Secret new features in Photoshop 2023 – Live gradient and live blur are useful, tutorial
New features in Photoshop 2023 part 3
Here are more new features in Photoshop 2023.
At this time, this feature is only in Photoshop beta. Here is a short tutorial on how to get the Photoshop beta.
Update, the live gradients is out of beta and in the Main Photoshop. The live Blur has been discontinued. Not everything makes it out of beta.
Live Gaussian Blur and Live Gradients, more useful than you can imagine. Let’s look at how to use these 2 tools. At the moment they are in the beta version of Photoshop, I’ll show you how to access it. In the future these will be moved to the “shipping” version of Photoshop, so you won’t need to load the beta in the future. As of this writing (Nov 3 2022) the live Gaussian Blur works only on Mac, but this will change. The Live Gradient works on both Mac and Windows.
As always, watch the short video as it doesn’t skip any steps and shows more info and tips than the written steps, which are purposefully left brief and uncluttered.
Accessing the Public Beta Of Photoshop
To download the beta go to your Creative Cloud app. On mac, its at the top bar, on Windows in in the bottom bar. If you don’t see it, download from Adobe.com.
Scroll down and you will see Beta apps.
Click on Photoshop to download it. This will be installed next to your normal version Of Photoshop, so make sure you launch the correct one. I suggest making shortcuts in the dock for both.
Live Gradients
Live gradients are a more modern way of working with gradients in Photoshop. You can do back to them and edit them anytime with the onscreen controls, powered by GPU.
Choose the gradient tool.
Make a vignette with gradients in Photoshop
Set foreground color to black. (Press D key)
Choose the foreground to transparent gradient.
Choose Radial gradient
Drag over the image
At any time you can drag points to move the gradient or change its size,
Adjust the opacity in the Layers Panel to change the amount of Vignette. This is applied as a new Gradient Layer.
Darken the sky with linear gradient.
Change the gradient type to linear. drag down in the sky.
Click the black point to add a little color if desired.
How to Live Gradients work – Feature tour
Lets see how these new gradients work,
Choose the gradient and drag as before (If you want to old gradients, needed for certain actions and recipes – choose Gradient in the tool bar and change it to Legacy gradient)
There is a small diamond, drag it to change the midpoint
To add a new color to a gradient:
Hover over the line and see a + sign
Click to add a new point
Double click the point to change its color.
There are 5 different gradient types in Photoshop, here they are.
Live Gaussian Blur in Photoshop
The Live Gaussian blur works a little like the gradients. This allows you to change the settings of the filter in real-time onscreen.
You can also use special brushes to add or remove the blur where you want it.
Choose Filter>Blur>Live Gaussian Blur
Change the Blur amount and it works like the old Gaussian Blur with this slider.
To Partially reduce the blur, change the brush opacity. In this case it’s 50% and paint with the – brush. (Or hold down option key for the opposite brush behaviour).
To completely remove the blur effect, change the opacity to 100% and paint out the blur.
If you adjust the Fade Opacity, you can blend the blurred effect with the original, producing a Slide Sandwich effect. (Also known as Orton effect)
Here is another example I applied to a flower.
Here are other tutorials on the new Features in Photoshop 2023
New Photoshop 2023 features and Camera Raw new Features
Lightroom 2023 classic / Lightroom 12 new features
New Selection tools in Photoshop 2023
Check out more of my tutorial and don’t forget to sign up for our Photoshop Vault to get lots of free Photoshop goodies, including ebooks, presets, sky packs, brushes and more (If you are part of our Mailing List Community, you don’t need to sign up, the direct links are in every one of our weekly newsletters)
Thanks
Colin
Keep growing with Premium Courses
Photoshop 2026 for Digital Photographers
Learn Photoshop properly, from the basics to pro retouching, step by step.
$129.00 · one-time purchase · instant download
Free for you
The Photoshop Vault
Get my free Layer Blending Modes ebook along with dozens of exclusive Photoshop goodies: actions, brushes, presets and cheat sheets.
You're on the list, so your free goodies are waiting for you in the Vault.
Get Free Photoshop Goodies Open the Vault
Photoshop 2020 1-click wonders. Quick tips to combine photos
5 Quick tips in Photoshop 2020 to combine images in Photoshop. Read tutorial
Auto Select people and features in Photoshop
How to automatically select people and facial features in Photoshop, like in ACR + Lightroom Read tutorial
New Actions Panel in Photoshop Beta
Reimagined Actions in Photoshop The actions panel hasn’t been changed in years, but now there’s a big update that promises to make... Read tutorial
How to use Updated Frame Tool in Photoshop
How to use the new features in the frame tool in Photoshop. Read tutorial
New Adjust Colors in Photoshop, easily change colors the new way
New Adjust Color in Photoshop makes it easy to change colors and to make certain colors pop in a photo Read tutorial
Feature Live Blur not available in my version…CC Photoshop Beta open etc…
Only on Mac for now
Thank you Collin
Wow!!!
love it
Very nice new features , and ….. You’re good 🙂
PS Beta is a pain in the butt because once invoked, it hijacks the system such that all future file opens open in Beta with Cloud saving as default. Don’t want that. Want the default to be PS2023 and only use Beta for the special features. Do you know of a way to have Beta installed but not have it take over?
Change the file association after you have installed it
More than a bit confused over versions of Photoshop. I am using the latest which apparently is 2024 but you are talking about the latest being 2023. Could you please clarify.
To Richard More: Your version is 24.0.0. which is Photoshop 2023…
The new Live features (Blur & Gradient) seem like they’ll be cool future features. I know I could use them for my compositing! I’m on Win 11 – and only wait for the public updates. So guess it’ll be a while. I also really (really!) wish Adobe would add the same color swatch/palette popout to the Color Grading panel in the Ps Camera Raw Filter (& ACR) that they have in Lr. I can’t understand why it’s not in Ps if it’s in Lr… I’d use that a ton (I already put in an idea in the Adobe ideas area, but I have no clout).
Disappointed that the Live Gaussian Blur is not available on regular PCs. I kind of feel like the red-headed stepchild.
Not a big deal, it’s coming I’m sure 🙂 This is beta
I have a 2014 iMac and when I loaded the PS2023 some of the features are not available to me. I have 32m memory but maybe the new 2023 version needs the m1 processor. What do I need to do to get up and running with ps2023?
Looked interesting, downloaded PS beta, wouldn’t open, couldn’t uninstall, then couldn’t start PS. Tried various things, including uninstall PS, and even then beta wouldn’t uninstall, Eventually did the tried and tested, turned PC off and on, and only then could I uninstall. It kept giving me a conflict message, but with what?
So, as I said, the features look interesting, butI’ll wait for the released version. Which will be when?
Like your videos. but this one got me worried……
Unfortunately, I can’t comment on when Adobe will release updates