Question:

Wouldn't Adobe Photoshop naturally be the first place to start when learning web design?

 

I'm just making sure I'm on the right tracks here...

Thanks.

If you want to actually make the websites, learn HTML and CSS first. Otherwise you will design great sites, but won't have the technical skills to create them.

 

But yes, a good knowledge of Photoshop (and/or Fireworks, etc) is vital for website design.

Can someone explain to me how photoshop ties into making a good website?

To me, website design revolves around HTML and CSS. Photoshop would provide some nice edited photo's etc to add to your site?

I don't really understand the link to photoshop for website creation? (<<spot the newbie).

Im just making sure Im on the right tracks...

 

As Wellerweb pointed out - learning HTML and CSS should be your first step. I personally find that when I'm designing a website in Photoshop, I think about how I'm going to code it not to run into any difficult or unforeseeable problems that might require me to tweak my design or re-slice it. Also, if you become good at designing websites with Photoshop but have very little knowledge on how to code them, you overwhelm yourself by trying to code up complicated designs that require a great deal of coding skill that may even venture beyond HTML and CSS.

 

Can someone explain to me how photoshop ties into making a good website?

To me, website design revolves around HTML and CSS. Photoshop would provide some nice edited photo's etc to add to your site?

I don't really understand the link to photoshop for website creation? (<<spot the newbie).

 

Most Web Designers will construct the entire concept of their website in Photoshop first so that they can play around with how it will look until they are happy and can then start planning how they will code it. Many parts of the Photoshop design will be sliced and used to construct the live website. Photoshop is used for more than just editing photos but to also create templates, graphics, icons and even stuff like background images.

Thank you for the explanation

hmmm thanks guess I'll keep practicing with PS abit but I guess I will learn HTML and CSS at the same time .. I was planning to master PS then move on to HTML and CSS...

Thank you for the explanation

 

You're Welcome

 

hmmm thanks guess I'll keep practicing with PS abit but I guess I will learn HTML and CSS at the same time .. I was planning to master PS then move on to HTML and CSS...

 

"Mastering" Photoshop would take a very long time anyway - I've used it for years now and there are still many features that I know very little about.

 

HTML and CSS are relatively easy languages to learn in comparison to most programming languages so you should be able to study them alongside Photoshop and once you start to feel comfortable, try designing some basic designs in Photoshop and coding them up with HTML and CSS.

Mastering photoshop as suggested above would take years...ive been using it for a while now, and am quite good for things like designing website layouts etc...but some of the crazy s**t i see people do on it blows my mind! I would focus on learning the basics of html and css...you only need basic knowledge to start off, and can pick up new skills along the way. As a simple exercise, try and create a simple website with a header, main text area and footer. Then start adding things to it...if it doesn't work, go and see why it doesn't work and try again. There is nothing more satisfying in coding, when you can't get something to work, and then suddenly you have a brain wave and alter the code slightly, resulting in it working! Good luck!

K.I.S.S.

If you replace Photoshop with Fireworks, you'd be more on the right track.

 

Fireworks is for Web/Screen Design.

 

Photoshop is for image manipulation.

 

Not to say Photoshop isn't excellent but the correct tool made by Adobe for Web Design is actually Fireworks.

Totally disagree, in my opinion there really is little need for photoshop other than to create/edit icons and images. When I'm creating a new website I will spend maximum 10 minutes creating a very basic mock up before moving into designing in the browser. Its so easy to make changes using CSS that you can easily mock up a page in code which saves a lot of time and also leaves you knowing what can and can't be achieved with CSS. Also using livereload makes it so smooth a process.

 

Also if you're building responsive sites a psd is pretty redundant. I think you're just as well mocking up on paper than you are in photoshop. Why show a client a photoshop mock up when you can show them the real thing in a browser?

 

There are so many great time saving tools out there today, why waste time building a site twice?

Totally disagree, in my opinion there really is little need for photoshop other than to create/edit icons and images. When I'm creating a new website I will spend maximum 10 minutes creating a very basic mock up before moving into designing in the browser. Its so easy to make changes using CSS that you can easily mock up a page in code which saves a lot of time and also leaves you knowing what can and can't be achieved with CSS. Also using livereload makes it so smooth a process.

 

Also if you're building responsive sites a psd is pretty redundant. I think you're just as well mocking up on paper than you are in photoshop. Why show a client a photoshop mock up when you can show them the real thing in a browser?

 

There are so many great time saving tools out there today, why waste time building a site twice?

 

I can see your point, however when designing in photoshop you can notice flaws and make corrects extremely faster and easier than you would if you were just working in your code first.

 

Background images, logos, buttons, etc can be spliced from your PSD with ease thanks to layers and a bit of cropping.

