Top 6 Photoshop 2025 New Features (April Release)
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Your choices stick across every tutorial on this device.
The April 2025 Photoshop Release is all about saving time and working smarter, from AI-powered selections to a redesigned Actions panel.
Photoshop 2025 just dropped its April update, and it’s packed with powerful tools and time-saving improvements. Whether you’re a designer, photographer, or content creator, these new features are designed to supercharge your workflow. Here’s a look at the top 6 new Photoshop features you should start using today.
The video was recorded for the Photoshop 2025 April release, version 26.6.
The first four features below were already in that general release. The Remove Tool update and the redesigned Actions panel were still Photoshop Beta features at the time. Both have since reached the general release, as noted under each one.
Key Takeaways
- Select Detail and Select People both live inside the Object Selection Tool. You do not need a separate tool to select a person’s hair, clothing, or facial features.
- Adjust Colors builds a regular Hue/Saturation adjustment layer behind the scenes, so you can keep refining it in the Properties panel after the swatches close.
- Composition Reference only controls layout. Use a Style Reference instead when you want to copy a look or color palette.
- Cloud processing for Select Subject and Remove Background never uploads or stores your image on Adobe’s servers. It only borrows Adobe’s servers to make the selection.
- The updated Remove Tool uses its new generative AI model by default now, so there is no separate setting to turn on.
- The redesigned Actions panel can apply an action to only the subject or only the background, a shortcut the classic panel never had.
Table of contents
- What You Will Learn
- Requirements
- April 2025 Photoshop Release Keyboard Shortcuts
- 1. Smarter Selections with Select Detail and Select People
- 2. Faster Color Control with the New Adjust Colors Feature
- 3. New Composition Reference in Text to Image
- 4. Cloud-Powered Select Subject and Remove Background
- 5. Improved Remove Tool (Beta Update)
- 6. Redesigned Actions Panel (Beta Update)
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Final Thoughts on the April 2025 Photoshop Release
- Previous Photoshop Updates
- Related Links
What You Will Learn
- How to select facial features and clothing with Select Detail and Select People
- How to retarget a color with the Adjust Colors swatches and a Hue/Saturation layer
- How to guide an AI-generated image’s layout with Composition Reference
- How to switch Select Subject and Remove Background between cloud and device processing
- How to remove objects with the updated Remove Tool and the new Remove button
- How to preview, search, and apply actions with the redesigned Actions panel
Requirements
Before you start
- Photoshop 2025 (version 26.6 or later) or the current version
April 2025 Photoshop Release Keyboard Shortcuts
| Action | Windows | macOS |
|---|---|---|
| View a layer mask thumbnail (hold, then click the mask) | Alt | Option |
| Duplicate Layer | Ctrl J | Command J |
| Open Preferences | Ctrl K | Command K |
| Create Clipping Mask | Ctrl Alt G | Command Option G |
| Scale from center (Free Transform) | Alt Shift | Option Shift |
| Zoom Tool | Z | Z |
| Undo | Ctrl Z | Command Z |
| Redo one step | Ctrl Shift Z | Command Shift Z |
1. Smarter Selections with Select Detail and Select People
Photoshop’s Object Selection Tool now comes with powerful AI enhancements that make tricky selections faster and more precise. The new Select Detail feature automatically detects intricate elements like hair, clothing, and facial features, just hover over what you want to select, and click.
You can even make detailed selections of individual features like eyes, eyebrows, or teeth, perfect for portrait edits. The Select People dropdown makes it easy to target individuals or multiple subjects in your image. Simply click on a face to bring up selectable regions like upper body, lower clothes, or even accessories.
Whether you’re whitening teeth or isolating clothing, Photoshop’s smarter selection tools are now context-aware, fast, and impressively accurate right out of the box.
2. Faster Color Control with the New Adjust Colors Feature
Photoshop’s new Adjust Colors feature makes changing colors in your images quicker and more intuitive. Found right in the taskbar, this tool automatically detects the six most prominent colors in your image and lets you adjust them using simple Hue, Saturation, and Lightness sliders.
