P: Make the brush cursor easier to see (too thin, not enough contrast with some colors)

[michal_j]

In last updates I'm having problem seeing brush (paint and healing) cursor when working with colors similar to cursor grey (grey or brown midtones for expamle).

Sometimes cursor changes to white, but for very short time and very randomly.

So it's really hard to see where I'm just gonna paint or heal. It is really annoying and tiring.

[Sonofmidgard]

I cannot see the curser on the sweater. Can anyone?

[jane-e]

@Sonofmidgard said:
"Adobe does not care what you and I have to say."

"I cannot see the curser on the sweater. Can anyone?"

If you are on a Mac, "shake" your mouse pointer (move the cursor side-to-side quickly) when it disappears.

https://support.apple.com/en-ie/guide/mac-help/mchlp2920/12.0/mac/12.0

I have not personally found that to be true about Adobe staff. They do listen and they do care, which is why they have sections in this forum to post bugs and ideas. This idea has 82 upvotes right now and Adobe staff has said they are evaluating solutions across the platforms. Be sure to upvote if you haven't.

Jane

[Sonofmidgard]

Adobe has been saying for years that they will look into this. Just updated Photoshop 2022, version 23.1.0 and nada. Same problem. How many years does it take to change the brush cursor problem?

Here is a photo of a models back with the paint cursor (no caps lock).

[Sonofmidgard]

I meant clone tool cursor.

[ElPi ngas]

1 year later and this havent been adressed. [removed by moderator] adobe

[Pete Prue]

If only it had been one year. It's literally been years. They say they're looking at it but nothing happens, except for the addition of questionable neural filters. 

[jasond39428489]

I would vote for adding the ability to do two things in the cursor preferences window:  

#1 have the option to make it any color (like they have for the brush leash color).  Why can I change the leash color and not the cursor color in the same way?  

#2 a separate option to have it be complimentary color to whaetever its floating over, so you can see it as it's moving.

This should apply to ALL tools - brush, clone, paint bucket, lasso, crop, patch, etc. etc.

[jasond39428489]

I know there's other threads about this one, but thought maybe starting a new one would be helpful.  That cursor is SO hard to see, especially on 4K + monitors, and ESPECIALLY on white or off-white surfaces.  Yes, you can shake the mouse, but that's not exactly efficient when you're in your groove and constantly losing that little sucker.  Yes, you can hit control or command and it turns into the arrow, but that's not the best option either.

I would vote for adding the ability to do two things in the cursor preferences window:  

#1 have the option to pick any color (like they have for the brush leash color).  Why can I change the leash color and not the cursor color in the same way?   Add the exact same functionality for the cursor itself.

#2 a separate option to have it be complimentary color to whaetever it's hovering/moving over, so you can see it as it's moving.

This should apply to ALL tools - brush, clone, paint bucket, lasso, crop, patch, etc. etc.

[victoriascu]

Why isn't this fixed yet? I swear it's getting worse. Though probably just because it's been years and now I'm older. I do know I waste a significant amount of time because I can't see where the brush is. It is super frustrating-especially if you're touching up black and white photos, but really it's not good for any image, I'd argue that it's one of the worst colors it could be. Hot pink for example is going to be in a fewer images than grey.

[defaultrltiserbcpap]

@Daniel Presedo This has been going on since at least 2018. It is now 2022. I am literally pulling out my hair trying to find the cursor. It's a good thing Apple allows a user to momentarily enlarge the cursor by quickly moving the mouse back and forth. But I am looking forward to the day Apple does not need to step in and fix Adobe's engineering problems (especially since it is not really a good fix).

Based on many such community pages, it seems to be the opinion of longtime Photoshop users like myself that Adobe
a. does not pay attention
b. does not care

Whatever the answer is, the problem persists. And I assure you, no matter how advanced Photoshop becomes, or how many new features you add...none of them affect my workflow as much as NOT BEING ABLE TO SEE THE (removed by moderator) CURSOR.

Please email Seeth (or whoever replaced him), and specifically tell them your users want this fixed. Now. Copy-paste this comment if it helps.

[Sonofmidgard]

Complaints go in one ear and out the other. It can't be such a software engineering feat that it takes years to fix. My wife uses Photos2015.  Even though her work has a subscription, she'll never use the newest version. Maybe we need to downgrade. With every upgrade my hopes for a fix are dashed. Photo retouching has become a royal pain.

[Sonofmidgard]

Nice that Adobe is aware. Evaluating takes years? [Removed] help us.

