How to open (edit) a PSD file without Photoshop. How to open a PSD file
Personally, we love the PSD file format used in Adobe Photoshop. This best way save everything that happens in the graphic editor at a single point in time, so you can safely put aside your work and come back to it later or make some changes to already finished files without having to start the whole process all over again.
However, many people, including graphic artists, are unwilling or simply not ready to spend money on this expensive graphics editor.
If your friend sends you important files in PSD format or you just downloaded them from the Internet, then you may have a real problem opening them, especially if you don't have your own copy of Adobe Photoshop.
Fortunately, there are several free tools, which allow you to bypass the artificial limitation and work with this type of file. These are free, capable of viewing and editing PSD files in a familiar editing environment.
Paint.NET + PSD Plugin
Paint.NET is a simple, free image editor. It's certainly not Photoshop, but it's still very useful and has a ton of image editing tools. However, you may have noticed that it lacks the ability to work with PSD files. This is where a special .NET PSD can come to our aid.
After downloading, copy the “PhotoShop.dll” file to the “FileTypes” folder, which is located in the Paint.NET directory and the next time you use the *.PSD format, the Paint.NET program will open it like any other file.
GIMP
GIMP - free editor images, with open source code. They say that it comes closest to Photoshop in terms of functionality. It is more difficult to learn than Paint.NET and requires a longer learning curve to get it working.
Like Paint.NET, GIMP supports installing extensions. However, to read the PSD format, you do not need to install a plugin. GIMP supports PSD by default, and you can view files right after installing the editor.
IrfanView
If you only need to Photoshop PSD, then there is no need to install a full-fledged image editor. Instead, take a closer look at IrfanView.
You may have heard about IrfanView before or even used it.
Sure, the program's interface may look like a relic of a bygone era, but as an image viewer it's certainly not outdated.
It is incredibly compact and universal utility, which, as a rule, can with an image of any format. The same is true for PSD files, which IrfanView opens by default.
Go2convert
If you just accidentally found a PSD file in your folders that you need to open, but you don’t have any of the above-listed viewers at hand, then you can use online service Go2convert, which offers to convert Photoshop PSD files on the fly.
To get started, simply upload the PSD file to the site (no registration required). Then choose one format from the incredible number presented on the resource. Click Cover Now. Thus, you will give green the beginning of an operation on the file.
For your convenience, an archive will be created that will contain all the individual layers and one combined image.
Photoshop is definitely best editor to work with a file in PSD format. It saves the entire conversion history so you can close at any time and resume later. The difficulty here is that licensed Photoshop() is a very expensive pleasure. If you only need to open and view a few files created in Photoshop, then there is no need to use such heavy software.
Fortunately, there is free options. Are they as good as Photoshop? - No. How powerful or flexible? - Not at all. In fact, most of these applications will only be able to view the PSD, without the ability to work with layers. But often a review and minor edits are all we need.
GIMP
Paint.NET
Google Drive
- Seems weird to use Google Drive as a picture viewer, but don't be confused - it works quite well. Log in to the service, Click “My Drive” and select “Upload files...”.
- Find and open PSD file. Double click the file to view. This is probably the easiest way to view one or more files in the proprietary PSD format.
Video: Review of the GIMP graphics editor
Images in PSD format have already gained considerable popularity. However, it is not surprising, because this extension is used in the well-known graphics editor Photoshop. But even despite this, many users still do not know how to open a PSD file if it suddenly lands on their computer.
In fact, there are many options for working with “Photoshop” images, and this article will list the most popular of them. So, you will learn what a PSD file is, what program to open PSD, and what to do if desired application not at hand.
Format Description
The acronym PSD is short for Photoshop Document. This raster format, in which it is stored graphic information. In this case, to create such files it is used special technology, allowing you to compress them without losing quality.
The advantages of the format include the ability to work with layers, set transparency, add various vector graphic elements and much more. In addition, using the same Photoshop, you can easily convert PSD into almost any popular extension.
As for the disadvantages, the only thing that can be mentioned here is the large file size. However, considering the amount of available space on hard drives modern computers, this is not a serious problem.
Adobe Photoshop
The first and most obvious option for how to open a PSD file on your computer is to use Adobe programs Photoshop. Only Photoshop will allow you to take full advantage of all the tools provided for image editing.
Once you install the app, it automatically associates itself with all PSD files. Simply put, you can open them by double click mouse, which adds ease of use.
The disadvantage of Photoshop is that the program is distributed on a paid basis. Here it’s up to you to decide whether it’s worth shelling out a round sum or looking for alternative options, which, by the way, will be discussed below.
GIMP
If you're wondering how to open a PSD file without Photoshop, then you should definitely pay attention to the GIMP program. The application has almost all the same tools as its more famous counterpart, but is free. It is not surprising that many experienced users They consider this program to be the main competitor of Photoshop.
