Learn how to rescue details, remove flyaways, add volume, and enhance the definition of hair in any photo. We break down every tool and technique in Photoshop to get picture-perfect hair, every time.
I would have thought that a high quality PDF which maintains crisp text and which you can send to a Client (who can then open and print it from Adobe Reader at 300 dpi if they wish) would be more useful than the old CS3 rasterized JPEG.
A "High-Quality" PDF contact sheet here with 9 images is 3.8MB.
If you want something smaller for eMailing, either: save the Contact Sheet as a "low-quality" PDF (1.5MB); or re-save the Contact Sheet PDF as a JPEG (straight out of Acrobat) to get a 540KB JPEG.
There are several plug-ins that have been deprecated (meaning not installed by default in CS4 because Adobe is no longer rev’ing them). But you can fine them on the the DVD and the download file…it’s in a folder called "Goodies".
It has not been "killed off" but just is being left to wither and die because a superior way to do it (via Bridge) has been developed as a replacement.
For those that want to continue using the earlier version, just copy the plug-in from CS3 into CS4 then you will have a choice of using either the new or the old version at will.
The same goes for a few other superannuated filters such as Extract and Pattern Maker.
For those that want to continue using the earlier version, just copy the plug-in from CS3 into CS4 then you will have a choice of using either the new or the old version at will.
UPDATE after further testing:
Do NOT install the old Photoshop Contact Sheets files in CS4 because it appears that you will disable the far superior Bridge CS4 Output Panel if you do.
The CS4 Contact Sheets are not only superior in quality to the old CS3 ones but are also created in a fraction of the time.
What if we never use Bridge? It seems silly to leave Photoshop to start up another memory-hogging program just to accomplish something we could have done by going to the file menu in the program we already have open.
Frankly you are more than foolish if you do not use CS4 Bridge.
I have mine set to launch on Boot-up so that it is permanently available to me and, if there is one reason above all others for upgrading to CS4, it is the new version of Bridge.
Memory hogging?
While I am working on another application with the Bridge window fully open in the background, Activity Monitor reports that Bridge is using a whopping 0.5% of the CPU and 72MB of RAM.
I only have 5.5 GB RAM and Bridge slows down NOTHING!
Frankly you are more than foolish if you do not use CS4 Bridge.
Says you. Not everyone needs it. I’m sure for photographers it’s great, but if you’re not a photographer, there’s little reason to use it.
Bridge is using a whopping 0.5% of the CPU and 72MB of RAM.
That’s 0.5% and 72mb more than necessary for me. I go into a job and open up the 1, 2, or few images I need to and get right to colour editing. Don’t need batching, don’t need to see thumbnails, don’t need anything that bridge has to offer.
Really I never understood the reason for removing functionality. Especially with John Nack talking endlessly about how we’re going to be able to make photoshop customizable to what WE want, it seems silly to remove functions. People are using them. Leave the full feature set in there, and from there, as we the consumers use photoshop, let US decide what to remove. It seems like common sense to me.
What has been "taken away"? You can still use the crummy CS3 contact sheets if you want to.
And Bridge is not "just for Photographers"
It really comes into its own for those who use more than one of the CS4 applications that are part of the Creative Suite; and for the majority of us who are involved with far more than only having to be concerned with the need to "open up the 1, 2, or few images" for color editing.
Actually, if that is your only need, I can’t see why you would need CS4 anyway.
Of course you don’t, because you don’t know how I use Photoshop or any other Adobe (or non-adobe software). That’s why it’s silly for you to make presumptions about someone else’s needs. Just as it’s silly for Adobe to do the same.
It looks as if your requirements are so unique that you will need to found your own software company to build a product specially for your esoteric demands.
Again…if you want to use the Contact Sheet II and Web Photo Gallery in CS4, all you need to do is look in your Goodies folderthere are CS4 versions as well as a few other depreciated plug-ins as well as Bridge scripts that can load Contact Sheet II and Web Photo Gallery in Bridge CS4.
The only thing they took OUT is the default installation of the plug-ins (which is just a clue that they are end-of-lifed).
If you can make a real good case why the old things should be continued, that’s useful…complaining about stuff being removed that you don’t have a strong use case, isn’t.
My tests showed that the Bridge Scripts appear to kill Bridge CS4’s Output Panel so I recommend that people should NOT install them but just use the old CS3 versions of Contact Sheet II and Web Photo Gallery directly out of Photoshop CS4 if they insist.
But the new Bridge Output Panel versions are so superior that I fail to understand why anyone would want to use the old methods anyway.
Placing the Contact Sheet install in a purgatory folder is just to appease the pain, as Adobe apparently feels much like Ann in that a multi-app work flow is MUCH better than a single app approach.
