Kickstarter launched for dedicated Photoshop keyboard
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Kickstarter launched for dedicated Photoshop keyboard

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by Jennifer Smith
Kickstarter launched for dedicated Photoshop keyboard

Adobe Photoshop is an amazingly powerful software program capable of performing some remarkable image manipulation techniques with ease. If you want to unleash your creativity with this remarkable program, taking Photoshop classes at the American Graphics Institute is a great way to get up to speed quickly. One technique that many of our expert instructors recommend users adopt is mastering Photoshop's extensive range of keyboard shortcuts, which can reduce the time it takes to perform common tasks. However, this could soon become a great deal easier if a recently launched Kickstarter campaign for a dedicated Photoshop keyboard achieves its funding goals, Cult of Mac reported.

The touch of a button
Known as the Shortcut-S, this striking keyboard aims to provide Photoshop users with increased functionality by mapping each of the software's many common shortcut commands into a single input device. The Shortcut-S boasts 319 keys, which can be configured according to users' preferences. Of the 319 keys, 299 of them are fixed function, with the remainder providing customizable mapping to handle a wide range of tasks.

In addition to potentially streamlining graphics professionals' workflow considerably, the Shortcut-S can also be configured to work with several other popular software programs including Illustrator, Lightroom and Final Cut Pro. The compatibility with Apple's popular editing suite should come as no surprise, as the device resembles the specialized editing keyboards used by Avid editors.

Delving deeper
According to Popular Photography magazine, the 319 keys of the Shortcut-S are arranged by group and color-coded for ease of use. In addition, certain categories of keys are laid out in various shape arrays to make it easier for graphics professionals to quickly and easily identify which type of keyboard shortcut they require, from brush presets to perspective manipulation tools.

Makers of the Shortcut-S hope to raise $185,280 to realize their vision, and although the project remains far from its funding objectives, there is still time. Should the Shortcut-S become a reality, the news source reported it will cost around $100, with shipping and handling charges of approximately $30, putting the device within reach of hobbyists as well as professionals.

Whether or not the Shortcut-S will succeed remains to be seen. One thing remains certain, however - taking Photoshop classes through the American Graphics Institute is one of the best ways you can learn the fundamentals of this powerful software program and bring your creative visions to life.

About the author

 is a user experience designer, educator and author based in Boston. She has worked in the field of user experience design for more than 15 years. She has designed websites, ecommerce sites, apps, and embedded systems. Jennifer designs solutions for mobile, desktop, and iOT devices. Jennifer holds a Master of Science (MS) degree in Human Factors in Information Design, a Bachelors degree with a concentration in Commercial Art. When not teaching at American Graphics Institute, Jennifer Smith is an adjunct professor at Boston University.

Jennifer delivers UX training and UX consulting for large Fortune 100 companies, small start-ups, and independent software vendors.She has served as a Designer in Residence at Microsoft, assisting third-party app developers to improve their design solutions and create successful user experiences. She has been hired by Adobe and Microsoft to deliver training workshops to their staff, and has traveled to Asia, Europe, India, the Middle East, and across the U.S. to deliver courses and assist on UX design projects. She has extensive knowledge of modern UX Design, and worked closely with major tech companies to create educational material and deliver UX workshops to key partners globally. Jennifer works with a wide range of prototyping tools including XD, Sketch, Balsamiq, Fireworks, Photoshop, Illustrator, and Blend for Visual Studio. She also works extensively in the fields of presentation design and visual design.

Jennifer is also an expert on Photoshop, digital image editing, and photo manipulation. Having written 10 books on Photoshop, and having consulted and provided training to major media companies and businesses around the globe.

Jennifer is the author of more than 20 books on design tools and processes, including Adobe Creative Cloud for Dummies, Adobe Creative Cloud Digital Classroom, and Photoshop Digital Classroom. She has been awarded a Microsoft MVP three times for her work with user experience design in creating apps for touch, desktop, and mobile devices. Jennifer holds the CPUX-F certification from the User Experience Qualification Board and assists others in attaining this designation in leading a UX certification course at American Graphics Institute.