Working with the Brush Features in Photoshop CS6

If you are a digital artist then you will really like the brush features which are offered in Adobe Photoshop CS6. The Brush Panel in CS6 has been upgraded to include erodible tip and airbrush brushes in addition to a few other features that provide versatility and flexibility when creating digital painting works of art.

Using the Brush Angle Feature
The Brush Angle feature in Photoshop CS6 lets you do more with less by providing more options while still using the same brush type. If you have a tablet PC you will also find the preview feature for the angling of brushes very helpful in addition to using this feature on your regular PC.

You can access the Brush Angle feature in the Brush Panel by clicking on the Brush icon on the right hand toolbar. To set the preview feature simply place a check mark in the box next to Shape Dynamics and then slide over to the Angle Filter and change the angle. Then return to the canvas and rotate the brush around to so you can see the changing angles.

If you want to change the brush type you simply select Brush Tip Shape in the Brush Panel and activate the Preview icon at the bottom of the Brush Panel. As you start working with the brush on the canvas you will be able to see the angles of the brush in addition to an icon that pictures the brush tip on the left hand side of the screen. You can also enlarge the image of the brush to get a better idea of the angling effects.

Even if you have a custom brush selected you can still change the angle of the brush using the Shape Dynamic feature with the Angle Filter type selected. And if you set the Brush Tip Spacing feature higher you can achieve a slightly different effect with the angle of the brush.

To create shapes and objects you can choose another brush such as the construction brush. With this brush type you can change the size of the shapes and use the brush angles to construct new elements on the canvas by quickly changing the angle of the brush on the canvas.

Using Brush Projection
You can also use the Shape Dynamic feature to turn on the Brush Projection option which allows you to change the perspective for each angle or tilt that you have created with the brush on the canvas. You simply choose the Shape Dynamic feature and then place a check mark next to Brush Projection in the lower part of the screen to begin working with this feature.

In the example shown below, first you choose the construction brush and then draw a figure without the Brush Projection feature activated. Then simply turn on the Brush Projection option, set the opacity of your brush to 70 and begin to work around the previous object. This creates a shadow type illusion that provides you with more than one effect by using the same brush with different Shape Dynamic features.

Using Erodible Tip Brush
This feature allows you to begin painting a digital image with a brush that contains a sharp tip. As you are painting the brush loses its sharpness similar to using a crayon. There are five different effects to choose from which include Point, Square, Flat, Triangle, and Round.

You simply start with the Softness feature set to 100 percent under the Shape Dynamic feature. As you create the first stroke you will see that it is quite sharp in appearance and then as you repeat strokes it loses its sharpness making the stroke much bigger in thickness.

You can simply sharpen the tip of the utensil by clicking the Sharpen Tip button or by setting a hotkey. You can set a hotkey by clicking on Edit on the upper toolbar and then choosing Keyboard Shortcuts from the drop down menu. In the Keyboard Shortcuts window select Tools from the Shortcuts drop down menu and then scroll down to find the Sharpen Erodible Tips command. Enter a hotkey that is not already being used and then click on OK.

Airbrush Brushes
With the set of airbrush brushes you will notice that you can get a wider variety of effects than in past versions of Photoshop. You can also select from a wide variety of airbrushes which are located under Brush Tip Shapes feature in the Brush Panel.

If you press lightly when using an airbrush you will get a lighter effect than when you press harder which produces a thinner line. This is because the harder you press on the canvas the closer the airbrush spray will be and the lighter you press the wider the spray will be. The behavior of the airbrush is depicted on the upper left hand side so you can see the effect of the amount of pressure you are applying to the canvas.

Keep in mind that to fully take advantage of all of the features we have discussed you will need to add a Pen Tablet with tilt sensitivity to provide more flexibility and versatility.

As a few added tips, the maximum brush size in Photoshop CS6 has also increased from 2500 pixels to 5000 pixels. Also, you can adjust brush hardness by using Alt+Right+Drag for the Windows operating system and the Ctrl+Option+Right+Drag command for Mac OS X. Then simply drag horizontally to adjust the brush size and vertically to adjust the hardness of the brush.

Need Photoshop CS6 training? Checkout our online video training course for Photoshop CS6 with over 10 hours of videos.

Simon Calder

Chris “Simon” Calder was working as a Project Manager in IT for one of Los Angeles’ most prestigious cultural institutions, LACMA.He taught himself to use Microsoft Project from a giant textbook and hated every moment of it. Online learning was in its infancy then, but he spotted an opportunity and made an online MS Project course - the rest, as they say, is history!