I am sure everyone that reads Inspiredology probably has Photoshop installed and probably uses it on a daily basis. Keyboard shortcuts can push your productivity through the roof. Here we provide some of our favorite shortcuts and tricks that we use on a regular basis.

Note: this article is written in Mac Photoshop format. If you are using PC, Cmd = Ctrl and Opt = Alt.

Workspace

Shift through different views – F

Clear all menu’s for full workspace view – Tab

Deselect – Ctrl+D

Make your project fit the screen vertically – Cmd + 0

Foreground & Background Colour Palette

Background – Cmd+Delete

Foreground – Opt+Delete

Toggle through colours – X

Clear Colour Selections back to Default- D

Quickly toggle between blending modes

Windows users can simply toggle using the cursor keys, Mac users however can use the Shift key along with the plus and minus keys while the direct selection tool is active. Using this command while another tool is selected will change the blending mode option for that specific tool.

Load the selection of a layer

Press Cmd while clicking the layer thumbnail to load a selection of the layer contents.

Copy multiple layers

Draw a selection, then use the shortcut Shift+CMD+C to Copy Merged. This takes every layer into the clipping, rather than just the current layer selection.

Duplicate layers within the layers palette

Duplicate the active layer – Cmd+J or Hold down Opt + drag within the Layers palette.

Nudge 10px at a time

The cursor keys will nudge an object by 1px by default. Hold Shift while nudging to increase this to 10px. Especially handy when designing web layouts for consistent spacing.

Drag Selection

With your Marquee tool, create your selection, DO NOT release your mouse, now hold down Spacebar to move your undefined selection.

Navigate in your document

We all now it’s easy to scroll vertically, but what about when you have a horizontal proportioned project, here’s a quick tip… just hold down the Cmd key, and scroll up or down.

Toggle through tool lists

Trying to get to a tool within a list (these are labeled by a small bottom left arrow), just hold down shift then press the appropriate tool command to toggle through the different tools. For example the Brush List – shift + B

Scale proportionally from center

You can scale proportionally by just holding down shift when you drag your transform tool, but if you hold down Opt + Shift, you can scale from the center.

Extra Resources

Photoshop Secret Shortcuts – WebDesignerWall.com

18 Exceptionally Useful Photoshop Shortcuts – DigitalPhotographySchool.com