Background : Intro to Photoshop

What is Photoshop?

A brief History

Photo manipulation has a long history that predates digital technology. In the 19th century, photographers began experimenting with techniques such as combination printing, hand-painting, and retouching negatives to alter images. One of the earliest known examples is "The Two Ways of Life" (1857) by Oscar Rejlander, which combined multiple negatives to create a single, seamless composition. Throughout the early 20th century, techniques such as airbrushing and double exposure became common in advertising and propaganda, allowing images to be edited for artistic or political purposes. Darkroom techniques, including dodging and burning, gave photographers even greater control over an image's exposure and details.

The development of digital technology in the late 20th century revolutionized photo manipulation. The first digital image was created in 1957, but it wasn’t until the 1980s that computer-based image editing became practical. Early digital manipulation tools, such as Quantel Paintbox and Scitex systems, were expensive and used primarily in professional publishing and advertising. In 1987, Thomas and John Knoll developed a software program called Display, which later became Adobe Photoshop. Adobe officially released Photoshop 1.0 in 1990, providing users with powerful tools such as layers, selection tools, and color correction, which made digital editing more accessible and efficient than traditional darkroom methods.

Since its release, Adobe Photoshop has continued to evolve, shaping the way images are created, edited, and perceived. The software has introduced advanced features such as non-destructive editing, 3D modeling, and artificial intelligence-powered tools like Content-Aware Fill and Neural Filters. Photoshop has become the industry standard for digital art, photography, and graphic design, influencing everything from advertising to journalism. However, its powerful capabilities have also raised ethical concerns about digital manipulation and the spread of misinformation. Despite these challenges, Photoshop remains a key tool in creative industries and continues to push the boundaries of visual storytelling.