Tip#58: Assign transparent color to vector shapes in Photoshop and Illustrator

New MagicPicker allows to assign transparency to Fill or Stroke of the currently selected vector shape in Adobe Photoshop or Illustrator with one click on the panel!

Assign transparency to vector shapes
Assign transparency to vector shapes

1) Select your shape
2) Hold Ctrl (or ⌘) and then click with mouse or your tablet pen on the appropriate Fill or Stroke swatch on the MagicPicker panel

That’s it! The transparency will be applied immediately.

*In Adobe Photoshop Colorize Shapes and Text mode must me ON. In Illustrator it’s on by default.

MagicPicker is the professional color picking plugin and color wheel for Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator

MagicPicker 5.2 is the most perfect MagicPicker ever

MagicPicker 5.2 update
MagicPicker 5.2 update

MagicPicker 5.2 introduces improvements by users’ feedback. Here’s what’s new:

– Faster handling of Fill/Stroke colors for shapes, shape groups, small shape groups, large shape groups, groups of large shapes and small shapes and text in all scenarios. Shortly speaking MagicPicker is now the true magic master of shapes and text in Photoshop and Illustrator. Select shapes to quickly change their color, that’s it!
– Interactive Help now correctly shows interactive tips on color name and YUV values
– R/G/B, H/S/B, C/M/Y/K boxes are now faster on Photoshop CC2015.5
– Background color swatch selection in BIG swatches mode is no longer delayed
– RGB/HSB Sliders on the bottom are now scaled correctly. Always
– Speeded up various parts of MagicPicker interface on CC2015/2015.5 (yeah, it’s quicker with every update)
– Improved installation on Illustrator CC2015.3
– Fixed gray window on Photoshop CS4

You can upgrade here or read more about MagicPicker 5.2 – the best and most advanced color wheel and color matching experience in Photoshop and Illustrator

MagicPicker updated to v5.1

New version improves Tone Lock, Color Temperature Wheel and K-Lock (that lets keep K value of CMYK on the same level) when working with the Photoshop’s eyedropper. Improves Interactive Help and YUV color space mode. Changing colors of Fill & Stroke of Vector Shapes in Photoshop got better and more straightforward!  

MagicPicker 5.1
MagicPicker 5.1

Detailed list of improvements:
– Improved UI on hi-res displays
– Improved Color Temperature Wheel behavior
– Improved and expanded Interactive Help
– MagicPicker now correctly detects if shape is selected in all possible cases
– Fixed oversized text behavior when changing text color in Photoshop with MagicPicker
– Fixed problems with oversized Tone Lock icon
– Improved K-Lock behavior with eyedropper
– Improved and speeded up animations
– Improves YUV color space mode on calibrated screens
– Speeded up various parts of MagicPicker interface on CC2015/2015.5
– Improved performance on CS6, CS5, CS4 and CS3

MagicPicker is the Adobe Illustrator & Photoshop color wheel-based panel

Tip#57: Change Fill & Stroke colors of Shapes with one click in Photoshop

New MagicPicker’s superpower is ability to easily work with Fill & Stroke colors of Shapes (and Text) in Adobe Photoshop.

Change color of Stroke & Fill for Shapes in Adobe Photoshop
Change color of Stroke & Fill for Shapes in Adobe Photoshop

To use it:
1) Open MagicPicker’s fly-out menu on the top right
2) select Colorizes Shapes and Text*.
3) Select a Shape layer (or text layer) – MagicPicker will automatically switch to Vector mode
4) Change its color with one click on the color wheel!

MagicPicker 5.0 supports advanced professional design tools for modifying Shapes and Shape groups all at once:
– Assign transparent color with Ctrl(or ⌘)-click on the color swatches
– Rotate Hue° of the multiple shapes – select a group of shape layers and move Hue° slider
Exchange colors of Fill & Stroke with Exchange button on the MagicPicker panel
– Assign Black & White colors with one click on the B&W button

Even more tools for creating best designs with the plugin:
– Use Tone Lock to keep colors of all the selected shapes in the same range of brightness
– Use Color Temperature Wheel to make all your shapes warmer or colder as you select group of layers

Go to MagicPicker home page or upgrade to new MagicPicker 5

*(this feature works in Photoshops that support Shapes: Photoshop CS5, CS6, CC, CC2014, CC2015 & CC2015.5)

MagicPicker 5.0 is here! Colorize Vector Shapes & Text, color name on the color wheel in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, more!

MagicPicker 5.0! Colorize Vector Shapes & Text, new features!
MagicPicker 5.0! Colorize Vector Shapes & Text, new features!

