Adobe Certified Professional (ACP) Photoshop Exam Prep

Domain 2: Project Setup and Interface

This domain is about getting a project started correctly and knowing your way around the Photoshop interface before you ever touch an image. A wrong document setting (the wrong resolution or color mode) can ruin a project hours later when it's too late to fix easily. This domain requires hands-on Photoshop practice.

ACP 2.1 Create a document with the appropriate settings for web, print, and video.

New documents need the RIGHT settings for their destination: print work uses inches/centimeters at 300 PPI and CMYK color mode (built for ink); web and video work use pixels at 72 PPI and RGB color mode (built for screens). Choosing wrong doesn't just look bad -- a print piece built in RGB can come back from the printer with dull, shifted colors.

RGB -- for screens CMYK -- for print
RGB (screens) vs. CMYK (print)
PPI (Pixels Per Inch)
A measure of image resolution/detail -- higher for print (300), lower is fine for screens (72).
RGB
Red-Green-Blue color mode, built for anything viewed on a screen.
CMYK
Cyan-Magenta-Yellow-Black color mode, built for anything printed with ink.

✏️ Practice it: A client needs a business card (print) and an Instagram post (web) featuring the same logo. Name the resolution and color mode you'd use for each file.

📝 From a Real Practice Exam Practical Task (LITA)

"This print flyer has already been resized for the web. Change to the proper color mode for posting online. Do not remove layers." (The starter document opens in CMYK.)

Show answer

Image > Mode > RGB Color. Flatten is NOT required (and the task says not to remove layers) -- just switch the color mode; every layer stays intact.

🙌 Try It

Grades 9-10 · Paper Activity

Light & Ink: Draw the Difference

You'll need: large paper, red/green/blue colored pencils or markers, cyan/magenta/yellow colored pencils or markers, a compass or round object to trace circles

  1. On the left half of your paper, trace 3 overlapping circles (arranged so all 3 overlap in the center, like a Venn diagram).
  2. Color one circle red, one green, one blue. Label the center overlap "White light (all 3) -- additive."
  3. On the right half, trace 3 more overlapping circles. Color them cyan, magenta, and yellow. Label the center overlap "Near-black (all 3 inks) -- subtractive."
  4. Underneath both diagrams, answer in writing: What is light actually made of (the visible spectrum)? Why does mixing LIGHT move toward white, while mixing INK moves toward black/brown?
  5. Look up and write down the HEX code for 3 real objects or crayons. Explain what a HEX code actually represents (it's 3 numbers in one -- how much red, green, and blue light).
  6. Research and write: how does color blindness happen (which cells in the eye detect color, and what goes wrong)? Which color pairs are hardest for a colorblind person to tell apart?

Write about it: In 4-6 sentences: where do you see additive (light-based) color in real life vs. subtractive (ink-based) color, and why does that difference matter to a designer choosing RGB or CMYK?

Grades 11-12 · Photoshop Activity

RGB vs. CMYK Poster Pair

You'll need: Computer with Photoshop

  1. Create 2 new documents, each 8.5in x 11in at 300 PPI. Set Poster A's Color Mode to RGB Color, and Poster B's Color Mode to CMYK Color.
  2. On Poster A: create 3 layers, each a filled circle (Ellipse Shape tool, roughly 3-4in wide), overlapping like a Venn diagram. Fill them with pure red, green, and blue (R255/G0/B0, R0/G255/B0, R0/G0/B255).
  3. Set each circle layer's Blend Mode to Screen -- the overlaps should lighten toward white, showing real additive mixing.
  4. On Poster B: repeat with 3 overlapping circles in pure cyan, magenta, and yellow, but set each layer's Blend Mode to Multiply -- the overlaps should darken toward black/brown.
  5. On both posters, add a title text layer ("Additive Color: RGB" / "Subtractive Color: CMY(K)") and label each circle with its channel name and value.
  6. Add one body-text paragraph on each poster (using proper leading/alignment from Domain 4.2) explaining: why this mode is used (screen vs. print), how it connects to the eye's cone cells, and one sentence naming which colors are hardest to tell apart for red-green color blindness.
  7. Flatten a copy of each and export both as print-ready PDFs.

