Adobe on Tuesday pushed out an update to Creative Cloud that includes a number of new tools and features for some of its most popular applications and services.
Chief among them is Content-Aware Crop, a new tool in Photoshop that intelligently fills in blank areas that surface when an image is rotated beyond its original borders. This of course works best on photos in which there is only a small area to fill in and with solid content, like a blue sky, dark pavement or a green pasture, for example.
Similarly, a tool called Face-Aware Liquify gives users more control over facial features when using the Liquify tool on a person's face while keeping it in proportion. There's also Match Font, a new tool that makes it easy to determine what font was used in an image. This feature also brings up said font if it's already installed or goes and finds it in TypeKit if you don't already have it.
Bryan Lamkin, executive vice president and general manager of Digital Media at Adobe, said they have two key goals with today's release: saving customers time and helping them jumpstart their creative engines.
Indeed, most of this stuff is already possible - Adobe is simply automating it, thus adding efficiency. For creative professionals, reducing a click here or there can really add up to significant time savings and as we know, time is money. And for those whose skills aren't yet as sharp, it enables them to use powerful editing tools and get the kind of results they might not otherwise be able to accomplish manually.
Elsewhere, Adobe has expanded its stock image service, Adobe Stock, which now includes more than 55 million royalty-free images, videos, illustrations and graphics. There's also deeper Adobe Stock integration with Creative Cloud applications and a new premium content offering with nearly 100,000 images. Adobe says this curated content meets the standards of top advertising agencies and leading brands as well as digital and print publications. And soon, Adobe will offer creative professionals the opportunity to monetize their work by selling their images through Adobe Stock. We're told this feature will arrive sometime next month.
Other new features across the Creative Cloud include character animator preview in After Effects, new virtual reality features in Premiere Pro, fast exporting of assets and artboards in Illustrator and the offering of Adobe Experience Design Preview in German, French and Japanese.
Those new to Creative Cloud can get access to Lightroom and Photoshop starting at $9.99 per month or the entire suite of 20+ Adobe apps for $49.99 each monthly.