The first domain is often the most difficult one to master for students. This domain is mainly focused on theories and best practices from the design industry. Without any experience in the real world of being a media designer, this can get tricky. In this part, we will cover a set of words on which you could get questions during the test.

Copyright and wrong

Copyright is quite a tricky matter. Of course, it ensures that no one can use your work, that your work is protected. The American test naturally focuses on the regulations in America. You can certainly expect questions about copyright. You are wise to learn and understand the terms below well.

Copyright is something that sounds dull, no need to worry about that. But it's there to protect you and your intellectual ownership. What you've created is owned by you, and no one else. You are about to enter the creative industry and therefore willing to earn your money with your creative ideas. The laws around copyright are there to protect you!

Example:

Creative Commons

Over the past decade, much research has been conducted into alternative ways of licensing creative works. Creative Commons licensing is built on copyright but provides ways for artists to release their works for limited use and still choose the way the works are used and shared.

The Power of Layers Mask 

A layer mask is an editable and removable 8-bit Grayscale channel that hides all or some of the pixels on a layer, depending on the tools and effects you are applying to it. White areas in a layer mask permit pixels to be seen, black areas hide pixels and gray area hide pixels partially. It is true to say: White Reveals and Black Conceals. With the layer mask thumbnail selected you can edit, deactivate and view the mask. You can move and copy layer mask to other layers at any time. 

Layer masks are a fundamental tool in image manipulations. They allow you to selectively modify the opacity (transparency) of the layer they belong to. This differs from the use of the layer Opacity slider as a mask has the ability to selectively modify the opacity of different areas across a single layer. 

Layer clipping masks

A clipping mask is a group of layers to which a mask is applied. The bottommost layer, or base layer, defines the visible boundaries of the entire group. For example, suppose you have a shape in the base layer, a photograph in the layer above it, and text in the topmost layer. If the photograph and text appear only through the shape outline in the base layer, they also take on the opacity of the base layer.

You can group only successive layers. The name of the base layer in the group is underlined, and the thumbnails for the overlying layers are indented. Additionally, the overlying layers display the clipping mask icon.

Understanding Smart Objects

Smart Objects are layers that contain image data from raster or vector images, such as Photoshop or Illustrator files. Smart Objects preserve an image’s source content with all its original characteristics, enabling you to perform nondestructive editing to the layer.

In Photoshop CC and CS6: you can embed the contents of an image into a Photoshop document. In Photoshop CC: you can also create Linked Smart Objects whose contents are referenced from external image files. The contents of a Linked Smart Object are updated when its source image file changes.

Linked Smart Objects are distinct from duplicated instances of a Smart Object within a Photoshop document. With Linked Smart Objects, you can use a shared source file across multiple Photoshop documents.

Smart Object benefits

With Smart Objects, you can: 

Perform nondestructive transforms. You can scale, rotate, skew, distort, perspective transform, or warp a layer without losing original image data or quality because the transforms don’t affect the original data. 

Work with vector data, such as vector artwork from Illustrator, that otherwise would be rasterized in Photoshop. 

Perform nondestructive filtering. You can edit filters applied to Smart Objects at any time. 

Edit one Smart Object and automatically update all its linked instances. 

Apply a layer mask that’s either linked or unlinked to the Smart Object layer. 

Try various designs with low-resolution placeholder images that you later replace with final versions. 

Linked Smart Objects

Basic Smart Objects are a powerful way to insert content from various file types in a non-destructive way. Designers especially use Smart Objects to mix different media types within Photoshop. Linked Smart Objects, new in Photoshop CC, can improve collaboration and allow teams to work more efficiently. They can also save hard disk space by reducing the size of your Photoshop files. With new linked Smart Objects, objects are referenced to files on your local system or network drive, allowing for more efficient re purposing of assets and making collaboration much easier. This linking functionality is similar to Adobe InDesign and Adobe Illustrator.

How does it work?

When you copy a symbol or an object from Illustrator you can paste it as a Smart Object.You can place a smart object in Photoshop or create one, but Photoshop will not link the image it will embed the file.

Package Linked Smart Objects

You can package the Linked Smart Objects in a Photoshop document, such that their source files are saved to a folder on your computer. A copy of the Photoshop document is saved along with the source files in the folder. 

Select File > Package. 

Select a location where you want to place the source files and a copy of the Photoshop document.

Any audio or video Linked Smart Objects in the document are packaged as well.

Note:

You must save a file before packaging the Linked Smart Objects that it contains.

Overview - Working with Smart Filters

Smart Filters is basically one of the best features in PS and actually a MUST use once you start applying filters to your image.Smart Filters are applied to your image non destructively. Technically, the filters are applied to your pixel data, but Photoshop always retains the original pixel data inside the Smart Object. Then, each time a filter is edited, Photoshop installs the original pixel data and reapplies the filter. Smart Filters are also Smart Objects so after applying a filter you can still create and use effects to the Smart Object.