Write about it: Checklist before submitting: both posters are exactly 8.5x11in at 300 PPI, in the correct color mode, use at least 3 shape layers with blend modes, include at least 2 text layers (title + body), and are exported as PDFs.

ACP 2.2 Navigate, organize, and customize the application workspace.

The workspace is built from movable, customizable panels (Layers, Properties, Adjustments, Character, Brushes, Swatches) that you can add or remove under the Window menu, and a Contextual Task Bar that pops up near your selection suggesting the next likely action. Knowing where things live -- and that you can rearrange or reset the workspace (Window > Workspace > Reset) -- matters more on a timed, live exam than memorizing every menu.

Panel
A movable window (Layers, Properties, etc.) holding a specific set of controls.
Contextual Task Bar
A small floating bar (added in 2023) that appears near a selection with likely next actions.

✏️ Practice it: Without looking, list 4 panels you use almost every project and what each one is for.

📌 2026 update: Photoshop's toolbar/top bar changed to a unified toolbar with a Contextual Task Bar in 2023 -- newer than the source book, though the underlying panels it teaches are unchanged.

🙌 Try It

Grades 9-10 · Paper Activity

Map My Dream Workspace

You'll need: paper, ruler, pencil

  1. From memory (or a provided printout), draw a large rectangle representing a screen.
  2. Divide it into zones and label where you'd expect to find: the Layers panel, the Tools/toolbar, a Color/Swatches panel, and the Properties panel.
  3. Next to each zone, write one sentence explaining why you placed it there (easy to reach, out of the way of the canvas, grouped with related tools, etc.).

Write about it: If you could redesign any image-editing program's default layout, what would you change, and why would that be more efficient?

Grades 11-12 · Photoshop Activity

Build & Save a Custom Workspace

You'll need: Computer with Photoshop

  1. Rearrange Photoshop's panels into a personal layout that makes sense to you (drag panels to new docked positions, close ones you don't use often).
  2. Save it as a new workspace: Window > Workspace > New Workspace.
  3. Take a screenshot of your custom layout.
  4. In Photoshop, add text callouts (arrows + labels) directly onto a copy of the screenshot pointing out 4 panels and what each is for.

Write about it: What's one thing about the default Photoshop workspace that didn't work for how you like to design, and how did your custom layout fix it?

ACP 2.3 Use non-printing design tools in the interface to aid in design or workflow.

Non-printing tools (rulers, guides, the grid, Smart Guides) never appear in the exported/printed file -- they exist purely to help you line things up while you work. Rulers (Ctrl/Cmd+R) let you drag out guides; View > Snap keeps objects aligned to them automatically.

Guide
A non-printing line dragged from a ruler, used to align content precisely.
Snap
A setting that pulls objects into automatic alignment with guides, the grid, or other layers.

✏️ Practice it: Explain why a designer would turn on rulers and drag out guides before placing text on a poster.

🙌 Try It

Grades 9-10 · Paper Activity

Pencil Guides, Ink Final

You'll need: blank paper, ruler, pencil, pen, cut-out shapes or stickers

  1. Using a ruler, lightly draw a 3-column grid in pencil across your page -- these represent non-printing guides.
  2. Place cut-out shapes or draw small elements aligned to your pencil grid lines.
  3. Once everything is placed, trace only the FINAL design in pen.
  4. Erase all the pencil guide lines, leaving only the ink -- simulating how guides help you work but never appear in the final export.

Write about it: What happened to your layout accuracy in the spots where you didn't carefully follow a guide line?