[Daniel Presedo]

Yes, it's been a long time, but I have only begun to contribute on this project. Maybe a month... I don't mind trying to convey where we are in the process as long as we are respectful. 

Employees may come and go, move on and off projects > and that was true before the world went upside down. I have no idea why this has not been finished, my eye balls wish it were fixed/completed. I hope to see this project across the finish line. (I cannot talk time-lines because of legal stuff) 

For those that want to believe "... go in one ear and out the other " maybe they enjoy a glass that is half empty.  Rest assured whether there is a comment from us or not > it is read by us. 

That's it. 

[tashp27135623]

My dad has macular degeneration and it's making it impossible for him to use photoshop because he can't see the cursor at all. My eyes are perfect and even i can barely see it, and my muscle memory on the graphics tablet guides me more than the cursor now because it has to - you cant use what you can't see. Hopefully it will happen soon because really the length of time it has taken so far for this issue to get fixed when all it really requires is adding a couple of points to an outline shape in code is a bit ridiculous - how hard can that honestly be!? where are we currently standing with getting this through development? the reason why people feel things fall on deaf is ears is that reps say 'yes we're aware of it and working on it ' and then absolute cricket noises until another paying customer kicks up a fuss and gets the same stock answer and no actual clue about progression status. Expectation management is a pretty basic requirement when people are forking out a not inconsiderable amount every month to use a product..  Also do these things - like cursors and brushes actually get user tested by normal people before release or is it just that the developers decide it's good to go without any input from the public? As a designer myself I'm really curious about this process. Because I've seen countless times when a designer has decided their (for example) leaflet design is the bomb, and out of 12 members of the general public pulled in off the street for testing, 8 of them will say 'this writing is so faint it's illegible'. They're the ones using it so their opinion takes priority over a designer wailing 'but it looks pretty'.  Every single person I know in my industry holds back on updating CC and waits for someone on youtube to bite the bullet and tell them if it's safe to do or if it's going to make our lives more difficult. 

[Sonofmidgard]

They have been looking into that problem for 2+ years (cricket sounds).

[Sonofmidgard]

If they do listen, why are there no changes over the past few years?

[rlis8]

I feel like I'm going blind trying to find the cursor in the healing brush tool. Thank you, Daniel, for the update and the comment. Please, please, please fix this soon. Just an option to change the brush to red or bold or something. I really feel like this is starting to edge into some sort of handicap discrimation for those of us over 40! We need help!

[dwr57]

This isn't a feature or functionality issue it's an accessibility issue. If Adobe thinks of it that way they may approach it with more urgency.

[Daniel Presedo]

I agree with the notion ...

"This isn't a feature or functionality issue it's an accessibility issue."

Accessibility is the reason why I choose to assist with this work. So you are spot on with this comment. 

[A23344250z8ce]

Respectfully Daniel, it has nothing to do with a 'glass half empty' view. People are furious because an obvious bug is not corrected after YEARS. Saying that employees come and go and projects get left is an awful excuse. This is a vital part of workflow for professionals, get it prioritised.

This is a graphics issue. I see a superfine nearly mid grey circular cursor that almost entire blends in to a grey image until i press cmd in which a black circular cursor appears. When the cursor is moved it immediately returns to a nearly invisible grey. If I screen record however, the cursor is always the correct black so it's impossible to record the issue. This clearly points to not a 'setting' or 'feature' issue, but a clear bug with how the cursor is rendering.

Fix it please.

[johna34581168]

If we could define the thickness of the circle ring that would be great.
And as you say it's been years ongoing.

[jbunds]

There shouldn't be any reason not to fix this, this cursor does not act like this in Capture One, and they are the same thickness. Adjustable thickness, changing the color, anything to make this work would be better than nothing! Whatever needs to be done to make this not disappear is clearlry doable. I don't use any other retouching programs besides photoshop and capture one so I don't know how this type of cursor acts in other programs, but clearly it is something that can be fixed.

[Sonofmidgard]

I tried to shake my Wacom pen and nothing happens. Listening is one thing, acting is another. Update upon update, nothing is done about this issue. I wish there were an alternative to Photoshop. Did Adobe get rid of all its competent programmers? [removed]

[Sonofmidgard]

How does the mouse cursor shake work with a Wacom pen?

[Sonofmidgard]

I am working a lot on skin retouching since I work for a women's clothing company. This cursor issue is very frustrating, guessing where the cursor is. Update upon update I hope for a fix, but all I get is... cricket chirps.