Adobe releases Photoshop 25.9
Adobe has released Photoshop 25.9, the latest version of the image-editing software.
The update adds the Adjustment Brush Tool, a new tool for adjusting properties like hue, saturation and contrast by painting the changes directly onto an image.
New Adjustment Brush Tool lets you paint changes directly onto an image
The main new feature in Photoshop 25.9 is the Adjustment Brush Tool, for making localized adjustments to images.
It combines existing workflows for selecting, masking and applying adjustments into a single tool, making it possible to paint changes directly onto an image.
The workflow is non-destructive, with Photoshop automatically creating a new Adjustment layer with a layer mask once you start painting.
You can see the adjustments available – which include Brightness/Contrast, Hue/Saturation, Levels and Curves – in the video in the online documentation.
Font size for documents now set automatically by default
Photoshop 25.9 also introduces a new option to set the default font size for a document automatically, based on document resolution and zoom factor.
It is enabled by default; if disabled, new type layers are set to 12pt text.
New generative AI features still in beta
Regular readers may have spotted that this isn’t the first time that Adobe has referred to a new version of Photoshop as Photoshop 25.9.
The version number was also used for the new beta build of the software released last month – at the time of writing, the beta webpage still refers to the April 2024 build as Photoshop (Beta) on the desktop 25.9.
However, the Adjustment Brush Tool is the only one of its new features to make it into the stable version of the software: its new generative AI features, Generate Image and Generate Background, remain in beta.
Pricing and system requirements
Photoshop 25.9 is available for Windows 10+ and macOS 11.0+. In the online documentation, it is also referred to as the May 2024 release.
The software is rental-only, with Photography subscription plans, which include access to Photoshop and Lightroom, starting at $119.88/year.
Single-app Photoshop subscriptions cost $34.49/month or $263.88/year.
Read a full list of new features in Photoshop 25.9 in the online documentation
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