Automating Tasks

About actions

An action is a series of commands that you play back on a single file or a batch of files. For example, you can create an action that applies an Image Size command to change an image to a specific size in pixels, followed by an Unsharp Mask filter that resharpens the detail, and a Save command that saves the file in the desired format.

Most commands and tool operations are recordable in actions. Actions can include stops that let you perform tasks that cannot be recorded (for example, using a painting tool). Actions can also include modal controls that let you enter values in a dialog box while playing an action. Actions form the basis for droplets, small applications that automatically process all files that are dragged onto their icon.

Action applied to an image

Both Photoshop and ImageReady ship with a number of predefined actions, although Photoshop has significantly more actions than ImageReady. You can use these actions as is, customize them to meet your needs, or create new actions.

Using the Actions palette

You use the Actions palette to record, play, edit, and delete individual actions. This palette also lets you save and load action files.

In Photoshop, actions are grouped into sets—you can create new sets to better organize your actions. (See “Organizing sets of actions (Photoshop)” on page 494.) In ImageReady, you cannot group actions into sets.