Photoshop actions are game changers, especially for graphic designers who are on the lookout for streamlining their workflow in addition to achieving consistent, top-notch results. Such pre-recorded sequences of steps can be easily applied to pictures with the help of a single click, thereby saving both time and effort.
Moreover, they also offer designers the opportunity to experiment with artistic effects effortlessly. Whether designers are aiming to amplify pictures, make stunning artistic effects, or prepare pictures for professional usage, Photoshop actions can truly enhance their productivity and creativity.
In this article, we will take a look at 15 of the best Photoshop actions using which designers can elevate the appeal of their pictures and modify them as per their specific requirements. Let us begin:
Best Free Photoshop Actions
Getting hold of the right Photoshop actions can seriously transform your process of designing, i.e., it can amplify efficiency in addition to making the process more enjoyable. Below, we have curated a list of 15 of the best free Photoshop actions which can help you obtain impressive results with little effort:
- Cross Process
The free cross-processing effect is one of the most popular Photoshop actions. It offers your pictures a unique shift in color which is often seen in the world of editorial and fashion photography. It is the perfect action for those looking to create captivating images featuring unconventional yet vibrant color palettes. What makes this particular Photoshop CC action unique is that it seamlessly duplicates the appearance of film processed using the wrong chemicals, thereby resulting in dramatic yet intriguing colour photo effects.
- Winter Blues
Winter Blues is another popular action which is used by tons of designers all around the globe for adding winter-like effects to their pictures. Winter effects facilitate adding a cool and serene atmosphere to images. This action is ideal for winter-themed projects since it can amplify blue tones and provide a frosty look to images. The effect’s unique trait is that it effortlessly captures winter’s essence and adds a dreamy glow, thereby making pictures appear chilly and crisp, all while maintaining its details.
- Reduce Motion Blur
As its name suggests, this Reduce Motion Blur Photoshop action helps fix photos which accidentally got blurred due to the photographer’s shaky hands or subject movement. Reducing blur motion holds the potential to save pictures which otherwise would become unusable. It works by sharpening blurred images, thereby making them appear clearer and more defined. It efficiently restores the missing details in motion-blurred images, thereby offering a quick and efficient fix for usual photography issues.
- Instant Hipster
The Instant Hipster Photoshop actions are Instagram-inspired effects that are highly popular among the masses. This particular action offers a trendy appearance to photos with one simple click. It is perfect for social media influencers who wish to add a stylish, hipster-type vibe to their pictures. One unique characteristic of this particular Photoshop action is that it features numerous Instagram app filters. This helps users save time and effort when working with all types of photography.
- HDR Action
The HDR (High Dynamic Range) Photoshop action pack amplifies the contrast as well as details in pictures, making them appear more vivid and dynamic. This action comes in handy for the genre of landscape and architectural photography, as it seamlessly brings out the minutest of details from within landscape images. It aids in the creation of a balanced HDR effect which amplifies both shadows and highlights without making the image overexposed.
- Bella
The Bella Photoshop action is a type of portrait action which provides a beautiful warmth to pictures and helps in bringing out the rich, beautiful tones present in hair as well as skin. Its soft, pastel tone effects aid in adding a dream-like, romantic look to pictures. Ideal for use in the genres of wedding photography & portrait photography, this Photoshop action softens pictures and amplifies skin tones. What makes this skin retouching action stand out is that besides a bit of warmth, it offers a gentle pastel finish which adds timelessness as well as etherealism, especially to images captured by portrait photographers.
- Dual-Strip Technicolor
The 2-Strip Technicolor Photoshop action duplicates the vintage Technicolor process which was used in early color movies, thereby adding a special effect, i.e., a retro cinematic vibe to pictures. It works perfectly when aiming to create nostalgia-invoking, old Hollywood-type images with the help of duotone effects. Its unique trait is that it replicates the dual-color technicolor process to offer pictures a very unique vintage style color palette.
- Hard Lomo
Hard Lomo Photoshop actions are popular retro filter effects that add a unique look along with high contrast and vividly beautiful colors to pictures. Very ideal for both outdoor photography and travel photography, this Photoshop action makes your outdoor photos truly stand out thanks to featuring a nostalgic yet fun vibe. Hard Lomo emulates the appearance of Lomo cameras which are renowned for their distinctive color saturation and elevated contrast.
