Unfortunately, we are unable to get PhotoShop on our personal computers, even through the school software. Pitt does have a free download of a very similar program for Windows called Corel PaintShop Pro. If you are a PC user I suggest checking it out! I have the X5 version, but it looks like Pitt also has the X7 version available. Here is a short tutorial on downloading and starting the program, as well as where to find common tools we used with PhotoShop.
Downloading
First you need to download the software through Pitt’s Software Download Service, which you can access through your my.pitt.edu portal. On the right side of your My Pitt page, the link to the Software Download Service is about halfway down the list. You then have to choose the login link on the right side of the Software Download Service page. Once you are on the Software Download Service page, use the Vendor drop down to choose Corel. The PaintShop Pro software is on the second page of listings.
Choose the version you want and follow the instructions to download.
Starting Up!
Once you have the program downloaded, you can start working! When you open the program for the first time there should be tutorials that show up for new users. If not they are easy to access.
Anytime you open up the program you start out in the Manage tab, shown at the top of the screen. This is a space where you can view your past projects and search for photos on your computer. You will mostly be working in the Edit tab. The Adjust tab is great if all you are doing is touching up a photo, but all the tools found there are also in the Edit tab.
Here’s what the Edit Window looks like:
To start a new project you can go to File > New or click on the black page icon in the very left corner.
It will open up a window very similar to PhotoShop, where you can define the size and resolution of your canvas as well as other details like color and rastor or vector.
Tools
All the tools we used in PhotoShop are also in PaintShop Pro. They are located in slightly different places sometimes. But they are mostly in the tool bar on the left side of the screen. Some of the tool icons have arrows beside them, which give you more options for similar tools. When you select a tool, an options bar at the top of the screen opens up and gives you ways to change the tool you are using.
Line Tool– the line tool is found under the Pen. In the options bar there is an icon for a straight line, curved line, or freeform. There are also options for the weight and how your lines connect.
Art tools- The last icon in the bar is an eraser, but if you choose the drop down menu there are a ton of different paintbrush and marker options.
Filters- Filters in PhotoShop are called Effects in PaintShop Pro. They are all located under the Effects dropdown menue at the top of the screen. Play around with them, they have many of the same options as PhotoShop, it’s just a matter of finding them.
What I have found is that the best thing to do is click around and play with how things work, just like you would do with PhotoShop.
My Tray
If you are using images to edit or make a collage or any other reason, the My Tray is a super convenient tool. You can store images that you want to use here. All you have to do is make sure you have clicked on the My Tray tab, then find your photos in your file explorer. Simply click and drag the images you will be using to the tray. They will pop up in your tray for easy access when you are editing.
Layering Photos
One thing that I have found is a little difficult is when you want to layer several photos. You can drag a photo up from the My Tray at the bottom, but this opens a new file. You have to select the whole image and copy it, then right click and paste as a New Layer (Ctrl + V) in the file that you want it in. To resize it, make sure the image is selected using Ctrl + A or Selections > Select All and then choose the pick tool, which looks like a mouse pointer. The little adjustment boxes will show up around the photo for you to use to click and drag to resize.
There is so much more to this program that I didn’t even mention! It’s much like PhotoShop where you just have to watch some tutorials and explore. There is a really nice help function that has tutorial videos. Look under Help > Corel Guide and a window will pop up. Choose the Learn tab and pick a topic to explore.
You can also find lots of tutorials on the Corel Discovery site or their PaintShop Pro Learning site (the Getting Started video is done by a lady with a cool British accent). They have a YouTube Channel with more videos as well. I also found this nice PDF guide that has all the information you could need.
If you need a free program on a Windows computer, I would suggest this one! It’s really powerful, and comparable to PhotoShop in how it works.
Good luck and have fun editing!
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