Photoshop 2021 All The Best NEW Features EXPLAINED!
Table of contents
- Replace Sky
- Pattern Preview
- Neural Filters: Smooth Skin
- Neural Filters: Smart Portrait
- Neural Filters: Colorize
- Smart Object Reset Transform
- Select and Mask New Features
- Photoshop 2021 Plugins Panel
- Live Shapes
- Discovery Panel
- Photoshop 2021 Cloud Document Version History
- Technology Preview
- Other Tutorial Updates
Photoshop 2021 is here! Check out all this tutorial to learn all the new features that can improve your workflow and make it more efficient!
Replace Sky
When the weather conditions aren’t perfect, you can easily retouch the sky in your image with Photoshop 2021’s new feature, the Sky Replacement.
This new feature uses an Adobe Sensei, an Artificial Intelligence, that automatically determines the sky in the image, selects it, and replaces it using the Sky Replacement window’s presets.
To use this feature, choose Edit > Sky Replacement.
You can also quickly select the sky in just two clicks by choosing Select > Sky.
If you want to learn more about this amazing tool, make sure to check out our full-length tutorial on the Sky Replacement in Photoshop.
Pattern Preview
Creating a pattern and seeing its outcome has never been this easy!
A new update allows you to preview what your pattern will look like without having to create a new file and apply the pattern.
Open a file that you want to make into a pattern. Then, choose View > Pattern Preview. This view option allows you to see the pattern as a whole and zoom in/out to a greater perspective.
You can also drag-and-drop objects onto the working document and see how the whole pattern alters with every change that you apply.
To save the pattern, choose Edit > Define Pattern > and enter a name.
Now, it’s ready to be used anytime!
Click here to discover how you can generate new patterns!
Neural Filters: Smooth Skin
Photoshop’s Artificial Intelligence (AI), Adobe Sensei, has a new trick up its sleeve that smoothens skins without using the Blur tool.
Choose Filter > Neural Filters > click on the Skin Smoothing to toggle on.
When you apply your adjustments, set the Output to New Layer and Photoshop will generate the changes into a layer for the skin smoothing.
A great tip is to create its own Layer Mask so you can select which parts of the face you want the Skin Smoothing Neural Filter to apply on.
Neural Filters: Smart Portrait
Returning to Neural Filters, you’ll find 14 others under Beta Filters.
One of them is the Smart Portrait, which allows you to change a portrait’s expressions with its Happiness, Surprise, and Anger sliders.
It allows you to change your subject’s appearance by altering the Age, Gaze, Hair Thickness, Head Direction, and Light Direction.
A true game-changer for portrait retouching!
It is important to note that the Smart Portrait filter processes itself using the Cloud.
The faster your internet connection, the faster you’ll see the results.
Neural Filters: Colorize
Under Beta Filters, you’ll also discover the new Colorize feature that colorizes black and white or sepia photos.
Colorize uses the same Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, called Adobe Sensei, that studies your document and applies the appropriate colors to breathe life into it.
If you want to learn more about this powerful new filter, make sure to check out our full-length tutorial on the Colorize Neural Filter in Photoshop.
Smart Object Reset Transform
When you want to reset the distortions applied on your Smart Object, you will no longer need to press the undo command repetitively.
In this new update, right-click on the Smart Object > Reset Transform to remove any transformations you previously applied.
Select and Mask New Features
The Select and Mask workspace has been helpful for creatives in being able to create accurate masks of subjects with intricate details.
The first update includes Refine Hair on the Options bar that functions similarly with the Refine Edge tool but achievable with just one click.
The second update is the Refine Mode with two options: Color Aware and Object Aware.
Color Aware functions best for simple or contrasting backgrounds. Meanwhile, the Object Aware is the best choice for objects such as hair or fur against busy backgrounds.
Photoshop 2021 Plugins Panel
The Menu has a new addition in the form of Plugins.
Upon selecting Plugins panel and selecting Discover Plugins, you will indeed discover useful plugins that can simplify or improve your workflow found in the vast collection of plugins available on the Creative Cloud.
Live Shapes
The shapes in Photoshop have drastically improved with the new update.
For example, the Line tool is now easier to work with by only having two anchor points and an adjustable appearance that you can change anytime, similar to the tool in Adobe Illustrator.
This option is also available for the Polygon tool, which now allows you to make rounded edges.
Discovery Panel
The new Discover panel replaces the former search bar as it allows you to use it for different purposes.
First, it allows you to search for tools you can’t find.
Then, Photoshop will give you directions by highlighting the tool with an arrow.
Second, when you search for themes such as Retouching, it shows you a list of tools related to that particular workflow.
Third, you can search for tutorials to show you how to achieve a specific effect. I actually have two tutorials in this panel.
At the time of this recording I was the only none-Adobe employee or contractor who was invited to create content for this panel.
Photoshop 2021 Cloud Document Version History
A Photoshop Cloud Document allows you to work on a document with the files saved on the Cloud instead of your computer.
With the Version History update, you can see the different versions of the document done at different times, change the names, and open both versions on different tabs.
Important note: The history expires after 30 days unless you bookmark your favorite ones to keep them.
Technology Preview
One Technology Preview is the Content-Aware Tracing tool that helps define and enhance the details in your image.
This also leads to creating better Vector Masks or Vector Paths.
Hopefully, you enjoyed and learned a lot about the new features of Photoshop 2021 that should get you excited about all the new possibilities!
Check out my Full-Length Tutorials on Some of The Features in Photoshop 2021
Other Tutorial Updates
Check out our Photoshop tutorials that cover other updates:
