So far I have been working with Photohop CS4 for over 6 months. For the most part, I like it a lot. I have worked PhotoShop since version 4 and I will say that this is definitely the cream of the crop and the best version that I have worked with so far. My favorite feature is the ability for the application to have tabbed files. At any given time a user can open up a new file and that file will reside as a tab on the top of the working area. It is then easy to drag and drop the tab to become a separate file that floats on your work area. The great thing about these tabs is that when you move them, they will not minimize until you command them to. So basically you can have a small square of the file you are working with floating over another file for dragging layers, objects, and text. This is great for when you want to copy one layer to another file and such. This makes working with multiple files that much easier.
Another thing I like about the new version of PhotoShop is that it seems to run a bit faster than previous editions, specifically CS2. I believe that Adobe has worked on their core PhotoShop “engine” to run faster and operate better with multiple files open. This new achievement has given me the ability to create more projects faster without hosing my system. There does not seem to be a lot of “lag” time for opening and saving files as with previous editions.
Another benefit of CS4 is the new menu system. You can view all of your menus as icons on one small menu bar. Every time that you want to work with a different menu, you just click the icon to open it. This is more of a convenience rather than a huge breakthrough, however it keeps your work area clean and speeds up production.
There are several other small areas of PhotoShop that I like a good bit, however please leave a comment with your favorite PhotoShop addition to CS4. I am constantly learning new things with this application and I am always looking for a new tip or trick!
