PHOTOSHOP CS3
User Guide
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To rename a set of actions, double-click the name of the set in the Actions palette or choose Set Options from the
Actions palette menu. Then enter the new name of the set, and click OK.
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To replace all actions in the Actions palette with a new set, choose Replace Actions from the Actions palette menu.
Select an actions file, and click Load (Photoshop) or Open (Illustrator).
Important:
The Replace Actions command replaces all sets of actions in the current document. Before using the
command, make sure that you have already saved a copy of your current set of actions using the Save Actions command.
Creating actions
Recording actions
Keep in mind the following guidelines when recording actions:
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You can record most—but not all—commands in an action.
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You can record operations that you perform with the Marquee, Move, Polygon, Lasso, Magic Wand, Crop, Slice,
Magic Eraser, Gradient, Paint Bucket, Type, Shape, Notes, Eyedropper, and Color Sampler tools—as well as those
that you perform in the History, Swatches, Color, Paths, Channels, Layers, Styles, and Actions palettes.
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Results depend on file and program setting variables, such as the active layer and the foreground color. For
example, a 3-pixel Gaussian blur won’t create the same effect on a 72-ppi file as on a 144-ppi file. Nor will Color
Balance work on a grayscale file.
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When you record actions that include specifying settings in dialog boxes and palettes, the action will reflect the
settings in effect at the time of the recording. If you change a setting in a dialog box or palette while recording an
action, the changed value is recorded.
Note:
Most dialog boxes retain the settings specified at the previous use. Check carefully that those are the values you
want to record.
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Modal operations and tools—as well as tools that record position—use the units currently specified for the ruler.
A modal operation or tool is one that requires you to press Enter or Return to apply its effect, such as transforming
or cropping. Tools that record position include the Marquee, Slice, Gradient, Magic Wand, Lasso, Shape, Path,
Eyedropper, and Notes tools.
If you record an action that will be played on files of different sizes, set the ruler units to percentages. As a result, the
action will always play back in the same relative position in the image.
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You can record the Play command listed on the Actions palette menu to cause one action to play another.
Recording actions works similarly in Photoshop and Illustrator.
Record an action
When you create a new action, the commands and tools you use are added to the action until you stop recording.
To guard against mistakes, work in a copy: at the beginning of the action before applying other commands, record
the File > Save A Copy command (Illustrator) or record the File > Save As command and select As A Copy
(Photoshop). Alternatively, in Photoshop you can click the New Snapshot button on the History palette to make a
snapshot of the image before recording the action.
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Open a file.
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In the Actions palette, click the Create New Action button
, or choose New Action from the Actions palette menu.
