away from action conversion.

Good thread gang... Let's keep up the positive and informative comments.
~Danny~

[Richard_Lynch]

Danny,

I'd very much like to review that.

Curves and some other features can be implemented in a variety of different ways. The first thing I would do is try something AS IS. If it works, no need to modify. If it does't work, there is more than one way to get it to (the beauty of Photoshop). For example, I give a pretty strong hint in my book as to how to implement curves even if there are none -- that is, not using curves at all!

I don't think the magic wand is the best solution to color range. My book also discusses a solution to this which you can implement using Hue/Saturation. I can help you with that.

So:

1) it may not depend on if the enhancements are installed to get these to run. I can help out with that.

2) same answer.

3) (oh, you didn't ask this one) There are work-arounds for everything if you take the time to make them. Something like implementing Hue/Saturation may take a lot of understanding that not all users have ever had the need to indulge. If you have specific problems with an action, I'd be very glad to help you convert it, but I'd need to see what you are trying to accomplish. Things sometimes require a clever solution and may not be obvious.

OK?

[Susan S.]

Danny - I'l be happy to look at anything that you come up with - but I'm probably not going to be able to add much that Richard won't already be able to say!

In my very limited experience of converting actions, the stuff of the sort that is included in HPE2 that is lurking in Elements but just needs to be accessed (Curves adjustment layers, layer masks, channel mixer and a few others that I can't remember) will work if called in an action (in the right way) whether or not HPE2 is installed. Select>colour range is just plain missing and needs a workaround. As does the Histrory brush, fade commands, all sorts of other stuff. I can come up with simple workarounds - but often without the full version of PS to play on I have to give up (I'm just using the PS6demo as an action and style editor and it is a bit limited - as am I, action writing-wise!)

Susan S

[rkynast]

Susan S.,
I downloaded PS7 yesterday and installed it on my machine after I got home this morning, so I should be able to change the action names if I need to do that. PS7 demo is full function for 30 days, so I have a little time to try out/modify the actions I would like to have. I'll have time Thursday morning to start getting the actions into PSE2 format. Will let you know how it goes.

Thanks for the help.

Rick