Grades 11-12 · Photoshop Activity

Real Guides & Snap

You'll need: Computer with Photoshop

  1. Turn on rulers (Ctrl/Cmd+R) and drag out at least 4 guides to build a simple grid (e.g. thirds).
  2. Turn on View > Snap so objects lock to your guides.
  3. Place 3 objects or text elements precisely aligned to the guides.
  4. Compare a screenshot of your workspace (guides visible) to the actual exported flat image (guides gone) -- save both.

Write about it: Why is it important that guides never show up in the exported file, even though you rely on them constantly while designing?

ACP 2.4 Import assets into a project.

Assets (photos, logos, textures) get brought into a project via File > Place Embedded/Linked, drag-and-drop, or copy-paste -- each creates its own layer. Photoshop also supports cloud documents (auto-saved to Creative Cloud, easy to reopen on another device) and Creative Cloud Libraries for sharing colors and assets across a team, in addition to plain local files.

Place
The command that imports an external image file as a new layer in the current document.
Cloud Document
A Photoshop file (.psdc) saved to Creative Cloud instead of locally, syncable across devices.

✏️ Practice it: What's the difference between Place Embedded and Place Linked? (If you're not sure, that's the point of this practice question -- look it up and write the answer in your own words.)

📌 2026 update: Cloud documents and Creative Cloud Libraries didn't exist in the source book, which only covers local file import.

📝 From a Real Practice Exam Practical Task (LITA)

"You are adding an image to an existing Photoshop document. You want to send the document to your client without sending the source image. Which menu option should you use to insert the source image file into your document?"

Show answer

File > Place Embedded. Embedding copies the image data directly into the .psd, so the file is fully self-contained. Place Linked keeps pointing to the outside file -- the client would also need that separate file, or the link breaks.

🙌 Try It

Grades 9-10 · Paper Activity

Collage Import

You'll need: glue stick, scissors, one page for the base, a magazine photo, a hand-drawn shape, cut-out letters, and a scrap of patterned paper/fabric

  1. Cut out (or create) 4 different "asset" types: a photo, a hand-drawn shape, some letters, and a texture/pattern.
  2. Glue all 4 onto one base page, arranging them into a simple composition.
  3. Label each pasted item with what kind of digital "layer" it represents and how it was "imported" (cut from a source vs. drawn vs. found texture).

Write about it: If you needed to change just the photo later without disturbing anything else, why does keeping each asset physically/visually separate (like a layer) make that easier?

Grades 11-12 · Photoshop Activity

Four Assets, One Document

You'll need: Computer with Photoshop

  1. Import 4 different real asset types into one document, each on its own labeled layer: a placed photo (File > Place Embedded), a custom shape, a text asset, and a texture/pattern fill.
  2. Name each layer clearly by asset type.
  3. Add a text block explaining, in your own words, the difference between Place Embedded and Place Linked, and when you'd choose each.

Write about it: Which asset type was fastest to bring in, and which required the most extra adjustment (resizing, recoloring) once placed?

ACP 2.5 Manage colors, swatches, and gradients.

The Swatches panel stores reusable colors for a project; the Color Picker and eyedropper let you pick an exact color (including by HEX code, which is how designers hand off precise colors to a developer or printer); gradients blend two or more colors smoothly, come in 5 distinct types (see below), and are managed in the Gradients panel.

Linear Radial Angle Diamond
Same 2 colors, 4 gradient types

🔎 Types of Gradients

Linear
Blends colors in a straight line from the start point to the end point. The most common type.
Radial
Blends outward from a center point in a circle -- the start color is the center, the end color is the outer edge.
Angle
Sweeps around a center point counterclockwise, like a color wheel or a clock hand.
Reflected
Blends like a Linear gradient, then mirrors it back on itself on the other side of the start point.
Diamond
Blends outward from a center point in a diamond/square shape instead of a circle.
Swatch
A saved, reusable color in a project's color library.
HEX Code
A 6-character code (e.g. #94D6E4) that represents one exact color -- used everywhere in web/digital design.