Adobe has been "sharing the wealth" with PS, cherry picking several nice features & placing them in other thin apps.
I don’t want to use Fireworks or Bridge to do simple things easily done in CS1 & 2, thank you.
My problem is deleting/moving useful things unnecessarily, and being told to like it or don’t upgrade. Both statements unhelpful and not realistic. Need to look forward, while relying on the past in any professional environment.
Just because you find deleting features a good thing does not make is so.
"Make Photoshop everything you need, nothing you don’t" – John Nack
I am referring to the files inside the Bridge Start-up Scripts (and, yes i did install them as instructed!) from the downloaded "PHSPCS4_Cont_LS1.dmg" from Adobe’s Site
Bridge is not in my workflow either, and for Adobe to push me there unnecessarily seems arrogant on their part.
Did you read this! No one is forcing you.
I think Adobe listens to it customers and this is the way the customers want things to go, but you say they should not listen to their customers they should only listen to you.
I might be wrong but that does seem a bit arrogant to me.
The functionality moving to Bridge was to support more customers. Bridge ships with other Adobe point products and in the Suite configurations so it gets more exposure and hopefully more usage. It also allows for more improvements and extensibility that the Legacy feature does not. Also in CS2 & CS3 Suites, there was a Bridge/InDesign Contact sheet so it was fairly natural to remove the InDesign and Ps dependencies and put it all under one process (which also adds efficiency to many workflows, but not all).
The Contact Sheet II feature can still be setup in Ps, but a certain amount of focus needs to be applied so we don’t bog users down in feature bloat. The maturity of Ps makes for a tough balancing act between legacy and innovation.
There is also a 3rd party solution that is frankly better than this legacy feature.
I don’t see that Adobe is pushing the ‘take it or leave’ presented in this thread. We will try to present new methods that are seen as progression which helps with efficiency or innovation. But, at the same time we, more often than not, offer some makeshift to help in the transition.
I have not yet upgraded to CS4, so I cannot really comment on new Bridge, etc. However, I will say that I dislike CS3 Bridge and do not use it, nor as an Aperture user do I necessarily want to learn Bridge (even if Ann likes it). I DO use the CS3 contact sheet feature frequently for a client enamored with quick low rez hard copy review.
I am not a one-trick pony, but IMO making me learn a new trick, a new app (Bridge that I dislike) and/or go through a Goodies search and new installations just so Adobe can have remove one item from the Automate drop-down menu does not make sense. How complex was it really to just leave it alone, even if Adobe did add other (better for some) solutions?
Calling an existing, buried in a short drop-down, "feature bloat" is frankly nonsense. When we ask Adobe to avoid bloat, what we mean is leave things alone, don’t add four new ways to achieve what already works.
To get back to you regarding the CS4 Optional Scripts and plug-ins:
Itested both the plug-ins and the Scripts.
Automate/ContactSheetII.plugin and WebContactSheetII.plugin can be installed in Photoshop CS4 and both seem to work and not to cause any problems with other parts of the Application.
But installing the Bridge Startup Scripts in accordance with the instructions: photoshop_contact_sheet_ii photoshop_contact_sheet_ii.jsx photoshop_web_contact_sheet photoshop_web_contact_sheet.jsx caused Bridge CS4 to be unable to display the normal contents of its Output Panel.
It was possible to use the scripts from bridge to generate the old CS3 kind of Contact Sheets but the ability to use the CS4 Outputs was destroyed.
I have now removed those Scripts and Folders. ———-
* The instructions state:
Optional: To add this legacy functionality back into Bridge (as a menu item): 3. From the Photoshop CS4 install disc, drop the //<language>/Goodies/Optional plugins/Bridge Startup Scripts/photoshop_web_contact_sheet folder and photoshop_web_contact_sheet.jsx file into following the locations and then restart Bridge. Macintosh: //Library/Application Support/Adobe/Startup Scripts CS4/Adobe Photoshop/
The concept pf Bridge is brilliant and, from my point of view far superior to Aperture and/or Lightroom.
Bridge works transparently with the Finder. Any folder structure you modify in Bridge is automatically reflected in the Finder and vice versa. No damned libraries or catalogs to worry about.
Anyone who wants to "learn" Bridge can do it during a coffee break.
Any argument related to "learning" Bridge is specious.
The time I spend learning new Adobe tricks is UNBILLABLE.
Playing devil’s advocate for a moment, couldn’t you then conclude that learning any new software is a waste of time; and by extension, you should never upgrade?
