Casa Basa ~ blending art with technology

Automating Tasks with Actions and Batch Processing

in PhotoShop 7.0 (courtesy of Karen Hines)

1. Create a source folder of images that you would like to show in an online portfolio page (portfolio.html).  This folder can include .psd, .jif and .jpg files.  In general, they will be full size (approximately 640 pxl wide x 480 pxl height).  I named my folder, source.
2. Open PhotoShop, and then open one of your graphics from this folder.
3. Window > Show Actions

4. In the Actions palette, click the New Actions button located at the bottom of the window.  Enter a name for your action (I named mine "webtn" for web thumbnails) in the dialog box that appears.  Click Record.
5. You are now recording any actions you do to the current graphic.  Note: not all functions can be included in an automated action.  For example, you can't draw something with the paintbrush and include it into an action.
6. Perform whatever modifications you want to the open file.  To create thumbnails, I did the following steps:
   • Image > Image Size.  Make sure Constrain Proportions is chosen, and reduce the width to 200 pxls
   • I then selected the Frame Channel (also found in the Actions Palette) and made a custom frame for my thumbnail

• File > Save for Web and save to your destination folder (I would suggest creating another folder in your site folder and name it thumbnails.)  Be sure the image name is NOT changed when saving...it's a copy when you use the Save for Web option, so you won't be saving over your original image
1. Press the Stop button on the bottom of the Actions panel.
2. Close your graphic document.  DO NOT SAVE CHANGES.
3. Still in PhotoShop, File > Automate > Batch...
4. Select the action you created (webtn) from the drop down list in the dialog box that appears.
5. Make sure Folder is selected in the Source drop down menu.  Click the Choose button and browse to your source folder.  Be sure to select the whole folder and not a file within.  Click o.k.
6. Because you used a Save for Web option within your recorded actions, you do not need to select a destination folder.  If you did not use a Save As... function initially, however, you can then select a new folder to save the altered files.
7. Click o.k. and you're done.  PhotoShop will process all your images to use on your web site.