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Photoshop Actions And Batch Processing

Skip to the good parts with photoshop actions and batch processing

 

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Use actions to apply corrections to entire groups of photos with ease. For example, every image from a shoot may need the same color or exposure adjustment. With actions and batch processing, do it once, then apply it to all.

(Fig.2) Open the Hue/Saturation controls under the Image > Adjustments menu and make your change to the saturation-say, +12. At this point, you could click the Stop icon at the bottom of the palette to stop recording, and the action is saved. When played on another image, the action carries out the same steps in the same order, producing the same effects. It's like cooking with a recipe that adds all the right ingredients automatically. We still have more ingredients to add though, so keep going with adjustments to contrast, sharpness and image size. When you've finished all the adjustments you want to record, click Stop.

 

(Fig.3) Actions can be additionally customized with the check boxes adjacent to each step in the Actions palette. The left box (Check Mark icon) toggles steps on and off to skip individual steps when playing back an action—for example, if you want to skip the resize portion of the action, uncheck it in the list. The right box (Dialog Box icon) tells Photoshop to pause to allow input during that step-if you want to change the amount of saturation, contrast or sharpness, for example. These adjustments make actions highly customizable, but they're not ideal if you're batch-processing your image files—and that's where actions really save time.

"Many photographers also use actions to record experiments because they're easier to repeat. After building a large database of techniques, organize them in the Actions palette according to the effects they achieve. You even can create new actions that incorporate previously saved actions by name, as well as find actions that other generous photographers have recorded and shared online."

Batch Processing
Batch processing applies a prerecorded action to a group of files, whether they're images currently open in Photoshop or saved in a folder. It's a good idea to save batch-processed files to a new folder to protect your originals. Create a new folder on your desktop during the batch setup so you can maintain untouched originals, as well as the modified files.

To run this action on a group of files, open the Batch dialog box found under File > Automate. Select the folder of image files to process and choose where to save the files. (You also can choose to include subfolders, change names and override warnings, depending on how your computer and your files are arranged.) Click OK, and watch the program go. Depending on the complexity of the action and the quantity of images, the process can be done quickly or it can provide you the perfect opportunity to take five.



"Many photographers also use actions to record experiments because they're easier to repeat. After building a large database of techniques, organize them in the Actions palette according to the effects they achieve. You even can create new actions that incorporate previously saved actions by name, as well as find actions that other generous photographers have recorded and shared online."

Even if you only dabble with actions, every keystroke and click you save provides that much more opportunity for you to spend your precious time doing creative things with your camera and computer.

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