MY CARTHow to Use the Zoom Tool in Photoshop: Video Lesson
This video lesson, titled “Learn How to Use the Zoom Tool in Adobe Photoshop: A Training Tutorial,” shows you how to use the Zoom Tool in Photoshop. This video lesson is from our complete Photoshop tutorial, titled “Mastering Photoshop Made Easy.”
The Zoom Tool:
How to Change Magnification Using the Zoom Tool:
You must learn how to use the Zoom tool in Photoshop to work effectively in Photoshop documents. When you open a file in Photoshop, its current magnification level appears in the lower-left corner of the Status Bar. One way to change the magnification level of the current document in Photoshop is to click into the magnification level shown at the left end of the Status Bar, type a new percentage, and then press the “Enter” key on your keyboard.
Alternatively, you can also use the Zoom tool in the Tools panel in Photoshop, which looks like a magnifying glass button, to change the current file’s magnification. To use the Zoom tool in Photoshop, click the Zoom tool button to view the magnification options in the Options bar Control panel at the top of the Photoshop application window.
Zoom Tool Options:
To set the default behavior of the Zoom tool to either zoom in or zoom out when you hold it over a Photoshop document window, click either the “Zoom In” or “Zoom Out” button in the Options bar Control panel, respectively.
To quickly toggle between zooming in and zooming out when using the Zoom tool, hold down the “Alt” key (“Option” for Macs) and then click to perform the opposite zoom of the one selected in the Options bar Control panel. If desired, to zoom in or out continuously in Photoshop, click and hold down your mouse button when using the Zoom tool. Then release the mouse button when the image is at the desired magnification level.
Window Options for the Zoom Tool:
To resize windows to fit their new magnification level when zooming using the Zoom tool if you are using floating document windows in Photoshop, check the “Resize Windows to Fit” checkbox. However, if enabled, the document windows will not intrude past the panels. To equally magnify all open document windows when you magnify any opened document window, check the “Zoom All Windows” checkbox.
How to Enable Scrubby Zoom for the Zoom Tool:
To enable scrubby zoom, which lets you click and hold down with the Zoom tool in the preview image where you want to focus the magnification and then immediately drag to the right to increase the zoom or drag to the left to decrease the zoom, respectively, check the “Scrubby Zoom” checkbox.
Alternatively, to zoom into a selection area you choose in the Photoshop document, uncheck the “Scrubby Zoom” checkbox. Then click and drag to create a selection in the Photoshop document to magnify. Then release the mouse button to magnify and display the selected area.
To zoom the Photoshop document to show it at its actual pixel resolution onscreen, click the “100%” button in the Options bar Control panel. To change the magnification level to fit the entire Photoshop document in the available screen area, click the “Fit Screen” button in the Options bar Control panel. Alternatively, to change the magnification level of the Photoshop document to fill the entire available screen area, click the “Fill Screen” button in the Options bar Control panel.
Keyboard Shortcuts to Zoom in Photoshop:
If desired, to use keyboard shortcuts to zoom in or out on a Photoshop document, hold down the “Ctrl” key on your keyboard and then press the “+” or “-” key on your keyboard, respectively.
