Batch Cropping allows the user to crop any number of images in a folder in an automated manner, using the “Actions” scripting feature found in the full version of Photoshop. This is called Automation, and in this case, Batch Processing. Automation uses a set of user-defined actions to perform a series of tasks automatically. For example, when slides are scanned in bulk, they often have a thick black border around the resultant images. Using Batch Cropping, you could remove these borders from a folder full of images with only a few clicks, rather than manually cropping out the black border from each slide.

The following steps demonstrate how to use Actions scripting to batch crop. Before you begin your work with Photoshop, you must prepare the folders of your scanned files. You should organize your scanned images into 2 folders: Vertical and Horizontal, so you can preserve the landscape or portrait orientation of the images without distorting them.

1. In Photoshop, click on “Window” on the menu bar, and make sure the “History” option is checked.
a. Under the History menu, choose the Actions tab.
b. Know the intended dimensions in inches or pixels for final images before you begin. Remember that you are not only eliminating the black background of the scanned image. You are also optimizing it by changing the image’s dimensions and resolution.
c. Click on the triangle to the left of the “Default Actions folder.”
d. At the bottom of the window, click the folder icon to create a new action set. This set/folder will contain all your cropping Actions. Name this folder “Cropped images.”
e. Now we must script two Actions that will be placed in the folder you just created: One Action will crop horizontal images while the other will crop vertical images.

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