Adobe Photoshop is a renowned tool among designers and photographers, known for its incredible versatility and an extensive set of features. One of the many things you can do with Photoshop is stretching an image – a handy feature for when you need to alter the size or perspective of an image. In this guide, we’ll walk through the steps of how to stretch an image in Photoshop.
Step 1: Open Your Image in Photoshop
First, you have to start by opening your image in Photoshop. You can do this by clicking on File > Open and then selecting the image you wish to stretch.
Step 2: Select the Image
Once the image is open, you need to select it. Click on the Rectangular Marquee Tool on the toolbar (or press M on your keyboard), then click and drag to select the whole image.
Step 3: Activate Free Transform
To stretch the image, you’re going to use Photoshop’s Free Transform tool. Once your image is selected, go to Edit > Free Transform or use the shortcut, which is Control + T on Windows or Command + T on Mac.
Step 4: Stretch the Image
With the Free Transform tool activated, you’ll see a bounding box appear around your image. To stretch the image, simply click and drag the handles of the bounding box. You can stretch it horizontally or vertically, depending on your needs. If you want to maintain the aspect ratio of your image while stretching, hold down the Shift key as you drag.
Step 5: Apply the Transformation
Once you’re satisfied with the stretching, you need to apply the transformation. Simply press Enter on your keyboard or click the checkmark on the options bar at the top of the screen.
Step 6: Save Your Image
Finally, remember to save your image. Go to File > Save or File > Save As to choose a new name or location for your image.
And there you have it! You’ve successfully stretched an image in Photoshop. Remember that stretching an image too far can result in a loss of quality, so always try to maintain a balance between the size you want and the image quality.
