Can I save images as PSDs?

Have you tried opening the images in Finder (click and they actually open with Preview app).

Preview allows you to Save As in PSD format, among many others.

I'm not sure how or if that works in Automator.

GraphicConverter's Convert and Modify lets you do this in batches.

Preview can export to PDF and PNG (among others) but it can't create PSD (.psd extension).

Sure it can! Here's a jpeg I downloaded from the Web, being resaved as Photoshop file:

Now how one gets Automator to implement this....afraid that isn't obvious.

Francine

I no longer have a working copy of Photoshop on my machine.

My version of Preview doesn't include any option for a "Photoshop" format.

Maybe its enabled via Preview if one has Photoshop installed?

This Applescript will convert a file into a Photoshop file:

set this_file to choose file without invisibles

set the target_file to (choose file name default name "newimage.psd")

-- convert file reference in alias format to path string

set the target_path to the target_file as Unicode text

try

tell application "Image Events"

-- start the Image Events application

launch

-- open the image file

set this_image to open this_file

-- save in new file

save this_image as PSD in target_path with icon

-- purge the open image data

close this_image

end tell

on error error_message

display dialog error_message buttons {"Cancel"} default button 1

end try

I got the original from here:

http://www.macosxautomation.com/applescript/imageevents/08.html

and then modified it slightly so it does PSD files rather than TIFFs. You still have to interact with it, twice, to pick the file and name the file. To truly batch process, as in drop a folder of image onto a script of some sort, you would probably do better to simply make a Photoshop droplet IN Photoshop, and use it. Been quite awhile since I last made a droplet, but they will convert and rename automatically.

Francine

Very strange, especially since the Applescript I found specifically mentions using Apple's Image Events to do the conversion, so presumably you would not need to have Photoshop installed for the Mac to convert files to PSD. And it does work: I ran the script on a JPEG, and the converted file opened up in PS Elements when double-clicked, so I assume the conversion was correct. Since the Mac OS can use frameworks it has, I don't know why your Preview isn't showing Photoshop as an option in the Save As format drop-down. Unfortunately I have some sort of Photoshop installed in Tiger, Leopard, Snow Leopard, and Lion. Only thing I can boot into without it is Windows 7, which wouldn't help to solve the mystery!

Francine

I have no Photoshop software installed, and Preview does not offer any PS format as an option, either through Export or Duplicate (this is on Lion, no 'Save As' available).

GraphicConverter does have PSD as a choice in Save As (it still has that, even in Lion), perhaps because it relies on its own resources.

Maybe Apple has removed the Photoshop file capabilities from OS X Lion Preview, or perhaps Adobe no longer licenses that capability to Apple, given the tension between Adobe and Apple over Adobe Flash.

I'm on OS X 10.6.7. 'Save As Photoshop' capability in Preview is available..

Preview screenshot shown below is version 5.0.3 (504.1)

I do not now own, nor have I ever owned or installed any version of PhotoShop or PS Elements under any version of OS X (10.4, 10.5, 10.6) on this MacBook 2,1 (mid 2007) or Windows (originally XP, now 7).

My only question is, what is the purpose for converting your .tif files to .psd format? The only thing I can think of is that a .psd file is a lossless compressed format, so you would save some space over an uncompressed TIFF. Is that the goal?

Doesn't Gimp (free application) allow saving in PSD format? I have no experience with Automator, if you can create scripts like Open with Gimp > Save As... > Select PSD then perhaps you can work out something nice. 🙂

If you don't have much experiece with Automator either, it looks like it might be useful to read through the included documentation (under 'Help').

I just rebooted into Lion. Sure enough, Apple has simply removed the ability to save as a PSD file from Preview, yet another dis-improvement of a formerly very useful little program. The Applescript still works however, so the system can convert jpegs (or whatever) to Photoshop files, it's just that the application Preview no longer taps this ability. Since the system itself can still create Adobe proprietary files (PDFs are another Adobe possession) Apple is obviously still paying whatever tithe Adobe requires. Why Preview got deprived of an ability it had, and could obviously still have, I do not know.

Francine

Photoshop will let you save TIFF images with layers, but I imagine any other raster editor doesn't. And even though it can save layered TIFFs, then you end up an uncompressed version. A .psd with the same layers will take up less space.

I'm going to assume you have Photoshop. If that's correct, you can convert all of your images to .psd right from PS. Just create a simple Action that opens a TIFF and saves it back out as a .psd. Then you can run that action as a batch, and PS will convert them while you just sit back and watch.