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TiER1VideoSuite
Participant
August 28, 2013
Answered

"...not a valid Photoshop document" error when opening Mac cc file on PC

  • August 28, 2013
  • 18 replies
  • 153954 views

I get a "Could not complete your request because it is not a valid Photoshop document." error message whenever I try to open up a PSD file created on a Mac using Photoshop CC on my PC using CC. Other people have been able to open the file from the same location, so the files aren't corrupted. Anyone know how to fix this?

    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer teknishn-dfwcp

    I know this thread is a bit old, but I wanted to share my experience and solution in case anyone else runs into this.

    The other day, I spent many hours editing some photos for a client. I saved them all and closed Photoshop. When I tried to open the .PSDs, they all came up with this "Not a valid Photoshop document" error. I was freaking out. I could see the thunmbnails and previews with the MacOS Finder and could see the images just fine in Lightroom, but couldn't open them in Photoshop CC.

    Finally, I remembered that these were NOT supposed to be .psd files! They were supposed to be TIFFs. What happened was, when I edited them from within Lightroom into Photoshop, they opened as TIFFs. However, when I did "save as", I wanted to name them similarly to some other files I had. I clicked on one of the existing files to copy the file name in the Save As dialog to make it easier to name the new file I was saving, but I didn't realize it was changing the file extention from ".tif" to ".psd" as well. The older MacOS (version 9 and earlier) didn't rely on file extensions fo identifying file types, so it didn't hit me right away that this would be the problem. When I changed the incorrect .psd file extension to .tiff, the files opened in Photoshop just fine.

    SO... if you run into this "Not a valid Photoshop document" error, try figuring out if it's actually another file type (.jpg, .tif, .png, etc) by either getting the file info from another program or just experimenting with different file extensions. Chances are good that your file isn't actually corrupt, but just named improperly!

    18 replies

    Show previous replies
    frenchpress325
    frenchpress325
    Participant
    March 22, 2018

    YES. I had a .psd that was actually a .tif. Thank you for the save!

    B
    B Simpson
    Participant
    November 27, 2017

    I logged in after not logging into this site for years to thank you for this. It saved me hours of re-work.

    lisab26078114
    lisab26078114
    Participant
    March 2, 2017

    If none of this works, try opening it through Bridge! Worked for me!

    A
    Anonymous
    July 6, 2016

    Eu recomendo que você selecione este software para saber como abrir o arquivo PST corruptos em Photoshop de uma maneira fácil http://www.photoshoppsdrepair.com/pt/corrigi-corrupto-arquivo-em-mac.html

    F
    fairyface5
    Participant
    November 2, 2015

    I found that the file I was trying to open was originally a lightroom document, and on my new computer I didn't have lightroom installed.

    calibrashuns
    calibrashuns
    Participant
    September 26, 2015

    I seem to have this exact same problem but none of these suggestions have fixed the problem. I have tried changing the extension to .tif but it still refuses to open in any program, yet this sound slike this described problem. I have tried repairing with a PSD repair specific app too but it does not read the file (I am assuming because the computer thinks its a tif file). I am desperate to get the art back but I am at my wits end at this point because nothing works. I'm working off of windows 8  pc.

    J
    Jerry_Hoffmann
    Participating Frequently
    November 24, 2014

    Many of the images that I get from our suppliers have had the extension changed.

    I have found the freeware IrfanView software will tell me what the real format of the image is, convert it to the correct format, and save it.

    Just drag the image onto the desktop shortcut and a popup gives you the info.

    Only thing it doesn't work with are ".eps" files.

    Saves me a lot of time trying to figure out the correct extension for the files.

      Jeff Arola
      Community Expert
      Jeff ArolaCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      August 28, 2013

      Does the psd file have the .psd extension?

      If you try File>Open As>PSD in photoshop cc on windows, does that work?

      Do you have windows set to Show file extensions?

      (uncheck Hide extensions for known file types in the folder options)

      W
      w&h
      Participant
      November 22, 2013

      I get a "Could not complete your request because it is not a valid Photoshop document." error message

      whenever I try to open up a PSD file created on a Mac using Photoshop CS6 on my iMac using CC.

      I have tried checking and unchecking the hide extension for known file types

      I stil have the same problem.

      Is there another soultion?

      T
      teknishn-dfwcpCorrect answer
      Participant
      April 12, 2014

      I know this thread is a bit old, but I wanted to share my experience and solution in case anyone else runs into this.

      The other day, I spent many hours editing some photos for a client. I saved them all and closed Photoshop. When I tried to open the .PSDs, they all came up with this "Not a valid Photoshop document" error. I was freaking out. I could see the thunmbnails and previews with the MacOS Finder and could see the images just fine in Lightroom, but couldn't open them in Photoshop CC.

      Finally, I remembered that these were NOT supposed to be .psd files! They were supposed to be TIFFs. What happened was, when I edited them from within Lightroom into Photoshop, they opened as TIFFs. However, when I did "save as", I wanted to name them similarly to some other files I had. I clicked on one of the existing files to copy the file name in the Save As dialog to make it easier to name the new file I was saving, but I didn't realize it was changing the file extention from ".tif" to ".psd" as well. The older MacOS (version 9 and earlier) didn't rely on file extensions fo identifying file types, so it didn't hit me right away that this would be the problem. When I changed the incorrect .psd file extension to .tiff, the files opened in Photoshop just fine.

      SO... if you run into this "Not a valid Photoshop document" error, try figuring out if it's actually another file type (.jpg, .tif, .png, etc) by either getting the file info from another program or just experimenting with different file extensions. Chances are good that your file isn't actually corrupt, but just named improperly!

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