 

Plus, this is a biggie for me at least, you can get the exact colours you want and can see them side by side with your design instead of using a colour picker in your code editing program, or other method, and having to refresh your browser or live view to see the colour in action.

Well I don't even have a copy of Photoshop on my work station. I can use it like any other software, but have never found much time to incorporate it into my method of building websites.

 

I do however use FireWorks to assist with developing websites, but writing clean and clear CSS & PHP on Sublime Text is more my style, with a hint of Paint Shop Pro for touching up and resizing any images, etc.

Nowadays - I'd say no; with a caveat: it depends on how experienced you are. My first step is to bypass any kind of graphic editor (after the pen 'n paper planning) and go straight to designing in the browser. Most of what I develop now is responsive, and I find Photoshop tends to encourage me to overdesign.

 

Usual process is:

 

1) Pen 'n paper (call it retro wireframing if it makes you feel more comfortable)

2) Layout developed in the browser with content king.

3) Only then will I consider graphic elements, with as much of these done with css as humanely possible.

 

In the most part, as JPWD stated, individual elements such as icons and banners.

 

 

Lets face it, by the time you've slaved over a template design in Photoshop, you might as well of designed in the browser and given your client a nice surprise, in the form of an interactive demo, rather than a static picture that shows nothing of the interactive elements other than margin notes.

 

One thing that can be tricky is not providing the client with that initial image; I explain to them about content being the most important aspect, and make sure they get a copy of layout wireframes if required.

 

@wellerweb - might not work for you, but I find generating a swatch of colours just as easy to implement.

As a website designer it's important to remember you will of been commissioned to create a functional product not a work of art.

As a website designer it's important to remember you will of been commissioned to create a functional product not a work of art.

I agree... to a point. I said to a potential client the other day "You can have the most beautiful website in the world, but if you push the button and it breaks, you've lost the sale and the customer". that potential client is now a client. But on the flip side of this if the site looks like a dogs dinner..... Horses for (main courses) as Findus would say.

Yeh colours can be changed very quickly especially with Sass or even a simple Find and Replace!

As a website designer it's important to remember you will of been commissioned to create a functional product not a work of art.

 

Yes, functionality is more important than aesthetics. But it is possible to create a website that is functional AND beautiful, and if you can create something that looks great without sacrificing functionality, then you end up with a happier client and a better browsing experience for their customers.

Nowadays - I'd say no; with a caveat: it depends on how experienced you are. My first step is to bypass any kind of graphic editor (after the pen 'n paper planning) and go straight to designing in the browser. Most of what I develop now is responsive, and I find Photoshop tends to encourage me to overdesign.

 

Usual process is:

 

1) Pen 'n paper (call it retro wireframing if it makes you feel more comfortable)

2) Layout developed in the browser with content king.

3) Only then will I consider graphic elements, with as much of these done with css as humanely possible.

 

In the most part, as JPWD stated, individual elements such as icons and banners.

 

 

Lets face it, by the time you've slaved over a template design in Photoshop, you might as well of designed in the browser and given your client a nice surprise, in the form of an interactive demo, rather than a static picture that shows nothing of the interactive elements other than margin notes.

 

One thing that can be tricky is not providing the client with that initial image; I explain to them about content being the most important aspect, and make sure they get a copy of layout wireframes if required.

 

@wellerweb - might not work for you, but I find generating a swatch of colours just as easy to implement.

Ahhh the wise man speaks. The pen and paper is the right choice and wire framing. Client needs and objectives come first then design around those factors.

If you are interested in web designing and want to learning it than first you have to start with HTML. There are so many of tutorial available to learn. Photohop is one of the best web desing software that good to create web site with good graphics and color combination. It has great features and tools that very easy to use for creating a website.

You see, website can run base on html and css. Photoshop is like a plan map for your ideas. When you draw your ideas on the photoshop, you can see what to do first and what you should remove. Don't be lazy to skip working on photoshop. It's really important for you to have the best website.

I use Fireworks to "print" the ideas from my mind to the screen, then I write the code..for me is the easiest way!

It solely depends on your practice and concentration. It's fun to learn photoshop and apply it. I have learned a lot from youtube, Udemy, justlean etc. But self practice is really important.

 

It solely depends on your practice and concentration. It's fun to learn photoshop and apply it. I have learned a lot from youtube, Udemy, justlean etc. But self practice is really important.


 

Edited March 19, 20215 yr by kaleemo

10 hours ago, kaleemo said:

It solely depends on your practice and concentration. It's fun to learn photoshop and apply it. I have learned a lot from youtube, Udemy, justlean etc. But self practice is really important.


 

this thread is 8 years old - not sure the OP is around anymore or still wondering about photoshop