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USING PHOTOSHOP ELEMENTS 8
Making projects
Last updated 7/26/2011
Note: Photo Books are photo projects. However, they have their own workspace mode, with a limited toolbox and limited
access to the Content panel. Photo Books are designed specifically for online printing. You can print them locally, but each
side of a spread is treated as a separate page.
If a project has a single page, it’s saved in Photoshop format (PSD) by default. If a project has multiple pages, however,
it’s saved in the more versatile Photo Projects Format (PSE). Unlike conventional image formats, which require you
to open and edit each image separately, PSE lets you create Photobooks of up to 80 pages and Photo Collages of up to
30 pages.
Note: Because multipage files can be quite large, a computer with least 1 GB of RAM is required; 2 GB is recommended
for optimum performance.
When you start a photo project, a panel in the Panel Bin opens for that project type.
When you click the Create button to start a project, you can specify a size, layout, and theme that’s unique or common
to each project type. For example, the CD Jacket template has different size options than the Photo Collage template,
but both offer layout and theme options that are common to most projects. At this time, you also specify whether to
use the Auto-Fill With Project Bin Photos, Include Captions, and Number Of Pages options (when applicable).
After you specify these primary options, the photo project opens, and you can apply designs and styles to images using
the Effects panel. You also can add or modify frames, backgrounds, and layer styles. For example, you can apply a
unique background to every page of a photo album using the Content panel instead of having all pages with the same
background, which occurs by default.
After you finish a project, you can share it in a variety of ways. For example, you can print or e-mail greeting cards or
photo collages, or burn photo albums onto a CD or DVD. You can also have your projects professionally printed using
Adobe Photoshop Services.
Note: Multi-page files cannot be attached to e-mail messages.
More Help topics
“Using the Effects panel” on page 173
Using the photo projects dialog box
The Projects panel in the Panel Bin is the starting point for making new photo projects. To add images to a photo
project, select Auto-Fill With Project Bin Photos, or manually add them later.
