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Use the Capture in-app extension in Photoshop

  As of July 2024, Photoshop’s legacy 3D features have been removed. However, now in the Photoshop (beta) app you can seamlessly add 3D objects to your 2D Photoshop design using the Adobe Substance 3D Viewer (beta) app. Click here for more details.

Learn how to use the Capture in-app extension while working with Photoshop on your desktop.

With the Capture in-app extension in Photoshop, quickly turn images from your document or your hard drive into a various design elements, such as color themes, patterns, vector shapes, and gradients. These are automatically saved to your libraries and instantly usable in your current project, or other Adobe applications.

Also, view a list of helpful resources offering information about using Adobe Capture to edit your saved assets with the same workflows on your mobile device.

Using Capture in-app extension to turn images into a variety of design elements

Overview

The Capture extension allows you to create assets from images. You can select several images at once and work with them as a group or produce several different assets using a single image. You can use graphics from within your document, or from your system without having to place them into your project.

Click  in the Libraries panel to open the Capture in-app extension. Select Create from image to launch a window that gives you room for unlimited creation. If a layer is selected on the canvas, the extension opens up with an image of the layer. In the window that opens, drag-and-drop to add more images from your system.

In the Create From Image window that opens, do the following:

1. Select the image you want to work with or click the '+' icon to add more images from your system. 

2. Select the module for the type of asset you want to create — Patterns, Shapes, Color Themes, and Gradients.

3. Choose and modify options to change the output of your creation.

4. See a live preview to check the appearance of your asset.

5. Click Save to CC Libraries to save it and continue from the same image, or select another image on the far left. Select Close to exit the panel to work with your project.

Patterns

Slice your images into geometric patterns to be used in Photoshop or Illustrator.

To use images as patterns, do the following:

1. Choose your tile shape. Select color or black and white for your final tile.

2. Use the sliders to scale and rotate.

3. Drag your image to regenerate the pattern tile using a new image slice.

4. See a live preview to check the appearance of your asset.

5. Click Save to Libraries to save it and continue from the same image, or select another image on the far left. Select Close to exit the panel to work with your project.

Use your patterns

Patterns are saved in your libraries as a swatch that can be used as a repeating fill in Photoshop. 

To use your pattern, select the object you want to fill and double-click the swatch in the Libraries panel. Use the Pattern Fill panel to set options such as scale and layer linking. Also, you can right-click the pattern swatch in the Libraries panel and select Apply Pattern to apply to the selected object. Use Create Pattern Preset to add to the pattern fill panel.

Shapes

Convert images to smooth scalable vectors.

To use images as vector shapes, do the following:

1. Use the slider to select the level of detail to convert to vector.

2. Invert what content to vectorize.

3. Apply smoothing for a cleaner conversion by reducing the path points. Smoothing is applied during the save operation.

4. See a preview of your vector output.

5. Click Save to CC Libraries to save it and continue from the same image, or select another image on the far left. Select Close to exit the panel to work with your project.

Use your shapes

You can use your shapes by dragging the shape from your library and placing it in the document.

Shapes created in Photoshop can also be used in Illustrator, Indesign, XD, Premiere Pro, Animate, and After Effects. 

Color Themes

Extract harmonized cohesive color themes directly from inspiring images.

To extract color themes from images, do the following:

1. See your full color theme.

2. Choose the color mood to use when extracting the palette. To learn more about color moods, see Adobe Color FAQ.

3. Drag the pucks to select the precise colors using a magnifier.

4. Click the swatch to copy the hexadecimal value.

5. Click Save to CC Libraries to save it and continue from the same image, or select another image on the far left. Select Close to exit the panel to work with your project.

Use your color themes

You can use your color themes by clicking on a swatch in the theme to set the active color.

Color themes created in Photoshop can also be used in other Adobe apps such as Illustrator, Indesign, Fresco, Dreamweaver, Animate, and After Effects. 

Gradients

Sample your images to make smooth colorful gradients.

To obtain color gradients from an image, do the following:

1. See your complete gradient.

2. Choose the number of colors in your gradient.

3. Drag the pucks to select the precise colors using a magnifier.

4. Click each swatch to copy hexadecimal values from individual swatch colors.

5. Click Save to CC Libraries to save it and continue from the same image, or select another image on the far left. Select Close to exit the panel to work with your project.

Use your gradients

To use your gradients, find them in the Libraries panel and double click to apply.

Gradients created in Photoshop can also be used in XD. 

Use on mobile

The Capture in-app extension is powered by the magic of Adobe Capture. Use your phone to recognize fonts, or turn photos into harmonized color themes, tiling patterns, 3D textures, digital brushes, and vector shapes. Access your assets anywhere with the power of Creative Cloud.

Edit your creations made with the Capture in-app extension right on your mobile device by navigating to the library you saved to, and selecting Edit from the … menu of the asset you want to modify. Learn more about creating and working with assets in Capture.

Capture is available on iOS and Android for mobile phones and tablets.

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