One thing I am asked about a lot is how I go about saving my layouts. As a Polly, when I save a layout I have to save two – one that is full size for me, and one that is resized and ready for sharing on the web. Today, I want to share my workflow for saving layouts with you.
Most of my layouts start as templates, so the first thing that I do when I am ready to save a layout is to delete all of the layers I have hidden along the way. I do this by going to Layer > Delete > Hidden Layers.
The next step is to flatten the image by right clicking on any layer in the layers palette and selecting flatten image.
Next, I go ahead and sharpen the image a bit. I go to Filter > Unsharp Mask and I use the values seen in the screenshot above.
Now I am ready to save the full size image. I click save, and navigate to the folder for my 2016 layouts. I make sure I am saving as a JPG, and rename the layout accordingly.
I set the quality for the image at 10, and then click OK. I have now saved my full size layout.
Now I need to resize the layout for web. I click on Image Size, change the resolution to 72 Pixels/Inch, and change the width and height to 600 pixels.
Once I have resized the layout, I use the Save for Web Dialog to save the image. It can be a little tricky to find the Save for Web Dialog in the latest models of Photoshop. If you go to File > Export > Save for Web (Legacy) you will get here. Once I am here, I go to the pull down at the top and select “Optimize to File Size”.
That’s when this dialog box pops up. I have it set at 150, as that is the standard acceptable size for web layouts, and I click ok. Once that I done, I am ready to save the layout.
When I click save, I am brought directly to my “To Be Posted” folder. This is where I keep web size layouts that I need to post. I make sure to use the correct file name, and click save. All is well and good, and I am done saving my layout.
I also wanted to share that there are a few great products in the store that help with saving layouts. There is a save for web action by Fiddle Dee Dee Designs, as well as a resizing action by Sahlin Studio. Krista also has this great post about saving layouts from a few years ago. Be sure to check it out!
Sue Pollock says
Can you please give instructions on how to save layout when you are going to print them as posters. I am a newby so need lots of detail to ensure the posters don’t turn out no good.
I use the current photoshop elements on my Mac.
cheers
sue
Aaron says
Hi Sue,
I’m not sure what you mean by printing them as posters. When I say that I am saving it in a folder called “To be posted”, I mean that that is where I save the layouts I need to post in my online galleries. Can you give me a bit more information?
Thanks,
Aaron