Photoshop Right-Click Menu Selects Groups/Artboards Instead of Target Layer

[mattolpinski]

Hi everyone,

I just got a brand new Macbook Pro and there is a Photoshop function I use hundreds of times a day that has mysteriously changed. With the move tool selected, I could previously right-click on a specific layer and it would automatically highlight that layer within the context menu. Then, I could easily click to select it in the context menu and it would subsequently select the layer in the layers panel. This is a super fast way to select a specific layer in the layers panel when working with many layers on the canvas.

Note: There are many similar posts in the community about "auto-select" not being checked. This is NOT the same issue. This is regarding the right-click behavior when using the move tool with auto-select OFF/UNCHECKED.

However, on my new laptop with my fresh instance of Photoshop, right-clicking with the move tool selected selects the artboard or group instead of the specific target layer I right-clicked on. This is extremely frustrating and not helpful at all.

I did a remote session on both my old and new laptops with an Adobe support specialist and when he did it, it worked as expected on both laptops. However, when I tried to do it using a mouse or trackpad on my new laptop, it did NOT work as expected. This leads me to believe it's some kind of software issue or incompatability, but I'm not sure. All of my trackpad and keyboard settings are the same on both devices. I imported my previous Photoshop settings onto my new laptop, rebooted, etc — and this did not resolve the issue either.

I am running Photoshop 25.3.1 on Macbook Pro with Sonoma 14.1. The problem can be reproduced by creating any photoshop file with multiple layers stacked on the canvas. Then, with the move tool selected and auto-select turned OFF, ctrl-click/right click using a mouse or trackpad on a specific layer. It is supposed to highlight that layer in the context menu, but instead it highlights the artboard or group name (or nothing at all if there are no groups or artboards, it just opens the context menu with nothing highlighted).

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

UPDATE: I updated my old laptop from Mac OS Ventura to Mac OS Sonoma and this issue is now happening on both laptops. This leads me to believe is must be a Photoshop/Sonoma (14.1 and 14.2) bug.

[mattolpinski]

Sorry everyone, I accidentally posted this in the wrong place. Will try to delete/update/move to the Photoshop-specific area of the community.

[mattolpinski]

UPDATE! I just upgraded my old laptop from Mac OS Ventura to OS Sonoma 14.2 and it is now behaving the same way on my old laptop as my new laptop (incorrectly!). That all but guarantees this is an issue caused by the Sonoma update. Right-click behavior in Photoshop has apparently changed. Hopefully this will get addressed soon.

P.S. I don't know how to move this post to the correct forum. I tried re-posting in Photoshop ecosystem, but I can't find it there at all. If a moderator can relocate or merge my posts that would be great. Thanks!

[kglad]

it's in the photoshop forum, moved from using the community.

https://community.adobe.com/t5/photoshop-ecosystem-discussions/photoshop-right-click-menu-selects-gr...

[mattolpinski]

Great, thank you!

[troyjack]

I noticed this as soon as I upgraded to Sonoma. It's making me crazy and really slowing down my workflow.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

Your screenshot »menu-not-working…« seems fine to me, as the Artboard is »higher« than the Layer and contains content at that position (namely that Layer) it seems reasonable to me that it would be selected in the contextual menu first. 

Aside from that can you not moneuver to the intended Layer in the contextual menu? 

If there are no Adjustment Layers or semitransparent Layers atop the Layer you want to select wouldn’t be ctrl-alt-clicking  the Layer’s content straightaway be easier? 

[troyjack]

"Your screenshot »menu-not-working…« seems fine to me, as the Artboard is »higher« than the Layer and contains content at that position (namely that Layer) it seems reasonable to me that it would be selected in the contextual menu first. Aside from that can you not moneuver to the intended Layer in the contextual menu?"

That isn't the way it has always behaved on Mac, until Sonoma. A function that has become muscle memory from years of using PS now seems to have become less efficient. Something has definitely changed.

In agreement with OP, the "menu-working" screenshot is the expected behavior I've always relied upon.