Far superior to YOU Ann, not everyone. I will gladly give it up in Bridge, I don’t need it there, it is useless to me as garbage looking PDF’s or too large of PDF’s and is a waste of time. Contact-II is much faster since I can save it right away as a jpeg. Yep, you read it right, faster, better.
Done, plug in works like a charm and does not affect bridge. Now once my new MacBook Pro 2.8 GHZ gets here next week, I will do the whole thing, designated folder and action all the way to save, 700kb contact sheets for email.
Now just to be crystal clear, how do I get Contact-II back in CS4 without disrupting the bridge output page…?
Just install the Optional Plug-ins:
ContactSheetII.plugin and WebContactSheetII.plugin
in CS4/Plug-Ins/Automate/
Do NOT install the optional "Bridge Scripts" and you will be fine you will be able to use the CS3-type Contact sheets from Photoshop and still be able to use the new Bridge Output modules if you choose to do so.
Actually the quickest way to make Contact sheets will probably prove to be to use the Bridge Output method (with High Quality and set to open the resulting PDF immediately and automatically); and then saving that PDF as your usual Level 9 JPEG.
However, that will depend on how many images you put on a sheet.
is there a way to convert these pdf pages into 72 dpi pages suitable for web posting? Can you take 40 selected images and automatically create 10 4pic pages 72 dpi for web posting? Can you automatically make 40 select images into 4pic pages to sequence in the web gallery? Stuff like this in one (or 2) fell swoop(s)
I just tried to use Output to see if it might be a serviceable replacement for Contact Sheet II, which I use almost exclusively in the field. I therefore installed CS4 on my 2.5 GHz, 4 Go Ram MacBook Pro running 10.5.5. I was unable to enter numerical values in the Layout fields for Columns and Rows. Because of this, I installed the Contact Sheet II plug-in (but not the Bridge scripts) and had no difficulty configuring it in my accustomed way, entering appropriate numerical values in the relevant fields. If my problem with Bridge Output proves refractory and I install the Bridge scripts, is this irreversible? I usually have used Contact Sheet from Bridge in CS3.
From my limited experience with it otherwise, Bridge CS4 seems very good, the upgrade really went seamlessly, and it is a nice surprise and a pleasant environment. I wouldn’t object to having a checkbox in the PS CS4 general preferences for launching Bridge on opening.
"Image Processor plus an Action should be able do that for you." You think it would make one long page like this, 2 across, 20 down, verts and horiz both, black background and image name in white and a little white border on the image? Ultimately I prefer my clients to scroll the whole thing, rather than click all over the place trying to find where they were interested in another image.
"Alternatively you could put your images into a Web Gallery and upload the Gallery to your Web Server where your Customer can view it." One long scroll preferred. If I could make it as above, then yes, just put that page into the web face. Thanks for your comments.
Bridge CS4 does that very quickly and efficiently.
Playing devil’s advocate for a moment, couldn’t you then conclude that learning any new software is a waste of time; and by extension, you should never upgrade?
No. Clearly some new software or new tricks within old software are worth the learning curve. However, taking away totally functional existing capability and forcing us to learn another method is not so good; it is not like that little drop-down item was kludging up the interface.
Are you sure it is a smart call only our part to not use the Bridge and find out the power it has to offer you.
There is a feature in CS 4 which is turned off by default called application frame, when you first look at it more then likely you are going to hate it. But try it, just to look at it.
Now imagine the bridge opening in a side bare or panel off to one side say where the panes normally do to the right.
OK now you have an open document in a window in your application frame and this mini bridge in the side panel and now you want to access a file from say the desktop but all you want to do is drag and drop it into your open document and you know it is the right folder because the bridge gave you a preview and also the metadata. So without opening it you drag it fro this mini bridge to your document and Voilá and it took you like two seconds and you never lost focus on your document or group of tabbed documents?
Say you use the copyright information to protect yourself against the Orphan Works Act. and you are in your document and it is the first in a serious and you want to embed the that info in the document info so you do so going to File>File info and you fill out the form now before you do anything like close it out you go to the this mini bridge and you select all the files in that series and you click sync. and now they all have that info.
You could make and save a template as well and in the Bridge in the future apply that same template to any group in the bridges side bar change the job title and date select and then sync that an all the changes are made all you had to do is change a couple of lines once?
Have any of that data applied to a title of a contact sheet?
Well I am not going on as I can think of 2000 ways this concept of the Bridge can and will develop that will make the work experience much easier and better and it has already for me.
If you shoot as much as I do then you know it is very hard even with light room and Aperture to keep track of what you have done with all your files, the Bridge is a life saver in this case and banging your head against the monitor.
And don’t tell me you don’t have those days and often! Because I know better!
