The Photoshop CS5 Pocket Guide

2. Laying the Foundation

The urge to dig in and start doing is understandable, but it’s not always advisable. Sure, you could fumble your way through many Photoshop techniques and possibly achieve the results you want. But you’ll enjoy the experience more, and work much more gracefully, if you understand some of the concepts at the core of Photoshop use. Of course, that’s why this chapter is here, early in the book, so you won’t be scratching your head in puzzlement later.

Bitmaps and Vectors

Photoshop was originally created to work with bitmap images, but you can also work with vector artwork. A bitmap or raster image is based on a grid of pixels, with each pixel assigned a particular location and color value. Pixels are ideal for working ...