Brightness/Contrast sliders stopped working.

[NigelT7]

I have recently had this issue with the latest versions of PS. Having read of historic similar issues I reset my Preferences and the issue disappeared.  However, when I reset my personal preferences the problem returned. Following some trial and error adjustments, I have established that the Preference that I had changed from the defaults which caused my problem was the "Preferences/Workspace/Open Documents as Tabs" one.  I have always unticked this box but it appears to be what is causing the failure of the Brightness/Contrast sliders. Not the end of the world to leave it ticked but clearly not what should be happening.

I have been a PS user since 1998 and never had anything like this before. However I have recently updated my PC to get Windows 11 compatibility, buying a Dell XPS 8960. Whether this could also be a factor I don't know.

[Aleke]

Hi @NigelT7, welcome to the community! 👋 Sorry to hear you're running into issues with Photoshop.

I tried to recreate the behavior by unchecking Open Documents as Tabs and adjusting the Brightness/Contrast sliders, but everything seemed to work normally on my end. When you say the sliders stopped working, do you mean they’re completely unresponsive? Also, just to clarify, are you using an adjustment layer, or going through Layer > Adjustments > Brightness/Contrast?

If this is happening consistently, a quick screen recording showing the steps could really help us get a better idea of what’s going on.

Thanks so much!
Alek

[NigelT7]

Hello Alek, thank you for looking into this.

Firstly I was not referring particularly to layers, just the background.  (Image/Adjustments/Brightness/Contrast).

I am referring to the sliders being completely unresponsive. However this does not happen as soon as I untick the "Open Documents as Tabs" box, but the loss of the Brightness/Contrast controls happens as soon as PS is then closed and re-opened.

I tend to open an extra layer when I want but then still use Image/Adjustments/B&C. This also is then unresponsive. However if I do what you mentioned (Layer/New Adjustment Layer/B&C) then that does still work.

I will have to explore how to make a screen recording but am short of time at the moment. Hopefully the above will explain for now.

Thanks again,

Nigel.

[NB, colourmanagement]

@NigelT7 

Perhaps try a thorough reset of Photoshop preferences - it helps with all kinds of strange Photoshop behaviours 

(read this entire text before acting please)

Unexpected behaviour of Photoshop may indicate damaged preferences, which are saved when Photoshop closes.. Restoring preferences to their default settings is a good idea when trying to troubleshoot unexpected behaviours in Photoshop.

When preferences become corrupt, then various issues can occur.

Here’s some info from Adobe about preferences:

Learn how to access and modify Photoshop preferences and customise according to your frequent workflows

https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/using/preferences.html#reset_preferences

According to Adobe, manually removing preferences files is the most complete method for restoring Photoshop to its default state. This method ensures that all preferences and any user presets which may be causing a problem are not loaded. More here: https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/using/preferences.html#Manually

The process:

1. Quit Photoshop.
2. Navigate to Photoshop's Preferences folder.
   macOS: Users/[user name]/Library/Preferences/Adobe Photoshop [version] Settings
   Windows: Users/[user name]/AppData/Roaming/Adobe/Adobe Photoshop [version]/Adobe Photoshop [version] Settings
    
   Note: The user Library folder is hidden by default on macOS. To access files in the hidden user Library folder, see How to access hidden user library files.
3. Drag the entire Adobe Photoshop [Version] Settings folder to the desktop or somewhere safe for a backup of your settings
4. Open Photoshop.
    New preferences files will be created in the original location.

You may want to back up your settings and custom presets, brushes & actions before restoring Photoshop's preferences.

Here is general info about that:  https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/using/preferences.html#BackupPhotoshoppreferences

And here’s an Adobe Quick Tips link as an aid to overall understanding

https://community.adobe.com/t5/photoshop-ecosystem-discussions/quick-tips-how-to-reset-photoshop-pre...

Thanks to Digitaldog for this quick and simple method:

Press and hold Alt+Control+Shift (Windows) or Option+Command+Shift (macOS) immediately after launching Photoshop. You will be prompted to delete the current settings.

You can also reset preferences on quit, if Photoshop is running, by going into General Preferences>General>Reset on Quit.

This action only affects the items found in the preferences dialog box. Numerous program settings are stored in the Adobe Photoshop Preferences file, including general display options, file-saving options, performance options, cursor options, transparency options, type options, and options for plug‑ins and scratch disks. Brushes (and lots of other settings) are not affected by the above instructions for deleting preferences.

You may wish to make a screen capture of the settings in the Preferences dialog to reset them prior to deleting this file. 

Before you reset your preferences, in case of future issues, I suggest you make a backup copy as Adobe may need one to check problematic preferences. 

Quit Photoshop.
Go to Photoshop's Preferences folder

Preferences file locations: https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/kb/preference-file-names-locations-photoshop.html\

  [on MacOS see: Users/[user name]/Library/Preferences/Adobe Photoshop [version] Settings

  Note for those on macOS: - Be aware that the user Library folder is hidden by default on macOS. More on that here:

  https://helpx.adobe.com/x-productkb/global/access-hidden-user-library-files.html

  In the Finder, open the “Go” menu whilst holding down the Option (Alt) key.

  "Library" will now appear in the list - below the current user's “home” directory. ]

Now you can drag the entire Adobe Photoshop [Version] Settings folder to the desktop or somewhere safe as a backup of your settings.

Note for macOS:

Preference preservation is affected by macOS permissions,

You’ll need to allow Photoshop ‘Full Disk Access’ in your Mac OS Preferences/Security and Privacy

If resetting preferences doesn't fix your issue:

Go to Preferences > Performance... and uncheck Multithreaded Compositing - and restart Photoshop.

Is Photoshop still hanging? 

Go to Preferences > Performance... click Advanced Settings... and uncheck "GPU Compositing" - then restart Photoshop. 

It may even be time to reinstall Photoshop.

It’s recommended that you use the Adobe CC cleaner tool to remove all traces first.

(See above about preserving preferences first, though! It’s worth preserving them unless they are corrupted.)

How and when to use the Creative Cloud Cleaner tool | Advanced steps

https://helpx.adobe.com/creative-cloud/kb/cc-cleaner-tool-installation-problems.html

Uninstall Photoshop BUT make sure to choose the option “Yes, remove app preference”.

Once that process finishes, start the installation process and look into the “Advanced Options”. Uncheck “Import previous settings and preferences” and choose to “Remove old versions”.

neil barstow - adobe forum volunteer,

colourmanagement consultant & co-author of 'getting colour right'

See my free articles on colour management

Help others by clicking "Correct Answer" if the question is answered.

Found the answer elsewhere? Share it here. "Upvote" is for useful posts