Good luck Frank, don’t change and see how everyone leaves you in the dust.
And when a client of yours tells you one day well why don’t you just use the Bridge, don’t be surprised.
‘ "I was unable to enter numerical values in the Layout fields for Columns and Rows." You should be able to do that. Which PDF Template did you have selected? ‘
Any Template.
‘ "I wouldn’t object to having a checkbox in the PS CS4 general preferences for launching Bridge on opening,"
You can set that option in the Bridge Prefs./Advanced. ‘
I should have said, having a checkbox to launch Bridge in the PS CS4 Prefs so that when PS CS4 opens Bridge CS4 will launch. The purpose being to have Bridge open when PS is open. A very small point, but not small enough to have been overlooked in CS3.
I always start Bridge first. Sometimes Photoshop isn’t even necessary.
I got into the habit of launching Bridge first because in early versions of Photoshop 10.x the checkbox to launch Bridge automatically triggered a bug with flickering cursors in ACR. Though that bug may have been fixed, I was already used to launching Bridge first.
One way to start Bridge on Photoshop start-up would be to set up an event in Scripts Event Manager to call a script on startup. ie: #target photoshop if (!BridgeTalk.isRunning("bridge")) BridgeTalk.launch("bridge");
‘ "I was unable to enter numerical values in the Layout fields for Columns and Rows." You should be able to do that. Which PDF Template did you have selected? ‘
Any Template.
Frank:
It definitely works for me. If it doesn’t work for you, it has to have something to do with the way that you have installed CS4 or with damaged Prefs.
Wade, I know how to use Bridge, can use Bridge, and will use Bridge if FORCED to by Adobe. I like the OS X finder analogy better after giving Bridge its air shake.
My beef is that the "Contact Sheet" analogy is pure Photography based, like dodge & burn and filters. Photo features belong in Photoshop. Put’em in Bridge too if that suits YOUR needs. Don’t tell me to switch apps to do a photo feature.
Should the crop tool be in Bridge only? Why not? Filters, too. Call it "Lightroom3"
Point being, it worked, and it is a photo-based tool. Belongs in Photoshop
For your question about the optional "Bridge script", what is the symptom of the problem? Did you check the Bridge->Preferences->Startup Scripts->Adobe Output Module checkbox? Did Reset Bridge work for you?
Hi, Ralph Could you input any numeric value to other input box, such as Top, bottom? Did you have the IME open while input the numeric value?
Frank to be honest with you as things evolve I think either the current form of the bridge or a more robust and developed form of the bridge is something Adobe has no choice with nor do any of the users.
I think as things evolve it will an unavoidable approach.
Just consider now they are including high quality video capture directly in you still camera.
Photographer a videographer maybe little difference in the future, they will soon have a 5K video camera.
It saves me tons of time and I use it more and more each week.
I think you will be glad you were prodded into using it in the future.
For your question about the optional "Bridge script", what is the symptom of the problem? regarding the CS4 Optional Scripts and plug-ins:
I tested both the plug-ins and the Scripts.
Automate/ContactSheetII.plugin and WebContactSheetII.plugin can be installed in Photoshop CS4 and both seem to work and not to cause any problems with other parts of the Application.
But installing the Bridge Startup Scripts in accordance with the instructions: photoshop_contact_sheet_ii photoshop_contact_sheet_ii.jsx photoshop_web_contact_sheet photoshop_web_contact_sheet.jsx
caused Bridge CS4 to be unable to display the normal contents of its Output Panel.
It was possible to use the scripts from Bridge to generate the old CS3 kind of Contact Sheets but the ability to use the CS4 Outputs was destroyed.
I have now removed those two Scripts and both Folders.
Did you check the Bridge->Preferences->Startup Scripts->Adobe Output Module checkbox?
Yes.
Did Reset Bridge work for you? >
I really don’t remember whether i trashed the prefs at that point or if I just removed the Scripts.
Actually I have no need for either the Scripts or the Plug-ins because the new Output Panel in Bridge CS4 does a far better job than the old CS3 methods for making Web Galleries and Contact Sheets.
IME stands for Input Method Editors (IMEs) which could allow you to input other language into the input box. What is your OS language and default locale? Can you input numerical value other application? Can you copy and paste the value inside the output panel?
And Ann, It works for me, that is why I am curious what is going on in your system. Never mind if you don’t want to use the plug-in.
My OS default language is French, but I have CS4 in English (U.K.). In the Bridge CS4 preferences, I have, (under Advanced) English set for Language and ‘French’ set for keyboard.
Some of them were just installed I am assuming by CS4 itself? and I made some of them by duplicating existing ones; changing the html code to suit; and saving with new names.
