Bridge CS4 Output Workspace Preset Overview
Bridge CS4 builds upon the foundation of the CS3 version by adding additional layers of control, workspace presets, and new output abilities. Bridge is now more useful not only for photographers and creative users but also for clinical and research professionals. It sometimes seems that as much work went into upgrading and improving Bridge as Photoshop CS4.
The newest version of Adobe's digital asset management program that come free with Photoshop and the Creative Suites has been expanded and improved. Bridge was first introduced with the launch of Adobe's initial Creative Suites. Now its third and latest incarnation it has been expanded beyond recognition from the nascent initial version.
Adobe has built upon the capabilities in the CS3 version of Bridge such as photo importation, and hosting Adobe Camera Raw to introducing new controls, workspace presets and most importantly new output features.
To streamline workflows Adobe has incorporated and improved some of the automated output features found in Photoshop into Bridge CS4. Of the various workspace presets Output is different in being that instead of just viewing and organizing your images it is an interface to output pictures and sets of images either as a customized PDF or a Flash based webpage.
Photoshop CS4 automation menu no longer has options for contact sheet II, picture package or web photo gallery. Instead the capabilities have been rolled into the output workspace in Bridge. If you have access to the previous version, CS3, the contact sheet II and web photo gallery plug-ins can be copied from CS3's Automate Plug in folder into CS4's Automate plug-in to restore those three capabilities.
Move Contact sheetII.plugin and WebContactSheetII.plugin from here
to here
But let's look towards the future, the way Adobe intended and use Bridge to construct output.
Below the menu bar are the different workspace presets starting with ESSENTAILS. These defaults workspaces resize, turn on or off different panels and generally optimize display priorities. The individual panels are found under the Window menu. This is true for all but the output configuration. Only with the Output Workspace do you have acess to the PDF and Web gallery options. A special output panel is opened on the right with a horizontal filmstrip in the middle bottm and the Folder/Favorites panel on the left hand column.
In the center of the screen is the regular preview panel but at the same location is something special we will get to shortly.
First let look at the Output panel where you can select from either PDF ort Web galelrty. Each button activate a group of menus, options and controls specific to that selection. PDF opens the Document, Layout, Overlays, Playback, Watermark, and view PDF after save groups. The web gallery provides a set containing Site info, Color palette, Apprearance and Create gallery.
Output control groupings for PDF and WEBGALLERY
Directly under each button is a pull down menu providing a choice of Adobe created templates. Next to the template selection is a Refresh Preview button that opens the Output Preview that shares space with the preview panel. A display of the template configured with your selected pictures and settings is presented and with the web gallery examples are an interactive product.
Output Preview of PDF
Output Preview of Web Gallery
Two limitations to the new Output workspace are the lack of a direct printing ability like the one in Phtooshop and the inability to save custom preconfigures templates.
Over all this new Output paradigm can speed up workflow by being able to create PDF and full web gallerys within Bridge and with images directly from folders. Fo many users the templates and control provided will suit muvch of there needs.
And lastly by putting this power right up front it may be used more than the similar automation steps that were buried under submenus in Photoshop.