- Polanoid Generator V3
The Polanoid Generator V3 is a Photoshop action that lets users convert any picture into a Polaroid within a few seconds. The Polaroid effects offer a timeless and nostalgic feel to both regular as well as portrait photos, which is one of the many reasons why designers love using this particular action. It generates a polaroid-like frame along with effects, both of which are perfect for projects following a retro theme. The action combines multiple vintage action filters to emulate the appearance of classic Polaroid pictures which are complete with the right frame and texture.
- Old Photo
The Old Photo action for Photoshop provides a vintage appearance to images. It helps in turning modern images into a vintage one by providing a timeless, antique appearance. This Photoshop action is perfect for the creation of vintage-themed projects. Moreover, it can also be used to enhance historical pictures. What makes it unique is that it adds multiple sepia-like warm tones, grains, as well as weathering effects which makes pictures appear authentically aged.
- Bold Black&White HDR
The Bold B&W HDR action for Photoshop seamlessly combines black and white tones with HDR effects to create visually stunning, high-contrast images. This monochromatic action amplifies details and textures, thereby turning black-and-white images into more dynamic versions of themselves. The best part about this action is that it gives a bold, highly dramatic B&W effect paired with amplified clarity and depth.
- HD (High Definition) Sharpening
The free High Definition Sharpening Action for Photoshop seamlessly amplifies the details present in pictures and makes them appear more crisp and professional. This specific action is vital for ensuring that even ordinary photos appear sharp and clear, primarily when they are being printed or displayed in massive sizes. This action uses advanced tactics to increase sharpness without adding unnecessary noise to the mix, resulting in all types of photos maintaining high quality.
- Oil Paint
The free Oil Paint Photoshop action transforms pictures into beautiful oil paintings by adding a creative touch. Moreover, it can also create unique-looking, visually captivating images. This action works flawlessly when creating digital art using pictures. It is also highly suitable for creating prints. It seamlessly mimics the brushstrokes as well as the texture of an actual oil painting, providing your pictures with a handcrafted feel.
- Dystopian
The Dystopian action successfully adds a dark and cinematic vibe to pictures, which is perfect for storytelling. This action works wonders when trying to create moody or serious, dramatic visuals that convey an uneasy vibe or a sense of dystopia. It works by enhancing shadows and de-saturising colors, which in turn provides a bleak yet cinematic look.
- Fold Paper
Fold Paper action is a type of basic action which is perfect for providing pictures with a tactile or hand-made look. This action is perfect for the creation of print designs or posters which necessarily require a realistic-looking, folder paper effect. What makes this particular Photoshop action unique is its ability to accurately emulate the look of folder paper, thereby adding depth as well as texture to images.
Each of the aforementioned Photoshop actions not only helps designers save time, but also adds to their creativity and productivity by offering an extensive range of styles and effects. If you are a designer, incorporating them into your daily workflow can assist you in elevating the appeal of your design effortlessly.
How to Install Photoshop Actions
Now that you know about the useful and readily available Photoshop actions, let us take a look at how to install them. The majority of free Photoshop actions get downloaded as ZIP files. To get started, you would first need to download the file and extract them to the desired location on your system. After the installation is complete, you will need to make them available in the Photoshop app. To perform the action download task to perfection, follow these steps:
Step 1: Open the Photoshop application, click on the Window menu, and select the option labeled “Actions”.
Step 2: Click on the menu-symbolizing icon present at the Action panel’s top-right side.
Step 3: Scroll all the way down to the section where the “Load Actions” option is present and open the actions folder, i.e., the one labeled “Photoshop Actions”.
Step 4: Navigate to the location or the application folder where you stored the downloaded Actions and click twice on the required .ATN file.
Step 5: After the action or action collection appears listed, click on the button labeled “Play”.
Final Thoughts
Using the right high-quality actions on images can aid both novice and professional photographers, as well as designers, in enhancing their creative process and allow them to experiment with different effects and create stellar results. To get started, users simply need to download the free Photoshop actions listed above and use them on their pictures to create the desired version of images.
Although downloading Photoshop actions is not a complicated task, transferring them to the application may exhibit issues in some cases, mainly due to app-related issues or technical errors. Hence, any creative individual who wishes to avoid this hassle can opt to use Postudio, a virtual, pro-level creative studio that houses a variety of top-tier creative apps, including Photoshop, under a single hood.
The best part about the platform is that it is completely cloud-based, meaning that users do not need to worry about meeting the apps’ hardware or software requirements. Hence, anyone looking to work with Photoshop actions, or any other major editing tool or app, can use Postudio and bring their creative projects to life without worrying about facing any technical issues or hassles. To get started, click here.