Just click on a swatch to bring up its controls. For example, clicking on blue lets you instantly shift the hue of a subject’s denim clothing, boost saturation, or adjust brightness. This is all powered by a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer. You can refine the color range in the Properties panel using the gradient sliders to expand or narrow what’s affected.
Don’t want the adjustment applied everywhere? Use the layer mask that comes with it. Invert it, then paint over specific areas with the Brush Tool to apply your changes selectively.
And if the color you want to edit isn’t one of the six shown, no problem. Just replace one of the swatches using the Eyedropper Tool to target any color in your image, like background greens. The panel updates, and you’re ready to tweak.
These swatches act like quick presets based on your image’s dominant colors, perfect for fast, smart editing.
3. New Composition Reference in Text to Image
Photoshop’s Text to Image feature just got more powerful with the new Composition Reference option. It allows you to guide the layout or arrangement of AI-generated images using a reference photo, perfect when your prompt’s composition is hard to describe in words.
To try it out, enter your prompt as usual in the Generate Image panel (like “a pile of old broken wood with moss and flowers on a gray background”). Then choose your desired content type, Photo in this case for realism. Photoshop generates multiple stunning variations.
Now, here’s where Composition Reference comes in. Instead of just using the prompt, you can upload an image to guide the structure of the output. Simply click the Composition icon in the Properties panel and choose Composition Reference. You can select from the built-in gallery or upload your own image.
For example, uploading a simple black “X” as your reference will generate your scene following that same layout which places your subject in the shape of an X. It’s a powerful way to control the spatial flow of your design.
This tool is great for designers creating assets for compositing or those working with logos and custom arrangements that stock images can’t offer.
4. Cloud-Powered Select Subject and Remove Background
Photoshop’s Select Subject and Remove Background features are now even more precise, thanks to cloud processing. These tools use Adobe’s cloud servers to create sharper, more accurate selections, especially for complex edges like hair or fine details.
To see it in action, click Remove Background from the contextual taskbar. Photoshop instantly creates a clean layer mask, keeping your subject intact. Behind the scenes, it’s using Adobe’s AI cloud tech, not your device, to do the heavy lifting.
You can compare both methods easily. Under Preferences > Image Processing, toggle Select Subject and Remove Background from Cloud to Device, and run the same command again. The difference is striking: the cloud version produces far better edge detection and cleaner masks.
Best of all, using cloud processing doesn’t upload or save your image to Adobe’s servers. It simply leverages their power to improve accuracy. If you work with high-detail subjects or need fast, reliable cutouts, this feature is a game-changer.
5. Improved Remove Tool (Beta Update)
Photoshop 2025’s Remove Tool has gotten a serious glow-up in the latest beta, and it’s all thanks to a brand-new AI model running under the hood. This upgraded version delivers noticeably better quality, accuracy, and speed when removing objects from your images even tricky areas like patterns or textures.
You don’t need to toggle anything on to enjoy the improvements. It’s enabled by default.
Just grab the Remove Tool, loop around the object you want to erase, and Photoshop takes care of the rest. If you enable Remove After Each Stroke, it even cleans things up instantly as you paint. The results are impressively seamless. For instance, in the demo, it easily removed rips from a pair of jeans with just a few strokes.
There’s also a handy new Remove button that appears in the contextual taskbar when you make a selection (like with the Rectangular Marquee Tool). With one click, Photoshop applies the Remove Tool directly to your selection, making it easier than ever to clean up targeted areas in your image.
Note: The updated Remove Tool was a Photoshop Beta feature when this video was recorded. It reached the general release in Photoshop 26.9, the July 2025 release.
6. Redesigned Actions Panel (Beta Update)
The second beta highlight is a completely overhauled Actions Panel, and it’s a major shift from the old experience. Accessible via Windows > Actions, the redesigned panel looks and feels modern with several AI-powered features baked in.