MagicPicker just updated to the version 5.0! Update brings better support for new Creative Cloud: Adobe Illustrator CC2015.3 & Photoshop CC2015.5 and new features:
NEW! Colorize Shapes and Text in Photoshop (activated from menu).
* Colorize individual shapes with color feedback.
* Control hue of groups of shapes – shift hue and color temperature.
* Works with Tone Lock and K-Lock.
* Lets assign tranparent color to Fill/Stroke
* Works with text, lets change multiple shape and text layers at the same tume
NEW! Assign transparent color in Illustrator and for Photoshop shapes/vectors with Ctrl/Cmd Click
Exchange colors for shapes, exchange with transparency
NEW! New color spaces and color values on the corner of the wheel.
* Switchable button on the left bottom corner
* HSB, RGB, CMYK, YCbCr, YUV, XYZ
* Color names display (X11/HTML standard)
* Copy values to clipboard with one click
NEW! Interactive help (activated from menu)
* Click on any UI element to get full tutorial with description how to use it and what it means
NEW! Full Retina support! Fine beautiful icons – icons got a HiDPI treatment. Use it on Mac 5K and Retina and 4K displays on Windows & Mac
* Improved performance on Retina and HiDPI/4K/6K displays
NEW! BG/FG link now works when using eyedropper – perfect helper when using Brush with Color Dynamics
Underlying framework has been rewritten from scratch to support CC2015.5, newest and upcoming versions of the Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator
Performance improved, 2X faster in many scenarios – when scaling etc.
K-Lock now correctly works with the eyedropper in all scenarios and document color modes
More UI improvements and fixes for dialogs
Fixed various small bugs, including B&W button behavior when BIG colors are on
Added animations
Fixed b&w button when using big swatches
RGB/HSB rulers now can be scaled even more!
Fixed disappearing background color
Better compatibility with CC2015.5
Fixed icons on HiDPI and Retina displays for Illustrator CC2015/2015.3
New indicator for transparency in Photoshop and Illustrator
Fixed MagicPicker icon on Illustrator CC 2015+
Improved and fixed small bugs in Photoshop and Illustrator on all Adobe Creative Suite/Creative Cloud versions

Upgrade MagicPicker color wheel panel for Adobe Photoshop & Illustrator

*If you face problems with installation please try Anastasiy’s Extension Manager for Adobe Extensions

Exension Manager for Adobe Creative Cloud CC2015.5

Just updated our alternative to Adobe Extension Manager! Now it supports Adobe Creative Cloud CC2015.5, so you can manage/install/remove and update extensions:

Anastasiy's Extension Manager now works in CC2015.5
Anastasiy’s Extension Manager now works in CC2015.5

Extension Manager for Adobe Creative Cloud CC, CC2014, CC2015, CC2015.5 and Adobe Creative Suite CS5, CS6

WHAT’S NEW IN V1.35:
– Full Adobe CS5, CS6, CC, CC2014, CC2015 and CC2015.5 support (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Dreamweaver, Premiere Pro, Flash Pro, Fireworks)
– Bugs fixed and UI is improved by users’ feedback

Tip#55: The secret to printing brilliant uniform colors: using Tone Lock together with K-Lock in MagicPicker

Keep colors bright or dark when rotating Hue° while saving low level of K ink of CMYK – all at once! That lets you find colors on the color wheel within the same dynamic gamut range that look bright when printed! To do that switch on both Tone Lock and K-Lock in MagicPicker – they work together very well! Then rotate Hue° on the color wheel and you will see how MagicPicker adjusts the color so it sustains same perceived brightness and the same K value!

Tone Lock and K-Lock in MagicPickae
Tone Lock and K-Lock in MagicPickae

This technique works in Adobe Illustrator & Photoshop CS6, CC, CC2014, CC2015, CS5, CS4 and CS3.

From series of tutorials for MagicPicker, the advanced color picking plugin and color wheel for Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator

Tip#54: Find colors with the same brightness but different temperature

It’s easily possible with MagicPicker! In the Color Temperature Wheel mode switch on Tone Lock and start shifting the slider on the wheel. This option lets you quickly find corresponding colors having the same brightness for lights and shadows or for foreground and background. Or keep the same brightness level across the surface when editing textures.

Change color temperature while keeping color's brightness
Change color temperature while keeping color’s brightness

MagicPicker is the advanced color picking plugin and color wheel for Adobe Photoshop & Illustrator

Tip#52: Background/foreground and fill/stroke color picking in MagicPicker

Picking foreground/background colors in Photoshop and Fill/Stroke in Illustrator
Picking foreground/background colors in Photoshop and Fill/Stroke in Illustrator

Pick foreground or background colors separately with MagicPicker! Click the appropriate color swatch on the panel to make it active in Adobe Photoshop. In Adobe Illustrator switch between Stroke and Fill colors

MagicPicker, the advanced color picking and color wheel panel for Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator

Tip#51: K-Lock in MagicPicker 4

K-Lock lets you keep your colors bright in CMYK and decrease K level to 10% or zero in any given color! You can make colors darker or brighter while keeping value of K the same so they all come out vivid when printing. Just set the value and then click the button to lock it down. You can adjust K on the fly in that mode making colors even darker!

MagicPicker, the advanced color wheel and color picker for Adobe Photoshop & Illustrator

Image © Marcelo Maiolo, colorist on Batman Beyond, Pacific Rim