In GIMP, you can work with existing layers of a PSD image and overlay new ones, adjust colors, use masks, apply all kinds of drawing tools, and so on. The developers, in turn, regularly release updates for their brainchild, so that the range of functions available in the program is constantly increasing.
Artweaver
Artweaver is another option for opening a PSD file. The program, again, is distributed free of charge, so even if you don't like it, you won't lose anything from it.
The application does not claim laurels professional editor images, but all the important tools are present. Layers, brushes, including those created by you personally, color correction function - all this is already in the basic version of Artweaver. Moreover, the program supports plugins, so you can customize it for yourself if necessary.
Paint.NET
It's likely that you're already familiar with Paint.NET, but you didn't even know about it. hidden possibilities. So, the application is quite capable of working with the PSD format, but to gain access to this function, you will need to perform some simple manipulations:
- Find and download a plugin called PSD Plugin for Paint.NET.
- Unzip the PhotoShop.dll file and copy it to the File Types folder located in the Paint.NET directory.
You will need to wait for some time before opening the PSD file. If done correctly, Paint.NET will automatically detect the plugin and be able to read the PSD format.
IrfanView
The IrfanView program can only open a PSD file, which, of course, is inferior to the applications listed earlier. Essentially the utility will do you if you just want to view the image rather than edit it.
The advantages of the program include its small size, high speed work, as well as compatibility with all popular operating systems. At the same time, IrfanView is free application, anyone can try it.
Online editors
If you still haven’t decided which program to open the PSD file, you can even use one of the online editors. For example, you can upload an image to PhotoPea and then start editing it. At the same time, you will have access to many useful features, including the same layers, visual effects, brushes and so on.
Another useful service, which works on the same principle as PhotoPea, is called Pixlr Editor. Its advantages include a simple, unloaded interface, as well as support for the Russian language, which is not so common in online editors.
Which of these two services to choose is up to you. PhotoPea has more tools, while Pixlr Editor is much easier to learn. However, no one is stopping you from trying both of these editors, and only then making your choice.
Conversion
And finally, you don’t have to bother at all and convert PSD to any format convenient for you. The Go2convert service, which works online, is perfect for this.
Just go to the converter's website, specify the path to the PSD file, select the format you need (you can also specify the quality) and click the Convert Now button. After that, wait just a minute, and then download the edited image to your computer (Download button).
Please note that the file will automatically be archived, so you will need to extract it before viewing it.
To identify files by operating systems, as well as their owners, the concept most often used is an extension. It is always displayed after the name and is represented as several characters separated from it by a dot. For example: “response.txt”, as can be seen from the name, is a certain text file. Therefore, you should open it using the appropriate editor.
By looking at the extension again, the user will understand that this file encoded in the most universal and at the same time simple format - txt. The latter significantly expands the list of available editors in which you can work with the information contained in this file.
In addition, the extension allows you to operating system quickly understand exactly how and with which application it is better to open specified file. And this, in turn, speeds up the work - the user is offered an already prepared list available programs.
PSD extension
There are a huge number of file extension types, which can be divided into several categories depending on the content. These are images, text, media files, tables and charts, and other types of information. Among images, the psd extension has gained particular popularity. It has a complex structure and support for image layers, masks, adjustment layers, etc. Such a file, like any other, has a “native” program in which it was created. It is best to view and make changes using it.
How to open PSD?
Despite its high popularity, this format may cause difficulties for novice PC users. This problem is mainly due to the fact that people do not know how to open the psd so that it displays correctly. It is even more difficult to resolve this issue when you need to not only view the file, but also make changes to it. In any case, you will first need to find out what program was used to create the image.
Here you just need to enter the name in any search engine to get the answer: Adobe Photoshop, one of the most popular graphic editors at present, was used. And only it allows you to fully edit such files. The situation is much simpler if you only need to glance at the contents. There is an opportunity to use third-party programs. They will be discussed below.
How to open psd if you don't have Photoshop?
PSD Viewer
If you want to familiarize yourself with the contents of an unfamiliar file, but you don’t have the necessary Photoshop at hand, then you can use the services of this small utility. It is distributed completely free of charge, and finding the program on the Internet will not be difficult. We can recommend PSD Viewer to anyone who does not want to install Photoshop, but still wants the computer to recognize and easily open files with psd extension. The only drawback of the utility is that it does not allow you to edit the content.
However, PSD Viewer supports some basic features, such as rotating an image, reducing or enlarging its size without losing quality, and converting to other, simpler formats. You should be careful with the latter, since all masks and layers are lost, merging into single image, which can no longer be edited in the same way, even if by that time you acquire the “native” Adobe Photoshop editor.
Paint.NET
An alternative answer to the question of how to open psd may seem even simpler. In the absence of other options, it is recommended to use good old Paint. The undoubted advantage of the program is that it is also graphic editor, which means it allows you to make changes to the image. True, in order to fully work with raster graphics, you will have to download and connect a special module that slightly expands the capabilities this application. It's called "PSD Plugin". After downloading, the module will need to be unzipped into the Paint folder called “File Types”.