[mattolpinski]

Respectfully, I've been using PS every day for almost 15 years and this action has become permanent muscle memory for me as I perform the action dozens of times a day. This definitely changed when I upgraded to Sonoma and I can assure you it is NOT expected behavior. I also did thorough testing and debugging on multiple computers and had a 1+ hour remote control session with Adobe Tech Support on both laptops to narrow down the issue and documented all of my findings here for you, so responding with "this is expected behavior" just feels dismissive.

This issue is also happening when I'm using a document with no artboards, so your logic fails in that scenario. When right-clicking on a specific layers content on the canvas, PS has always auto-highlighted that specific layer in the context menu, but now PS is only selecting the top level grouping (an artboard or group) and never the specific layer I'm clicking on.

To be super clear, yes, I can still move my mouse over the layer I'm intending to select from the context menu and select it that way, but it's very annoying after having it auto-highlight the target layer for the last ~15 years. It would be great if this was escalated so the team can investigate more thoroughly.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

@mattolpinski , I obviously did not call it »expected behaviour«, I called it »reasonable«. 

Why don’t you simply ctrl-alt-click the Layer instead of triggering the contextual menu?  

Your description of a non-Artboard-sceanario seems unclear to me – what do you mean exactly, please post screenshots including the pertinent Panels?

As for muscle memory – do you remember when the Channel shortcuts were changed? 

That was an annoyance, yet most Photoshop users were apparently able to cope. (That in this case the Selective Color Dialog actually lost the possibility to select Whites, Neutrals, Blacks via Shortcut is another matter.) 

I don’t think Adobe is trying to improve its users’ neuroplasticity by forcing then to adapt longtime habits every now and then but sometimes things get changed without any discernible benefit … whether it is more efficient to lobby for changing it back or to get used to the new behaviour, who knows?  

If you want to make sure your complaint definitely registers at Adobe (and you think the issue merits the name »bug«) you should not post a discussion but a Bug Report. 

[troyjack]

Or Adobe could simply address the new bug. Control click (which also triggers the contextual menu in the same manner as righ-click) isn't »reasonable« in all scenarios. It would be great if Adobe could add a checkbox/preference for the user to choose whether they would prefer the right-click/control-click to select either the group or the target layer, similar to the Auto-Select dropdown. And, when your staff is complaining about something that doesn't work »reasonably« after an update, then yes, it is more efficient for the end users who use the tool daily in a professional production environment to lobby for Adobe to look into it. Bug report was reported yesterday:

https://community.adobe.com/t5/photoshop-ecosystem-bugs/right-click-contextual-menu-automatically-hi...

[Lumigraphics]

How do you know its a bug? I'll have to test on Sonoma, it works how you want on Monterey.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

I can reproduce on MacOS 14.1.2 (and @troyjack actually elaborates on why it makes a difference for them). 

I am still not sure the term »bug« fits perfectly (as the documentation does not seem to make a claim about which element in the context menu should be selected by default) but it is an unexpected change in behaviour, so hopefully the bug report will get some feedback and/or an acknowledgement. 

[troyjack]

I noticed it right away after updating to Sonoma (currently 14.2.1) with PS 25.3.1.

Strange thing is, I just tested on PS 24.7.2 and the same behavior is happening, which also wasn't present on Monterey. So rather than Adobe changing the behavior, is it possible that the OS update had an adverse affect on PS?

[Lumigraphics]

There WAS a bug with clicks being passed through to the Finder, that Apple fixed. So maybe, maybe not.

[mattolpinski]

I'm continuing to feel unsupported and dismissed here.  I did report this as conversation type="bug", but it ends up here in "discussions" anyway with no indicator of the conversation type thanks to Adobe's terrible forum UX. If it was categorized incorrectly, please feel free to change it.

I followed the "bug" guidelines and gave you detailed steps to reproduce the issue. So rather than wasting time debating the "reasonableness" of the issue I'm describing or sharing alternative steps to accomplish the same task, perhaps it would be better to attempt to reproduce the issue or investigate whether or not this is actually supposed to be expected behavior in the app and OS versions I have, not whether you believe it "should" be expected behavior or not.

Please investigate further or escalate to the right team as there is currently no correct answer here.

