Work on real projects to master AI retouching, Generative Fill, Harmonize tool and more. Build real skills fast.
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Key FeaturesLearn with a fully illustrated, full-color guideCreate professional visuals for print, web, social, and brand assetsUpgrade your workflow with AI-powered, non-destructive editingPractice with downloadable project files for every hands-on exampleBook Description
Adobe Photoshop continues to evolve and so should your skills. Written by Adobe Certified Expert Gary Bradley, Mastering Adobe Photoshop 2026 is the definitive guide for designers, marketers, and visual content creators looking to upgrade their editing capabilities with Adobe’s latest tools and features. Whether you’re refining product shots, creating print collateral, or animating social media visuals, this second edition delivers an expertly structured approach that blends professional techniques with hands-on practice.
Structured into four progressive parts, the book builds your skills from interface mastery and healing tools to branding mock-ups, video shorts, and surrealist artwork. This edition goes beyond basic image editing by teaching advanced workflows like non-destructive retouching, seamless masking, batch automation, and content creation optimized for multiple platforms. Two brand-new chapters help you embrace the future of image editing by exploring AI-powered retouching with Adobe Firefly and the latest updates and new features from Adobe MAX.
By the end of this book, you’ll have complete command over Photoshop’s powerful feature set, allowing you to craft stunning visuals that impress clients, employers, and online audiences alike.
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What you will learnCreate advanced mock-ups using smart objects and branding workflowsMaster retouching, recoloring, and content-aware edits non-destructivelyUse AI-enhanced tools for image generation, background edits, and retouchingDesign and automate high-volume social media content for multiple platformsAnimate titles, GIFs, and videos using Photoshop’s timeline and frame toolsDevelop immersive visuals using brushes, textures, gradients, and effectsBlend, collage, and compose surrealist artworks with professional finesseWho this book is for
This book is ideal for digital designers, content creators, social media managers, marketing professionals, and photographers who already have a foundational understanding of Photoshop and want to enhance their skills. If you’re producing content for print, screen, or social media and want to save time while achieving exceptional quality, this book is for you.
Table of ContentsWhat’s New in PhotoshopMaking Photoshop Work Harder and SmarterNon-Destructive Healing, Retouching, and RecoloringMasking and Cut-OutsBuilding Brand Mock-Ups and PrototypesCreating Printed Marketing CollateralFrom Pixels to Post: Images for Social MediaCreating Animated GIFs and Video ShortsBringing Type to Life with Styles and EffectsCreating Textures, Patterns, and BackdropsCreating and Applying BrushesIntegrating Artificial IntelligenceBlending and Collaging ImagesCreating Surrealist Artwork
From the Publisher
Publisher : Packt Publishing
Publication date : December 19, 2025
Edition : 2nd ed.
Language : English
Print length : 562 pages
ISBN-10 : 1806021714
ISBN-13 : 978-1806021710
Item Weight : 2.1 pounds
Dimensions : 7.5 x 1.27 x 9.25 inches
Best Sellers Rank: #65,905 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #4 in Adobe Photoshop #9 in Design & Graphics Software Books #13 in Digital Photography (Books)
Customer Reviews: 4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars (6) var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });
Christopher West –
A modern, practical masterclass in Photoshop — especially the AI-powered future
Mastering Adobe Photoshop 2026 by Gary Bradley lives up to its title. This is not a beginner’s walkthrough or a surface-level overview of features — it’s a professionally structured, hands-on guide for anyone who already knows Photoshop basics and wants to elevate their work to a modern, production-ready level.What really stands out is how current and practical this book feels. The coverage of AI-powered tools like Generative Fill, Firefly-based retouching, and the Harmonize workflow is excellent, and—more importantly—integrated naturally into real-world projects rather than treated as gimmicks. Bradley does a great job showing how these tools fit into non-destructive, professional workflows instead of replacing good design fundamentals.The book’s structure is another major strength. Each section builds logically—from advanced retouching and masking to branding mock-ups, social media content, motion graphics, and even surrealist artwork. The inclusion of downloadable project files makes it easy to follow along and actually practice, which helps the concepts stick far better than passive reading.I also appreciated that this book goes beyond “photo editing” and covers print, web, social, and motion content in a way that reflects how Photoshop is actually used today. The chapters on automation, batch workflows, and content creation for multiple platforms are especially valuable for designers and marketers working under real deadlines.If you already have a solid foundation in Photoshop and want to work faster, smarter, and more creatively with modern tools, this book is well worth your time. Highly recommended for designers, content creators, photographers, and marketing professionals who want to stay relevant as Photoshop continues to evolve.
Tiny –
Max Out your Photo Game!
If you depends on good graphics to make your daily income, you are likely already using Adobe Photoshop. The question to ask, is, are you getting the most out of your investment? This book should be a must-have for you. This updated edition shows exactly how to use multiple tricks within the Adobe portfolio, guiding hands-on through the steps needed, I tend to do straight-forward things, adjusting eyes, moving colors, and changing shading, photoshop can now create and align backgrounds, remove extraneous items, and manipulate content-aware scaling. The two center sections focus on bringing your brand into the graphic images, a key for copyright, and preventing data theft. Further, the section expands to building unique components to benefit your customers.My favorite partis the expansion on using AI tools for world-building. As a data engineer, I know finding the right AI help can be all about the prompt and this steps through building effective prompts. Also includes a detailed section on using Firefly, as wll as making unique surrealist pictures from scratch. My least favorite? There is so much here I don’t know where to start, I think I’m going to highlight 3 or 4 tricks at a time, and bring them in weekly to expand my knowledge. A must-have for serious-minded photographic and graphic professionals
Sci-Fi Lover –
If I knew then… I would not buy this book
Unable to download promised PDF version of the book without paying full price, again, which I did not.The book would be OK at half the price.
Robert Bourgeois –
Updated Mastery Book for Photoshop
Mastering Adobe Photoshop 2026 by Gary Bradley is a great resource for those looking to extend their knowledge of Photoshop. Like all books about software, this books opens by introducing readers to what’s new in the latest version of Photoshop. Written for intermediate users, this book provides step-by-step instructions for how to complete more advanced techniques using provided resources for learning them. The book’s format is easy to follow, especially for those who learn best by doing instead of simply reading. One thing of interest is the coverage of AI tools as understanding them continues to become more important for hobbyists and professionals alike.
Bjørn Smalbro –
An excellent book which will help you very much in in your career working with graphic design
I think it is an excellent book! The author has found a good balance between a reference work and an introductory work. The fifteen chapters dives into the most common and basic of Photoshops features and allows you to build a good and – best of all – efficient workflow. Photoshop is an industry standard and being able to master it, is absolutely important if you want to work in the graphic design business. This book is an enormous help.
Om S –
Learning Photoshop 2026 the Right Way
This book is solid if you already know Photoshop basics. Gary Bradley teaches real workflows, not just button-clicking. The chapters on non-destructive editing and AI tools actually made sense to me. It’s organized well – starts simple and builds up. The project examples help you learn by doing. Some chapters felt rushed though, and I had to hunt for the downloadable files. Overall, it’s practical and worth reading if you want to get better at Photoshop without the fluff.