Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
If you don't like the results, use the History panel to back up to before you started, or
keep clicking the Undo button or pressing Ctrl+Z/
⌘
-Z to step backward through the
action, and then try another one instead. (You can't step backward in the Actions pan-
el.)
That's all there is to it, except to save your file.
One of the best things about the Actions panel is that you can easily add more actions to it.
You can't create actions in Elements—you need Photoshop for that—but there are thousands
of free actions on the Internet that you can download and add to Elements.
To add actions, just click the four-line square at the upper right of the panel and choose Load
Actions. In the dialog box that appears, find the action where it's saved on your computer,
and then click Load. If you'd like to try installing an action, Red Steel is the action used to
create the building image in
Figure 13-1
; you can download it from this topic's Missing CD
page at
www.missingmanuals.com/cds
.
It works best on photos with lots of details. On im-
ages with large blocks of color, the effect is more like pop art than a colored-steel engraving.
If you're tired of an action or a set, click its name in the Actions panel, and then click the De-
lete icon (the little trashcan).
NOTE
It's important to understand a few differences between actions in Photoshop and in Ele-
ments. Photoshop can run an action on a whole folder of images at once. In Elements,
you're restricted to running them on one photo at a time. Also, Elements can't fully per-
form actions that invoke Photoshop-only commands. For example, if you run an action
that includes creating a history snapshot, you'll see a dialog box warning you that that
command isn't available. (If you see that warning, you can click Continue to run the rest
of the action, but be aware that you won't get the same results as you would in Pho-
toshop.) If you like to play it safe, find actions written specifically for Elements.
Stuff
from the Internet
tells you where to look for them.
Effects
Like filters, Elements' effects give you loads of ways to modify a photo's appearance, from
adding lizard-skin textures to creating a pencil-sketch effect. Although you apply effects with
a simple double-click, these clicks trigger a series of changes. Some effects involve many
complex steps, but Elements works so quickly you might not notice all the changes it makes.