[Stephen_A_Marsh]

We are all end-users here, not Adobe staff. Not all users commenting will have the same software version and OS version.

I have asked a moderator to change this to a bug report rather than a discussion. Adobe staff only regularly monitor bugs or ideas, not discussions.

[c.pfaffenbichler]

I'm continuing to feel unsupported and dismissed here.  I did report this as conversation type="bug", but it ends up here in "discussions" anyway with no indicator of the conversation type thanks to Adobe's terrible forum UX. If it was categorized incorrectly, please feel free to change it.

I followed the "bug" guidelines and gave you detailed steps to reproduce the issue. So rather than wasting time debating the "reasonableness" of the issue I'm describing or sharing alternative steps to accomplish the same task, perhaps it would be better to attempt to reproduce the issue or investigate whether or not this is actually supposed to be expected behavior in the app and OS versions I have, not whether you believe it "should" be expected behavior or not.

Please investigate further or escalate to the right team as there is currently no correct answer here.

By @mattolpinski

I am not an Adobe employee and my avatar should indicate as much.

So me investigating does not make a difference with regard to escalation/acknowledgment/…

But while I am not denying the changed behaviour I am still curious: Why do you trigger the contextual menu to select the Layer instead of simply selecting the Layer? 

[troyjack]

I can't speak for mattolpinski, but for me personally, the files I work with contain many small elements such as 1px stroked paths/shapes. When simply cmd-clicking or auto-selecting, 99% of the time the target will not select such a small shape or object. Triggering the contextual menu helps accurately locate and select said objects without scrolling through hundreds of layers in the layers palette. I've always understood everyone has their own working styles and preferences, but for me the contextual menu is a big timesaver in a fast-paced production environment (Side note: I feel that Adobe is alienating production users in favor of shiny new features for hobbyists). As for right-clicking vs. cmd- or control-clicking, my left hand is always on the keyboard, ready for its next move, and cmd/control clicking is a bit of a speedbump when compared to a simple, quick right-click.

I'm thankful that mattolpinski started the discussion, to know that others are having issue with this bug. It may seem trivial to some, but sometimes Adobe needs to be aware that small unannounced changes can greatly effect workflow and user habits. If Ford decided to swap the location of the gas and brake pedals in the next Mustang, people would be frustrated, but at least Adobe offers a platform for the frustrated users to voice their concerns.

I hope this helps clarify why this is a concern to some users such as mattolpinski and myself.

Again, the bug report is already here:

https://community.adobe.com/t5/photoshop-ecosystem-bugs/right-click-contextual-menu-automatically-hi...

[mattolpinski]

Understood, thanks for clarifying. As to why this is an annoying change in behavior:

Imagine you have a Photoshop file with dozens or even hundreds of layers that are nested into groups (sometimes multiple sub-groupings, etc). It would not be efficient to dig through the layers panel to find a layer that you can clearly see on the canvas. It's far more efficient to just right click on the layer you can see and have it be selected in the layers panel automatically.

Furthermore, I'm really good at organizing layers, but terrible at naming them all. So if I only look at the layers panel, it might take me a while to find the layer I'm looking for. Again, far more quick to just look at the layer I want on the canvas, move my mouse over it, right click, select the layer, and then I can instantly use the move or transform tools to modify the layer.

As you can imagine, this micro-workflow can happens hundreds of times per day, so adding an extra click and millisecond of cognitive effort to select the correct layer in the context menu really adds up.

It's either a bug or it's something Adobe changed intentionally and I am having a hard time understanding why Adobe would change this behavior so subtly just to make it worse. There's no benefit to how it's behaving on Sonoma, so I have to assume it's a compatibility bug.

Anyway, thanks for listening and to everyone else for the upvotes + bug report. Hopefully this gets some attention from an Adobe support specialist.

[Joey Ciccoline]

I just updated to Sonoma (14.5) and am getting this behvior now. It's wrecking my workflow. Has there been no fix??

[c.pfaffenbichler]

Please read this (in particular the section titled "Supply pertinent information for more timely and effective answers”):
https://community.adobe.com/t5/using-the-community/community-how-to-guide-tips-amp-best-practices/td...