6 great online beginner courses on getting started with Photoshop

Adobe Photoshop is a great program. It has been used by graphic, digital and user experience designers to create incredible images, ranging from internet memes to Hollywood Blockbusters. Unfortunately, this program is quite complex and can be very intimidating, even when just opening it for the first time. Usually, it takes time to master it, and there is always a lot more to learn.

You don’t have to be a designer or a digital media guru to learn to use the Adobe software. To learn how to use Photoshop, you need to find helpful and relevant resources. It may be difficult to know which resource is best since there are tutorials that may provide incorrect information. Below are X reputable online beginner courses for Photoshop that you can access for free or for very little:

  1. The Learning Resources and Tutorials by Adobe

The Adobe site has useful resources to help you learn Adobe Photoshop. This is, in fact, the best place to learn. They are the creators of the software and know it best. Adobe splits its tutorials based on skill level. At the beginner level, you get an overview of the software. At the intermediate level, there are short video tutorials that show you how to use the most common features, for instance, color correction, vector and shape tools, working with layers and levels, masking, and cropping. After learning how to use the common features, you move to project-based tutorials. These help you to begin a project from the beginning to the end.

  1. Lynda

Lynda.com is not a free resource, but it is one of the best online beginner courses for Photoshop. It is a wealth of information, with over 290 courses and more than 17,000 video tutorials. Like Adobe, the courses are categorized based on skill level, and the instructors are very clear and easy to follow. If you have a favorite tutor, you can access all their videos.

  1. Creative Live

This option uses a different approach to tutorials. They use different tutors. They air free broadcasts which can serve as great online courses for Photoshop. Previously aired broadcasts are available via their catalog. You also get to see the tutor who will be aired in future by checking their calendar. Each show is broadcasted in the evening, giving you a chance to watch it if you missed it during the day. Once a year, the Photoshop Week provides a lot of information about using the software. You can buy the entire Photoshop week collection and watch it at your own pace and time.

  1. Udemy

Manfred Werner’s course is the most popular online courses for Photoshop on Udemy. It is a total of 33 hours with 153 lectures. Better still, it goes for only $19, and you will have seamless access.

Another helpful course for beginners on Udemy is getting started with Photoshop CC (Train Simple). It is made up of 23 short lessons, which are less than 9 minutes long. There are around 9500 students and is delivered by an Adobe-authorized provider known as Train Simple. It helps you as a beginner get to understand the Photoshop user interface and common features. Some topics you will cover include, how to configure user preferences, how to use the Marquee, screen modes, the differences between the Mac and Windows versions of Photoshop, and basic tools. There are also other Photoshop numerous courses on the site.

  1. Tuts+

This site offers a massive selection of free tutorials. They also offer premium content for a price. Here you access bite-sized lessons on particular specific techniques. Common topics include color correction, typography, and brushes. The tutorial site also offers the basics on courses like digital imaging, topics like image file types and compression, which is useful for every Photoshop beginner.

  1. Digital Tutors

This is a 3 faceted free beginner Photoshop course. The entire course is 4.5 hours and equips you with essential skills for basic graphic design, ranging from drawing sketches, using various tools, for instance, custom brushes, as well as correcting and cropping images. The site merged with Pluralsight, the best in IT training. Today, the two giants offer over 3000 courses, 600 expert instructors, and 100,000 video clips. They have a growing presence in 150 countries.

All in All

The above online beginner courses for Photoshop are a great place to start if you want to learn how to best use this great designer software, without wasting time on unproven tutorials that may provide wrong information.