Published: June 20, 2005
While photographers tend to feel that each image deserves individual attention to ensure the best result possible, all too often, time is wasted on repetitive tasks that could easily be automated through batch processes on a large number of images. Automation can greatly reduce the time and tedium associated with repetitive tasks.
If you find you are performing the same tasks in the same order for a number of images, or if you have a group of images that need very similar corrections, you've probably found a candidate for automation in Photoshop.
Actions to the Rescue
Photoshop automations are defined in terms of actions. Actions contain a list of recorded steps that can be applied to images on demand. The basic process requires that you complete a specific task or series of tasks on a target image. Your computer records all of your mouse movements, clicks, and keystrokes so that they can be "played back" and applied to any image you work with in the future. You can run the action on a file (or group of files) at any time.
While you may be tempted to jump right in to the process of recording an action, it is a good idea to plan ahead. Think about all the steps you want the action to perform. It may even be helpful to write out a list of steps so you can better review it, making sure you aren't leaving anything out. This is especially helpful for actions that will include a large number of steps.
Once you have a good idea of what you want the action to include, you're ready to start recording.
Creating an Action
To create an action, you'll first want to go to the Actions palette. If it isn't already visible, click the Window menu and click Actions. A number of prerecorded actions are included with Photoshop, so at the very least you'll see those on the Actions palette.
Actions are stored in folders (called sets) on the Actions palette. I recommend creating a new set for your actions to keep them organized. If you are likely to create a large number of actions, you may even want to create sets for each category of action you'll be creating. To create a new set, point to the bottom of the Actions palette and click the Create New Set button. You'll be prompted to provide a name for the new set, and I recommend using a name that will identify the types of actions to be included in this set. When you click OK, the new set you created will appear on the Actions palette and will be selected.
With the new set created and selected, you're ready to create an action. To do so, point to the bottom of the Actions palette and click the Create New Action button. The New Action dialog box will appear, allowing you to define various attributes of the action. In the Name box, give the action a name that describes the result of running the action. The Set box will display the set you had selected when you created the new action, but you can change it by selecting an alternative from the list.
The Function Key option allows you to establish a shortcut key or key combination for the action you're creating. This can be very helpful for actions you'll use on a regular basis. In the Function Key list, select the key command you want to use. You can also check the Shift or Control boxes to specify modifier keys. If you define a shortcut, I recommend including text that will help you remember the appropriate key or key combination.
The Color list allows you to designate a color for your action button. This provides an additional method for organizing your actions, but I prefer to organize them into folders and bypass this option.
Recording the Action
When you click Record in the New Action dialog box, the box disappears, and nothing really seems to have happened. However, you'll notice that the new action you defined has been added to the Actions palette, and the record button (the one with the red circle on it) at the bottom of the Actions palette is pressed. Everything you do in Photoshop from this point forward will be recorded as part of the action-until you stop recording. Fortunately, actions aren't recorded in real time, so you don't have to be in any particular hurry. When you're finished, the action remembers what you did, not how long it took to do it, and will perform the tasks as quickly as possible whenever you run them.
Simply perform the steps you want to include in the action, exactly as you want them executed. I recommend that you always include a Save As function as your final step. (On the File menu, click Save As.) When you're finished, point to the bottom of the Actions palette and click the Stop Playing/Recording button. This will stop the recording process and save the steps as an action.
If you don't want all of the steps in the action to be completely automated, you can invoke a prompt that asks for your input before executing particular commands. For example, you may have applied a levels adjustment as one of the steps in your action, in which case you probably want to be able to fine-tune the adjustment for each image. This can be done without sacrificing the benefits of automating the overall action. Simply point to the left side of the Actions palette and click in the empty box beside the step you want to customize. A small icon will appear in the box, indicating that you will be prompted for your input when that step of the action is run.
Running an Action
With your action created, it's easy to apply the steps to another image. With an image open, you can select the appropriate action from the Actions palette and click the Play Selection button at the bottom of the Actions palette. If you assigned a shortcut key to the action, you can also run the action on the currently active image by pressing that keyboard shortcut. When you need to perform the same tasks on individual images as you're working with them, this can be very helpful. However, it doesn't exactly represent complete automation. For that, we'll need to run our action on a group of images all at once.
Batch Processing
Running an action on a group of images represents an efficient use of automation in Photoshop. All of the utility of this powerful feature is packed into the Batch dialog box. On the File menu, click Automate, and then click Batch. (The Batch option also can be selected from the Automate menu in the File Browser.)
The Play section of the Batch dialog box allows you to select the set and action you want to apply to a group of images. By default, the action that was last selected on the Actions palette will be applied, but you can change the set and action choices, if necessary.
The Source section allows you to define which images the action should be applied to. I typically run the action on a group of files placed in a particular folder. Point to the Destination list and select the Folder option. (If you want to include subfolders within your target folder, click the Include All Subfolders check box.) You will then need to click Choose to select the specific folder containing the images you want to apply the action to. Another common option is File Browser, which-as the name implies-will apply the action to the files currently selected in the File Browser. You can also choose the Opened Files option to apply the action to all currently open files.
The four check boxes allow you to adjust how the source files are dealt with. The Override Action "Open" Commands check box will apply the batch process to only those files you defined in the Source section, even if you'd included an open command when recording the action. I recommend checking this box. The Include All Subfolders check box allows you to include any subfolders nested inside your target folder. I normally copy all the files I want to apply an action to into a separate folder, so I don't need to use this option. However, if you have folders nested inside the primary folder and you want the action to apply to those images as well, you'll want to check this box.
The Suppress File Open Options Dialogs check box causes the batch process to open each target image without prompting you for input. The Suppress Color Profile Warnings check box suppresses any warning messages about differences between the image's color profile and that of your monitor. Since the idea of an action is to automate tasks as much as possible, I recommend checking both of these boxes so you can allow the action to run unattended on the selected files.
The Destination section allows you determine where the resulting files will be saved. I strongly recommend using the Folder option so that the files will be saved in a separate folder. Otherwise, you risk accidentally overwriting your original image files. With the Folder option selected, click the Choose button to select the folder where the files should be saved.
The Override Action "Save As" Commands check box is a common source of confusion. I always recommend checking this box, because I don't want every file to be saved with the same name, resulting in only one final image that has been processed. However, in order for this option to work correctly, you must have a Save As step in your action. This command will signal the action that it needs to save the file and include the basic parameters such as file type; but with this check box selected, the location and file name will be determined based on the options selected in the Batch dialog box.
By default, the File Naming section is set to Document Name + Extension, thus maintaining your original file names and extensions. This works perfectly fine in most situations, but you can also specify a new file name structure for the resulting files by adding text or selection options from the available lists. If you are using a serial number to apply to each saved file in sequence, you can also designate the starting serial number for the first image.
Finally, the Errors section allows you to specify whether the action should stop on an error. I always recommend leaving this set to Stop For Errors, so you'll be notified if there are any errors when processing your images. The only time I would select the Log Errors To File option would be if I knew there were steps in the action that wouldn't work properly for certain files.
Automate Away!
Once you've created an action and learned how to apply it with the Batch option, you're ready to start automating many of the repetitive tasks you perform on images. If you've captured a series of images under similar conditions so they'll require similar adjustments, or if you want to resize and save a large number of images for use on the Web, you can save considerable time by automating the process. Try to be aware of tasks you repeat for a number of images, and you'll find many situations where an action can make your imaging workflow more efficient. Think of all the extra time you can spend taking more pictures!
