To begin a new image: Choose File, then New. The following menu will appear: The important thing here is to specify your dimensions. You are working in pixels in Photoshop. Pixels refer to the number of dots that make up the visible area of the computer screen. If you’ve noticed on monitors the numbers 1024 x 768 or 800 x 600, you are looking at screen resolution – i.e. 1024 x 768 means that your computer screen has 1,024 pixels across and 768 pixels down. Keep this in mind when you create images for your web pages! For instance, if you are creating a banner, your initial thought might be to make the banner the width of the entire page. However, if you create a banner that is 1,000 pixels in width, when that site is published and viewed by someone at home with a screen resolution of 800 x 600, your banner will take up more than the entire screen, which means the home viewer will have to scroll across to see the entire banner image. This same principle applies to image height. Once you have your image space on the screen it’s time to create! In this space, you can add text, copy and paste images from other locations, etc.
[Read the rest of this entry...]