Photoshop tools, options, and task bars

The Tools panel appears on the left of the Photoshop application screen. These tools have more options that appear in the context-sensitive options bar. Select the small triangle at the lower right of the tool icon to access these options. 

View their names and other information by positioning the pointer over them. 

For a pictorial overview of the different tools in Photoshop, see Tool galleries.

Select a tool

Do one of the following: 

• Select a tool in the Tools panel. If there is a small triangle at the tool's lower right corner, hold down the mouse button to view the button tools, and then select the tool you want to work with. 

Or, 

• Press the tool's keyboard shortcut. The keyboard shortcut is displayed in its tooltip. For example, select the Move tool by pressing V. 

Read more about Photoshop keyboard shortcuts here. 

Cycle through hidden tools

By default, you cycle through a set of hidden tools by holding down Shift and repeatedly pressing a tool shortcut key.

If you prefer to cycle through tools without holding down Shift, you can disable this preference.

Change tool pointers

Each default pointer has a different hotspot, where an effect or action in the image begins. With most tools, you can switch to precise cursors, which appear as cross hairs centered around the hotspot.

In most cases, the pointer for a tool is the same as the icon for that tool; you see that pointer when you select the tool. The default pointer for the marquee tools is the cross-hair pointer ; for the text tool, the default pointer is the I‑beam ; and for the painting tools, the default pointer is the Brush Size icon.

Visually resize or change hardness of painting cursors

You can resize or change the hardness of a painting cursor by dragging in the image. As you drag, the painting cursor previews your changes. (Previews require OpenGL.)

To resize a cursor, press Alt+right-click (Windows) or control+option (macOS), and drag left or right. To change hardness, drag up or down.

Tool options bar

The tool options bar appears below the menu bar at the top of the workspace. The options bar is context-sensitive, which means it changes with the selection of different tools. Some settings in the options bar (such as painting modes and opacity) are common to several tools, and some are specific to one tool.

You can move the options bar in the workspace by using the gripper bar and dock it at the top or bottom of the screen. Tool tips appear when you position the pointer over a tool. To show or hide the options bar, choose Window > Options.

To return tools to their default settings, right-click (Windows) or control-click (macOS) the tool icon in the options bar, and then choose Reset Tool or Reset All Tools from the context menu.

For more information on setting options for a specific tool, search for the tool’s name in Photoshop Help.

Look for more topics to learn on the Photoshop Discover Panel.

Tool presets

Tool presets let you save and reuse tool settings. You can load, edit, and create libraries of tool presets using the Tool Preset picker in the options bar, the Tool Presets panel, and the Preset Manager.

To choose a tool preset, select the Tool Preset picker in the options bar, and select a preset from the pop‑up panel. You can also choose Window > Tool Presets and select a preset in the Tools Presets panel.

Create a tool preset

Change the list of tool presets

Select the triangle to open the Tool Presets pop‑up panel menu and choose one of the following:

• Show All Tool Presets: Shows all loaded presets
• Sort By Tool: Sorts the presets by tool
• Show Current Tool Presets: Shows only the loaded presets for the active tool. You can also select the Current Tool Only option in the Tool Presets pop‑up panel
• Text Only, Small List, or Large List: Determines how presets are displayed in the pop‑up panel

To create, load, and manage libraries of tool presets, see Work with the Preset Manager.

Spring-loaded keys to quickly switch between tools

Make quick edits in Photoshop using keyboard shortcuts for tools by using spring-loaded keys.

Spring-loading keys let you temporarily switch to a different tool as long as you press and hold down its keyboard shortcut (to use the Move tool as a spring-loaded key, select and hold down V on your keyboard). The default is 200 milliseconds, but you can adjust the timing in Preferences > Tools.

Once you have made your edits, release the key and you can continue to work with the tool you were previously using.