✏️ Practice it: Find the HEX code for any color you like and explain, in one sentence, why HEX codes are useful when handing a design off to someone else.

🙌 Try It

Grades 9-10 · Paper Activity

Physical Swatch Book

You'll need: colored pencils or markers, a HEX code reference chart (printed or from notes), paper cut into small swatch cards

  1. Design an imaginary brand and choose a 6-color palette for it using colored pencils.
  2. Color a small swatch card for each color, and name each swatch (e.g. "Brand Blue," "Accent Gold").
  3. Using the HEX reference chart, write your best-guess HEX code under each swatch.
  4. Hand-blend one 2-color gradient by layering/blending colored pencil pressure between two of your swatches.

Write about it: Why would a real design team need everyone to use the exact same HEX codes for a brand, instead of just "a similar-looking blue"?

Grades 11-12 · Photoshop Activity

Real Swatches & a Custom Gradient

You'll need: Computer with Photoshop

  1. Using the Color Picker, add 6 custom colors (by typing in specific HEX codes representing an imaginary brand) to your Swatches panel and save them.
  2. Create and save a custom 2-stop gradient using two of your brand colors.
  3. Apply the gradient as a background behind text that showcases your brand's palette, labeling each swatch with its HEX code.

Write about it: Why is typing an exact HEX code more reliable for a brand's colors than picking a color "by eye" each time?

ACP 2.6 Manage brushes, symbols, styles, and patterns.

Brushes (with adjustable size, hardness, opacity, and dynamics like jitter or scattering), Styles (reusable effects like a drop shadow or stroke, saved and reapplied), Patterns (a repeating tile used as a fill), and Symbols carry visual consistency across a project without redoing work by hand every time.

Brush Preset
A saved brush configuration (size, hardness, dynamics) that can be reused or shared.
Layer Style
A reusable visual effect (shadow, glow, stroke, bevel) applied to a layer and saved for reuse.

✏️ Practice it: Name one Layer Style you've seen used effectively in a real design (a drop shadow on a logo, a glow on a button, etc.) and describe what it added.

📝 From a Real Practice Exam Fill-in-the-Blank (drop-down)

"You can use a _____ to fill text with repeating tiles." "You can adjust size jitter when creating a _____."

Show answer

Pattern (fills text/a shape with a repeating tile); Brush (or Brush Preset -- size jitter is a Brush Settings option).

🙌 Try It

Grades 9-10 · Paper Activity

Texture Rubbing & Stroke Study

You'll need: crayons (paper wrappers removed), a coin, a piece of fabric, a leaf or other textured object, plain paper

  1. Do 3 crayon rubbings of different textured objects (a coin, fabric, a leaf) by placing paper over them and rubbing crayon sideways -- this is a physical "pattern."
  2. On a separate sheet, hand-draw 3 different brush-stroke textures: one thin and precise, one splattered/scattered, one dashed.
  3. Label each rubbing/stroke with which digital brush setting it represents (hardness, scattering, spacing).

Write about it: Which texture would be hardest to recreate as a repeating digital pattern, and why?

Grades 11-12 · Photoshop Activity

Custom Brush, Style & Pattern

You'll need: Computer with Photoshop

  1. Create and save a custom brush preset (adjust Shape Dynamics, Scattering, or Texture in Brush Settings).
  2. Use your custom brush to paint a textured background.
  3. Apply a Layer Style (e.g. Drop Shadow + Stroke) to a text layer on top.
  4. Design a small original tile and define it as a repeating Pattern fill somewhere in the document.

Write about it: How is a saved Brush Preset similar to the crayon-rubbing activity -- what are you really saving when you save a brush?

🔗 Connected Lessons This Year (all grades)

Every lesson below is automatically linked here because it's tagged with an objective from this domain -- this list updates itself whenever the curriculum changes.