Right at the top, you’ll see five action suggestions tailored specifically to your open image. No need to click, just hover over an action to see a live preview of what it’ll do, both on the canvas and in the Layers panel. Not impressed by the suggestions? You can refresh them with a click, and Photoshop will analyze the image again to serve up five new options.
The panel also features a search bar, which is incredibly helpful. Type in keywords like “remove” or “black,” and Photoshop filters through available actions accordingly. Want to browse more? Just type a space to reveal a list of commonly used actions that contain a space in their names.
While the new panel is sleek, there’s one caveat: you can’t yet create or edit actions in this interface. You’ll have to switch back to the Classic Actions panel to do that. Adobe has already included a disabled “New Actions” button which is hinting that creation features are on the roadmap.
One particularly neat addition is the ability to apply an action only to the subject or the background. Right-click an action, and you can choose whether to affect the subject or everything else around it which is ideal for selective color grading or stylized edits.
Another improvement is how the Actions history is handled.
By default, Photoshop now logs the entire action as a single history step, making your panel less cluttered. But if you prefer to see every individual step (like how actions used to behave), you can switch that back via playback options in the Classic Actions menu.
Note: The redesigned Actions panel was also a Photoshop Beta feature when this video was recorded. It reached the general release in Photoshop 27.6, the April 2026 release.
Frequently Asked Questions
This release brings six features. Select Detail and Select People speed up tricky selections, Adjust Colors retargets colors with on-canvas swatches, and Composition Reference guides the layout of generated images. Cloud processing sharpens Select Subject and Remove Background, and the Remove Tool and Actions panel both got AI upgrades in the Photoshop Beta.
It is part of the Object Selection Tool. Hover over a face, piece of clothing, or accessory and Photoshop highlights it in pink, ready to select with a click.
Click one of the six color swatches Photoshop finds in your image, then drag the Hue, Saturation, and Lightness sliders. The edit is a regular Hue/Saturation adjustment layer, so you can refine its mask or range afterward.
It uses a reference photo to guide the layout of an AI-generated image, so your subject follows the same arrangement as the reference. Use a Style Reference instead if you want to copy a color palette or a look.
No. Select Subject and Remove Background use Adobe’s cloud servers to compute a sharper selection, but the image itself is never saved or stored on those servers.
Yes. There is no setting to turn it on. Turn on Remove After Each Stroke if you want Photoshop to clean up the object as soon as you finish a stroke.
The updated Remove Tool and the redesigned Actions panel were both Photoshop Beta features when this video was recorded. Both have since reached the general release.
Not yet. Switch to the Classic Actions panel to record or edit an action. The redesigned panel does let you apply any action to only the subject or only the background.
Final Thoughts on the April 2025 Photoshop Release
The Photoshop 2025 April update focuses heavily on AI-driven workflow enhancements and it shows. From smarter selections and object removal to a more responsive Generative Fill, Adobe continues to blur the line between automation and creative control.
The April 2025 Photoshop release adds six features that speed up everyday editing.
Select Detail, Select People, and Adjust Colors sped up selections and color work, and Composition Reference gave the Generate Image panel more control over layout. Cloud processing made Select Subject and Remove Background sharper.
The Remove Tool and the Actions panel started in the Photoshop Beta. Both are now part of the general release, so every feature in this roundup is ready to use today.
Watch the full video above for every feature in action, and comment on the video if you have a question.
Selections and Masking Mastery
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Previous Photoshop Updates
This post is the Photoshop 2025 (April Release) entry in the series of Photoshop version write-ups. Here are the others.
- Photoshop 2025 (July Release)
- Photoshop 2025 (April Release), this post
- Photoshop 2025
- Photoshop 2024
- Photoshop 2023
- Photoshop 2022
- Photoshop 2021
- Photoshop 2020
- Photoshop CC 2019
- Photoshop CC 2018
- Photoshop CC 2017
- Photoshop CC 2015.5
- Photoshop CC 2015
- Photoshop CC 2014
- Photoshop CC
- Photoshop CS6
