Photoshop Starter – learning Photoshop the easy way Photoshop for beginners – an easy way to start with photoshop tutorials explained and illustrated

After completing the first shape, we need to add five more shapes.
There are at least two ways to do this:
a) Select the rectangle tool (or another shape tool), in the options bar make sure that the “Add to shape” button is select and that the shape is selected in it’s layer (we can see that it is selected when it’s path is visible). Now draw the rectangle and it will be part (added) to the selected layer.
b) Create a new shape (rectangle or whatever) do the tweaking business, when happy, select the Direct selection tool and select this new shape. Next do a Ctrl-X (cut).
Photoshop is going to ask what we want to delete, we answer the first option: layer.
With the direct selection tool, select any shape in the layer we want to add this new one and paste (Ctrl+v)
I use this method when the complexity of the design is very high. It makes possible to work on individual pieces of the final shape without the interference of the existing shapes.
By choosing the Shape area operation (Add, Subtract, Intersect and exclude – look at the options bar buttons), it is possible to achieve every shape trick.

For instance, to draw hole in a circle (a doughnut, the letter “O”, an eye, etc):

1 – Draw a circle with the Ellipse tool (press Shift for a circle).
2 – Direct selection tool, click on the circle with Alt key pressed (duplicate shape) and drag a bit
3 – Ctrl + t (Transform shape) re-size to a smaller size, with the shift key pressed (constrain proportions)
4 – Direct selection tool, click on shape, press shift, click the other. (both are selected)
5 – Use the align tools (look at the options bar) center both horizontally and vertically
6 – select the inner circle, press the subtract button (options bar again…)

Notice that both circles are independent, although they live in the same layer. To make them one single shape select both and press options bar button “combine”.
Once combined, both shapes are turned into one.

Now that you know a few more things, complete the half tattoo. Add new shape, tweak it’s anchor points, add another and so on.
When this half is done, turn it into one shape (select all the six shapes and combine them), then duplicate it (direct selection tool + alt key) by dragging to the left.
Next step is to mirror the duplicated shape. Make sure it is selected, Ctrl+T (free transform) right click inside the bounding box and choose Flip Horizontal and press enter.
Adjust it’s position.

I’ve choose not to match the reference file, just because it is a distorted picture, I’ve just aligned both left and right shapes and it’s done.

As a vector shape, we can re-size at will it won’t loose quality. The perfection of the corners and the curves is reflected in the final work quality. If this shape was meant to be printed it surely has to be perfected.