Swatches folder

[Mascot Graphics]

In every version of Photoshop that I've used, the default swatch library was as shown in the attached image. I had it in 5.0, 5.5, 6.0, and in CC. Now I've purchased the subscription based and the swatch libraries are not even close. Many times I'm creating a basic graphic and want to select default colors, but I can't find this swatch library.... what am I missing? When I first opened Photoshop I had black and white. I've been through all of them... can't find it. Would be nice to have it back, it makes things a little easier than having to mix a color every time. Thanks... still just learning the new features...
 

[J E L]

@Mascot Graphics Try this. Open a new blank document. In your Swatches panel, highlight and open the Libraries you want (i.e., Default Swatches, Art & Illustration). From that panel, select the swatches and from the hamburger menu, choose Add to Swatches. Close the document without saving. Now all new documents will have those swatches available.

[Mascot Graphics]

Hi...
Thanks, but the problem I'm having is that the swatch library (shown in my message) doesn't exist in any of the libraries.  When I first opened PS, I had a black square and a white square - and that's it. I've since gone through all libraries - including the 'legacy' library, and they're all limited to certain palette colors, and no where near the number of colors in the image. I'm trying to figure out why I can't get a palette with all of the colors that were in prior version without having to recreate all of those colors and add them to a custom palette.

[J E L]

@Mascot Graphics Ah, you know what? I thought I was on the Illustrator board. My apologies! Okay, in Photoshop, I see what you mean. Yes, it's very different. If you didn't save the swatches before, perhaps there isn't a way to regenerate them? You could do a search of your system for .aco files to import them? 

[Mascot Graphics]

That's the problem... since I purchased the entire suite of programs, I've never had that full palette, from day 1 it was a black and white color sample, and nothing more. My CS6 version was on my work computer and I'm working from home full time so I downloaded the latest... and so many things are now limited that it's annoying. Even in Premiere there are far fewer video transitions than there were in the prior version, but people seem to think I'm in the wrong program. lol

[Mascot Graphics]

These are the only choices I have, and even in RGB or CMYK there are only 6 primary colors. I have no idea where "Art & Illustration" exists, or even "Default Swatches"... so I can't even find a hamburger menu. lol
Thanks...

[J E L]

I'm so sorry, I thought you were on Illustrator. My bad. I am not sure what the answer is for you in terms of prior version swatches but maybe someone else will. It might have to do with going into the file directory from the old version and copying them to the new version. 

[Mascot Graphics]

I would truly hate to think that someone who purchases the entire suite of programs for severall hundred dollars per year would not get access to any of these swatch libraries if they didn't have a prior version. This is getting to be a problem with Adobe products... seems to be many limitations on tools in programs in the current version when they existed in prior versions. How does that make the current version any better than prior versions? Highly disappointing.  Thanks, though. At least now I can look in my Illustrator and try to get them loaded there - my palette was missing from the first open there, too. 

[J E L]

I hear you. I rarely use color swatches in Photoshop as I don't work that way so I immediately thought of Illustrator because that is where swatches are so important to me and remember I had to bring in all those swatches when I updated and it wasn't intuitive how to do it at first so they would stick as they were always there before just as I left them. I think you have good feedback and ideas and hopefully Adobe will notice. Wish I could have been more helpful. You can see there are several requests and posts about swatches on this Photoshop feedback page: swatches | Adobe Photoshop Family

[Mascot Graphics]

Thanks, I know people always ask if I searched before I posted, and I did. But the first 12 that it fed me had nothing to do with my dilemma, so I decided to just post my query. And 481... definitely not going to read all of them! lol

[J E L]

@Mascot Graphics If it's any help, I was able to find my old CS6 swatches and import them into CC2020, retaining all the unique names I gave certain swatches. I also have the CS6 default swatches that I can dropbox to you.

[Mascot Graphics]

Thank you, I can download it from my work computer, and I also still have 5.5 installed on my PC. Strangely, there are times when I just open 5.5 to make a graphic because I don't want to deal with some of the known issues I'm facing with the "most current" version I just downloaded (I don't even know what it's called).

[J E L]

@Mascot Graphics Heh, I completely understand, plus we all have ways of doing things that make sense to us and not the next person. Just ask my husband...

[Semaphoric]

The hamburger menu is top right of the panel group.

I don't know if there's an easier way to to do it, but you can "rebuild" the Swatches panel like so:

Open one of those menus, like the Pastel you have highlighted. You should see a bunch of swatches. Click on the first to select it, then shift+click on the last one to select all. Drag them up to the area just below the recent swatches bar; they should dock there.

The folder will now be empty. You can delete it if desired, but it takes up negligible space, so I leave it. Continue through the rest of the folders to get the panel the way you like. You can also drag individual swatches around the panel.

The same general technique works with other panels as well, like Patterns and Shapes.

You can see in mine how I left the CMYKs in place, but both RGB and Grayscale are open but empty:

[Mascot Graphics]

Thank you... that seems like a bit of work. We shouldn't have to build a default palette that has been in every other version. It just seems odd that as the software progresses, it is more diminished. We pay for the latest only to find tools we had and liked in earlier versions are gone. Why would they remove a simple palette that was useful? I'm sure I'm not the only person who used that palette. I build flyers and business cars in photoshop, most of the time, the colors don't need to be custom calibrated, so it's easier to just select a color... but with a couple of dozen layers, who wants to customize every color? Thanks for the info

[J E L]

@Semaphoric Thanks, that is very helpful and how I've set mine up. But with my old swatches imported, it doesn't look as pretty as yours! Also, is there a way to mouseover the swatch to see the name or formula as before? Even with the move tool selected, a mouseover on the swatches panel turns the cursor into an eyedropper. The only way to see the formula is to double click on the swatch.

[Semaphoric]

Look in Edit > Preferences > Tools, and make sure the Show Tooltips box is checked to show the name of the swatch on hover.

You can resize the panel by grabbing either side, and you have a choice of three thumbnail sizes, so you can adjust how everything falls together. There is a minimum width. The stumbling block can be the Standard Colors cycle through sets of sixteen, but there are twenty grayscale swatches.

My panel is sixteen swatches wide so the Standard Colors flow nicely. Even more tidy would be having the Standard Colors start right at the left side, so they'd be in a nice 16x5 block, but I'm too used to it the way it is.

[J E L]

@Semaphoric Oh... and if you don't want tool tips there is no other way I guess. Okay. Good to know. Thanks!

[melissapiccone]

They are all there in different places.  You can control how they look and find more under the fly out menu in the upper right corner of the swatches panel. I never use the swatches in PS. I create colors and save them in my Library - it's a better workflow, give it a shot. If you are missing some of these - it looks like you are from your screenshots, just reset them or you can reset your preferences.

[Acy32005211s52y]

@Mascot Graphics I am frustrated with the same problem. @J E L is incorrect and I don't know why they said that, there is no "add to swatches" option in the hamburger menu, at least not on windows. After going through various fake answers in the forums for a half an hour to just find colors,  I gave up and called customer service at Adobe.

So here's the real answer according to the Adobe rep: stop wasting your time, there is no fix. This is an intentional part of the update, they decided instead of looking at what swatches we need, they would put them all in file folders and theres no way to go back to a simple palette of swatches like it was before. I'm skeptical still.. you posted this in 2021 and I for sure had a regular swatch palette like a month ago (2023)..