I’ve attempted at some point to use the ones you can download from the Lightroom pages. But that is not possible (not supported). They never become visible in the Output Module in Bridge.
My home-made ones are available to me in the Bridge output panel.
However I did follow the naming convention of the other files in the folder starting with the next higher double digits and retaining the same .xml suffix.
Ann Shelbourne, "Web Photo Gallery in CS4" #1, 17 Oct 2008 9:06 pm </webx?14/0>
I see what is going on now. If you use France keyboard+France Region+France input, you can not input the numerical value in Output panel. I would say this is a bug. There is a workaround for you. You could use the numpad in your keyboard to input the number and you could also switch the input to America to input the number. 🙂
I send out low-quality, small thumbnails to allow people to choose if or what they want at full size. For that I would prefer to have an option to select thumbnail size and quality and let the layout be automated. At the moment, I have to work out page sizes to force variable numbers of thumbnails to the size I want indirectly.
I also want to put standard multi-line text at the bottom of the page.
In Contact Sheet II, I dealt with this by using Bridge to trigger a PS Contact Sheet, and then used a PS action to place the text overlay.
So far I haven’t found an easy way to replicate this semi-automated functionality in CS4 PDF contact sheets. Clues to customising the PDF Contact Sheet to meet my requirements would be appreciated. I do enough to justify the time to learn scripting if that is the only way.
Paul R – 5:23am Oct 29, 08 PST (#71 of 72) "Why not get the best of both worlds and install contactSheetX <http://ps-scripts.sourceforge.net/ContactSheetX/csx.html> "
Actual Photoshop CS4 in side can’t make a contact sheet.bu that facility now in inside Bridge
To create more effective contact sheets, use the Adobe Output Module in Adobe Bridge. For more information, see Create a PDF contact sheet with Adobe Output Module. If you prefer the older Contact Sheet plug-in described below, download it for Windows or Mac OS. Contact sheets let you easily preview and catalog groups of images by displaying a series of thumbnails on a single page. You can automatically create and place thumbnails on a page using the Contact Sheet II command.
A contact sheet
1. Do one of the following:  (Photoshop) Choose File > Automate > Contact Sheet II.  (Bridge) Select a folder of images or specific image files. From the Bridge menu, choose Tools > Photoshop > Contact Sheet II. Unless you select specific images, the contact sheet will include all the images currently displayed in Adobe Bridge. You can select a different image folder or select other currently open images after the Contact Sheet II dialog box opens. Note: Click to select an image in Bridge. Shift-click to select a series of images. Ctrl-click (Windows) or Command-click (Mac OS) to select noncontiguous images. In the Contact Sheet II dialog box, specify the images to use by choosing one of the following from the Use menu in the Source Images area: Current Open Documents Uses any image that is currently open in Photoshop. Folder Lets you click Browse (Windows) or Choose (Mac OS) to specify the folder containing the images you want to use. Select Include All Subfolders to include images inside any subfolders. Selected Images From Bridge Uses images displayed in Bridge. All images in Bridge are used unless you select specific images before choosing the Contact Sheet II command. Images in subfolders are not included. In the Document area, specify the dimensions, resolution, and color mode for the contact sheet. Select Flatten All Layers to create a contact sheet with all images and text on a single layer. Deselect Flatten All Layers to create a contact sheet in which each image is on a separate layer and each caption is on a separate text layer. In the Thumbnails area, specify layout options for the thumbnail previews.  For Place, choose whether to arrange thumbnails across first (from left to right, then top to bottom) or down first (from top to bottom, then left to right).  Enter the number of columns and rows that you want per contact sheet. The maximum dimensions for each thumbnail are displayed to the right, along with a visual preview of the specified layout.  Select Use Auto-Spacing to let Photoshop automatically space the thumbnails in the contact sheet. If you deselect Use Auto-Spacing, you can specify the vertical and horizontal space around the thumbnails. The contact sheet preview in the dialog box is automatically updated as you specify the spacing.  Select Rotate For Best Fit to rotate the images, regardless of their orientation, so they fit efficiently on a contact sheet.
When Rotate For Best Fit is deselected, thumbnails appear in their correct orientation (left). When it is selected, the pictures are rotated to achieve the best fit (right).
Select Use Filename As Caption to label the thumbnails using their source image filenames. Use the menu to specify a caption font and font size. Click OK.
Learn how to rescue details, remove flyaways, add volume, and enhance the definition of hair in any photo. We break down every tool and technique in Photoshop to get picture-perfect hair, every time.
Related Discussion Topics
Nice and short text about related topics in discussion sections
