Skip to main content

Adobe updates Photoshop on iPad with Refine Edge and Rotate Canvas tools

Adobe is updating Photoshop on iPad today with two major features creatives have been asking for: the Refine Edge Brush and Rotate Canvas tools. Photoshop on iPad customers should expect to see the update roll out today in the App Store.

Precise selections are essential to almost every Photoshop workflow, and the Refine Edge Brush will bring Photoshop on iPad one step closer to becoming a serious app for artists. Adobe says it devoted special attention to ensuring the tool works seamlessly with both the Apple Pencil and touch input:

Now you can precisely refine the border area of tricky selections, brush over soft areas such as hair or fur to add fine details. This is required to achieve realistic, professional quality selections of objects with a mix of sharp and soft edges. Some examples include, lots of flyaway hair or removing subjects from complex backgrounds and many more everyday selection scenarios.

The Photoshop on iPad team is working on performance tweaks and more improvements to Refine Edge that will ship in a future release.

Also new today is the Rotate Canvas tool, which is activated with a two-finger gesture. In detail:

  • Use a two-finger rotation gesture to rotate your canvas – and you can zoom in and out at the same time.
  • The rotation can snap at 0, 90, 180, 270 degrees.
  • You can reset your rotation and zoom by doing a quick zoom out pinch gesture.
  • Both rotation and snapping can be toggled on/off in the Settings –> Touch menu.
  • Rotation is not sticky and returns to zero degrees when re-opening a file.

In June, Adobe added Lightroom-linked edits to Photoshop on iPad, and May’s update brought support for editing with Curves. You can learn more about everything new in Photoshop on iPad at Adobe’s blog post.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

Griffin Survivor iPhone SE cases
You’re reading 9to5Mac — experts who break news about Apple and its surrounding ecosystem, day after day. Be sure to check out our homepage for all the latest news, and follow 9to5Mac on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to stay in the loop. Don’t know where to start? Check out our exclusive stories, reviews, how-tos, and subscribe to our YouTube channel

Comments

Author

Avatar for Michael Steeber Michael Steeber

Michael is a Creative Editor who covered Apple Retail and design on 9to5Mac. His stories highlighted the work of talented artists, designers, and customers through a unique lens of architecture, creativity, and community.

Contact Michael on Twitter to share Apple Retail, design, and history stories: @MichaelSteeber