ADOBE PHOTOSHOP CLASSROOM IN A BOOK (2022 RELEASE)
57
Lesson 10:
P
ain
ting
with the Mixer Brush
This lesson focuses on the Mixer Brush tool, bristle tips, and brush presets. This
lesson
i
sn
t
very long, but
it
s engaging. Students will probably want to e
x
plor
e
additional brush tips and Mixer Brush tool settings after they complete the lesson.
Encourage them to find creative uses for these features when working with
t
hei
r
own
phot
o
g
raphs
.
Goals
of this lesson
Upon completing this lesson, students should
understand
how bristle tips work,
and
how they differ from the traditional brush tips in Photoshop. They should
under-
S
elec
ting
brush settings
Because bristle tips and the Mixer Brush tool are
introduced
together, students
ma
y
think bristle tips are only available with the Mixer Brush tool.
Demonstrate
that
t
he
same brush presets are available with the Brush
t
o
ol.
Discuss with students why more realistic bristle tips might be an advantage,
and
when you would
n
t
want to use them. Generally, bristle tips are best when you
w
an
t
to emulate the look and behavior of an actual
p
ai
n
t
bru
s
h.
If pressure-sensitive graphics tablets are connected to the classroom computers, you
may want to have the class explore the Brush Settings options that affect how stylus
Mixing colors
This section can be fun for students. Encourage them to sample color using
t
he
Eyedropper tool, the keyboard shortcut, and the Swatches panel to see how
t
he
option they use affects the color they get. Emphasize the Load Solid Colors
O
nly
option in the options
b
ar
;
ask students when solid colors would be useful and
when
a full sampling of colors would be useful for
p
ai
n
ti
ng
.
58
INSTRUCTOR
NO
TES
Creating a
custom brush preset
Students with some experience using earlier versions of Photoshop will find that
t
he
brush presets were completely revised and upgraded in the 2017 release and
l
a
t
er
.
The Brush panel is now the Brush Settings panel, the Brush Presets panel is now
t
he
Mixing
colors
with
a
phot
og
r
aph
In this image, all content is on a single layer. Point out to students that, by defa
ult
,
the Mixer Brush tool picks up color only from the selected layer. If you want to
pic
k
up color from all the layers, select Sample All Layers in the options
b
ar
.
In the exercise, the entire image is painted using one style, but you can use
t
he
Mixer Brush tool to modify only a portion of an image, or to create different effects
in different areas of an image. Encourage students to experiment with the
M
i
x
er
Brush tool on copies of their own
i
mages
.
Brushes
from
Kyle T.
Webster
If your class includes students who will use Photoshop primarily for painting
and
illustration, you will want to have the class explore the
Kyle
T. Webster brushes
t
ha
t
Adobe acquired. These high-quality brushes significantly expand the possibilities
f
or
expressive painting and drawing in P
hot
o
s
hop.
Photoshop brushes have been updated so that they can be synced through C
r
eative
Cloud libraries. If a student adds a brush to a Creative Cloud library, it can be
u
se
d
in the Adobe Photoshop Sketch app. For example, this makes it possible for
studen
t
s
ADOBE PHOTOSHOP CLASSROOM IN A BOOK (2022 RELEASE)
59
Live
Tip
Brush
P
r
eview
If you or any students have used the Live Tip Brush Preview in earlier versions of
Photoshop, note that according to Adobe The brush preview window has
b
e
en
Questions
The following questions are not in the
studen
t
s Classroom in a Book.
1 How can you load the Mixer Brush tool with only solid colors?
2 How can you use the Mixer Brush tool to blend colors across visible layers?
Answers