Adobe Photoshop (CS and Creative Cloud) and Adobe Lightroom are among the most popular photo editing software options worldwide. These programs are available for Mac OS and Windows – but they come at a price. Despite the relatively high costs, Photoshop is considered indispensable by many professional photographers, architects, designers, and countless private enthusiasts, too. This is due to Photoshop’s wide range of functions, the long-term experience of the Adobe team, and the big development advantages it holds over other software developers.
Given the numerous functions, design options, and tools in these Adobe programs, most users try to take advantage of Photoshop tricks that simplify and speed up general use.
Keyboard combinations, known as shortcuts, help save time and increase comfort. Below is our collection of the most important Adobe Photoshop shortcuts for Windows and Mac OS.
| Result | Windows | Mac OS |
|---|---|---|
| New… | Ctrl + N | Cmd + N |
| Open… | Ctrl + O | Cmd + O |
| Browse in Bridge | Alt + Ctrl + O | Cmd + Option + O |
| Open As… | Alt + Shift + Ctrl + O | Cmd + Shift + Option + O |
| Close | Ctrl + W | Cmd + W |
| Close All… | Alt + Ctrl + W | Alt + Cmd + W |
| Close and Go to Bridge | Shift + Ctrl + W | Cmd + Shift + W |
| Save | Ctrl + S | Cmd + S |
| Save As… | Alt + Ctrl + S | Cmd + Shift + S |
| Save for Web… | Alt + Shift + Ctrl + S | Cmd + Option + Shift + S |
| Revert | F12 | F12 |
| File Info… | Alt + Shift + Ctrl + I | Cmd + Shift + Option + I |
| Print… | Ctrl + P | Cmd + P |
| Finish | Ctrl + Q | Cmd + Q |
| Result | Windows | Mac OS |
|---|---|---|
| Undo | Ctrl + Z | Cmd + Z |
| Step Forward | Shift + Ctrl + Z | Cmd + Shift + Z |
| Cut | Ctrl + X | Cmd + X |
| Copy | Ctrl + C | Cmd + C |
| Copy Merged | Shift + Ctrl + C | Cmd + Shift + V |
| Paste | Ctrl + V | Cmd + V |
| Paste in Place | Shift + Ctrl + V | Cmd + Shift + V |
| Paste Into | Alt + Shift + Ctrl + V | Cmd + Shift + Option + V |
| Fill… | Shift + F5 | Shift + F5 |
| Content-Aware Scale | Shift + Ctrl + Q | Cmd + Shift + Q |
| Free Transform | Ctrl + T | Cmd + T |
| Select All | Ctrl + A | Cmd + A |
| Invert Selection | Ctrl + Shift + I | Cmd + Shift + I |
| Select All Layers | Ctrl + Alt + A | Cmd + Shift + A |
| Deselect | Ctrl + D | Cmd + D |
| Result | Windows | Mac OS |
|---|---|---|
| Colour Settings… | Shift + Ctrl + K | Cmd + Shift + K |
| Keyboard Shortcuts… | Alt + Shift + Ctrl + K | Cmd + Shift + Option + K |
| Menus… | Alt + Shift + Ctrl + M | Cmd + Shift + Option + M |
| General Preferences… | Ctrl + K | Cmd + K |
| Result | Windows | Mac OS |
|---|---|---|
| Adjust Levels… | Ctrl + L | Cmd + L |
| Adjust Curves… | Ctrl + M | Cmd + M |
| Adjust Hue/Saturation… | Ctrl + U | Cmd + U |
| Adjust Colour Balance… | Ctrl + B | Cmd + B |
| Black & White… | Alt + Shift + Ctrl + B | Cmd + Shift + Option + B |
| Invert | Ctrl + I | Cmd + I |
| Desaturate | Shift + Ctrl+ U | Cmd + Shift + U |
| Auto Tone | Shift + Ctrl + L | Cmd + Shift + L |
| Auto Contrast | Alt + Shift + Ctrl + L | Cmd + Shift + Option + L |
| Auto Colour | Shift + Ctrl + B | Cmd + Shift + B |
| Image Size… | Alt + Ctrl + I | Cmd + Option + I |
| Canvas Size… | Alt + Ctrl + C | Cmd + Option + C |
| Result | Windows | Mac OS |
|---|---|---|
| New Layer… | Shift + Ctrl + N | Cmd + Shift + N |
| New Layer via Copy | Ctrl + J | Cmd + J |
| New Layer via Cut | Shift + Ctrl + J | Cmd + Shift + J |
| Create/Release Clipping Mask | Alt + Ctrl + G | Cmd + Option + G |
| Group Layers | Ctrl + G | Cmd + G |
| Ungroup Layers | Shift + Ctrl + G | Cmd + Shift + G |
| Merge Visible Layers | Shift + Ctrl + E | Cmd + Shift + E |
| Result | Windows | Mac OS |
|---|---|---|
| Bring to Front | Shift + Ctrl + ] | Cmd + Shift + ] |
| Bring Forward | Ctrl + ] | Cmd + ] |
| Send Backward | Ctrl + [ | Cmd + [ |
| Send to Back | Shift + Ctrl + [ | Cmd + Shift + [ |
Our list is just a small selection of the numerous Photoshop shortcuts available. And it’s even possible to define your own shortcuts, allowing you to implement the keyboard combinations that suit your needs. To create your own Photoshop shortcuts, select the menu ‘Edit > Keyboard Shortcuts’ (or use the shortcut Alt + Shift + Ctrl + K). This will open the dialogue box ‘Keyboard Shortcuts and Menus’. Here, you can see the standard set of Photoshop shortcuts and can create a new set for your own use. Every user can personalise their own individual shortcuts for application menus, panel menus, or tools.
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