Contextual Task Bars Now in Photoshop (Beta)

[Noelle Shamroukh]

We’re excited to announce that new contextual task bars are now available in Photoshop Public Beta. We know that finding the right tool, at the right time, can sometimes slow down a great workflow. Our new contextually aware task bars aim to help by providing common tools, actions and next steps right on the canvas where you’re working. We are currently launching five bars for importing new documents, making selections and using the Type Tool. Learn more below: 

Open Image or File

• This bar will appear when you open an image or file in Photoshop (i.e. not a new, empty document)

New Document Workflow

• This bar will appear if you open a new, blank document from the Photoshop home screen

• If you choose to select “import image”, your image will be placed in the document as a Smart Object and the Free Transform bar will appear to help finalize placement

Type Tool Workflow

• This bar will appear when you select the Type tool from the tool bar and draw a text box on the canvas

Selections Workflow

• Once a selection is made, a selection edit bar will appear with options to refine the selection or create a mask

Tips and Other Menu Functionality

• Pin bar position
  • You can pin and un-pin any bar from the “more menu”. Pinning will hold your bar (and all subsequent bars) where it was placed on the canvas until un-pinned from the “more menu” performed
• Reset bar position
  • The context bar moves with you as you work on the canvas, keeping relevant tools at your finger tips. If you would like to reset the position, you can do so from the “more menu”
• Hide bar
  • You can always hide the bar if you’d like to remove it completely, or temporarily, from the canvas. If you’d like to re-open the bar at any point, go to Window > Contextual Task Bar

We need your feedback!

Please let us know what you think and how we could improve the new Contextual Task Bar.

[Pherocity]

@LindaCinMaine That only pins it for that session. The frustration most everyone in this thread is expressing is that you have to pin it every time you open Photoshop.

[LindaCinMaine]

I agree with you that there should be a way to set your default position. It's ridiculous to have to have it on top of your work floating around the screen. I put it on the top right of the toolbar. I suggested it weeks ago.  I process all day most days, so I generally only have to pin it to the top bar once a day. Love the program, but now have had to reinstall the previous version due to the lack of a circle to select and mask. Now, if I can just get rid of that update available box...

[Maxwelp3]

I know everybody is complaining that they cannot pin the bar in place and have it there on their next session BUT that is the idea of the CTB, to have it appear where you are working.

Very annoying when it is in the way.

The best thing to do is to UNTICK the Contextual Task Bar item in the View Menu. Tick it again when you want it to appear.

BETTER still - assign a keystroke to TICK/UNTICK the CTB and you can get it back when you want it but tuck it away when you don't.

Personally I hate the damn thing but some people seem to like it but want it pinned in one place which would defeat the purpose.

[csscms]

Agreed. I think a lot of us are looking for a way to access all the features of generative fill, which only seems to be available via the CTB. Some features are available elsewhere but not all - is that right?

The problem with the CTB is that if you're a designer, it's always in the way of what you're designing. So if you can't dock it to a specific place that sticks, it just creates mouse work - the enemy.

[hotpepper2005]

It doesn't defeat the purpose. It could be there with the option bar and it could apply to whatever you are currently working on.

How do you assign a keystroke for it in Photoshop?

[Trevor.Dennis]

How do you assign a keystroke for it in Photoshop?

By @hotpepper2005

That's a good idea Ms Pepper.  Open Edit > Keyboard shortcuts.  Select Menus and scroll across to Window and then all the way down to Contextual Task Bar.  I have used F2 as I have never in my life used it for Cut.

Remember we can save custom shortcuts in Custom workspaces along with Custom toolbar.  This lets us reuse shortcuts acording to what we are doing.  I also use Function keys to trigger actions that select and reset my different workspaces.  Once you have the ability to tidy a workspace,, that has its panels all over your screen, with a single key press, you'll never want to go back.

I like to remind folk that the Function key defaults are mostly wasted.  If you never use any or all of these shortcuts, then they are a solid gold resource you are missing out on.

[Pieter van Roijen]

That's a very good tip. I only use F12 regularly and F1 occasionally, so the others are free to modify.

[Francesca Zambon]

I'd like the possibility to edit what appears in the contextual task bar. For example, I often do compositions and the "Import image" command would be very useful even AFTER you start layering stuff in a new document. Do you plan on implementing this feature?

[brcssc]

I am OK with having the contextual Task Bar, but it is really annoying that it goes back to the default position which is a terrible place for it each time I reopen Photoshop.  Make the pinned location be sticky and not change each time I shut down!

[Frank316138585au5]

I understand you, but you can pin the Task Bar to a specific location. 

[filefish77]

Just another voice advocating for making the contextual bar either dockable to the top or bottom of the screen, or at least persistent in remembering where it's pinned. I get that the concept is that it pops up where you're working, but in my personal workflow, it feels aggressively hostile in blocking what I need to see and do every time I restart the app. I like and frequently use the bar, especially for generative fill tasks, but keep turning it off altogether because it gets in the way so much.

[Chris Gilcher]

Totally my thoughts! Hostile window blocks creative workflow. 😉

[jhghjgjhghjghj]

It's amazing isn't it? It's almost as if they're using an advanced AI to make it pop up in exactly the place that''s going to be maximally irritating to me. It's an accomplishment really.

[Pieter van Roijen]

The fact the taskbar is not dockable but you can only pin it is annoying. For myself i created a keyboard shortcut to view/hide the taskbar. It makes it a bit more workable. I use CMD+B (B for bar) it overwrites the shortcut for colorbalance, but i did not use that shortcut anyway.

[brcssc]

While I really like the Generative Fill function, the tool bar is driving me nuts.  I pin the tool bar where I want it, and then next time I open Photoshop again, it is right in the middle of my work screen again.  Please make the "Pin bar position" sticky so that it is where I want it next time. Let me dock it where I want it.

[graphic mac]

I would love it if the new Contextual Bar could remember that I pinned it to a specific location across restarts, but that's just a small fix to the larger problem of it should be either its own Panel, or part of the Properties Panel, which is also contextual.

AND, the bar constantly "blinks". Still. After several updates the bar stopped blinking, but in the last two updates it is back to constantly blinking. Turning off Native Canvas in Technology Preview prefs does not solve the problem.

[Gixxxa75]

On the generative fill one would like the option to flick layer visability on and off, so you can see which parts are original and which parts are AI generated.

[Pieter van Roijen]

For me, in the latest beta update the bar now stays on the last pinned position even after quiting Photoshop instead of jumping back to a default position.  This happens only in Photoshop Beta 25.0.0. In Photoshop 24.7.0 the bar still jumps to its default position after quiting Photoshop. (Mac M1)

[DavePinMinn]

The new floating context bar is kind of useful, but it keep showing up and getting in the way.  HOW do I make it permanently stay where I drag it to?

[Ged_Traynor]

@DavePinMinn at the moment there's no way to make it stick to the new location

[Jeff Arola]

If you click on the three little dots you can move the Contextual Task Bar and Pin bar position, however, it will only hold that position till you restart photoshop, so hopefully Adobe will fix that in an update.

[DavePinMinn]

That was what I figured, but I thought it worth asking...

thanks.

[MarcinKrzyzaniak]

Yes, it would be nice to pin this annoying menu somewhere, The best if we could have it on the edge of the window (Bottom for example), because it always cover graphics, when i need to look at this fragment.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

Didn’t you see @Jeff Arola ’s post? 

[DavePinMinn]

A pointer to the relevant post would be useful.  And yes, the more time that goes on, the bigger PITA this thing has become.