P: Free Transform - ability to set Maintain Aspect Ratio as default

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

In Photoshop, it would be nice when "free transforming" a layer that the "maintain aspect ratio" lock button would maintain the previous setting, or some other way to set the default mode. I'm frustrated that I have to click it each time I'm resizing a bunch of items individually. Thanks.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Also a graphic artist. PLEASE IMPLEMENT THIS.

I virtually never have to distort images in the context of my job. I virtually always have to maintain aspect ratio. I work with photographs of humans and animals for portraits. I easily waste minutes of my day, every day, every month, every year, checking this box.

[rayek.elfin]

Transformation in Photoshop is a bit of a joke:

• as mentioned in this thread: the transformation settings do not persist. Every. Single. Time. Must. I. Turn. On. Proportional. Scaling.
  
• the function is destructive. Having to convert a layer to a Smart Object in order to simply transform it non-destructively is just plain silly and awkward - it breaks the workflow.
• it forgets about the location of the point of reference. I change the point of reference, apply a bit of rotation. I decide to rotate a bit more, but the point of reference is reset. Sigh.
• every single time the transformation must be confirmed before switching tools. Again a workflow breaker.
• multiple selected layers cannot be transformed individually.

I am beginning to wonder why alternatives (PhotoLine, Affinity Photo) do provide such basic functionality, and Photoshop users are left in the cold after 15 years of asking for these simple options.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

You're all such Debbie Downers, don't you appreciate that Adobe's been busy bringing you fresh things like the New Document dialogue which is slower than the original one so you can enjoy your Photoshop experience that bit more?

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

That is tremendously and appropriately and sadly - funny. And the perfect close to this long thread. Oh - did I mention InDesign's many many years' total lack of HSB color editing? The very core of any designer's creation & use of color, in what otherwise is one of the most powerful tools for design out there? Nah, that would be off-topic. (and I love InDesign, and Photoshop - floppy discs since 1.0 and no layers until 2.5)

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Turn "Maintain Aspect Ratio" into a toggle On/Off button because most of the work done with transforming is keeping the same aspect ratio.

Having to press the button for each individual image resize or having to use the shift hold hotkey is inefficient. It would probably take less than an hour to code, and I am sure plenty of people will enjoy the quality of life upgrade.

It would seem like with the amount of resizing people do, this would be a "no-brainer", but apparently I am mistaken.

[huh_what]

Page described the issue perfectly - 5 years ago:

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Image is not available

Page D Oct 3, 2012 8:11 AMIn Photoshop CS6, if using Free Transform to change the size of a newly-made selection, you have to click 'Maintain Aspect Ratio' option every time to maintain the aspect ratio. How annoying is that! Why isn't this 'Maintain Aspect Ratio' option selected by default? Certainly in my case, there are vastly more occasions when I want to maintain the aspect ratio, and so, in my case at least, it would be much more user-friendly to have 'Maintain Aspect Ratio' selected, by default. Or, alternatively, why isn't there an option in Preferences to either have 'Maintain Aspect Ratio' automatically selected, or unselected, by default, leaving the user to toggle from this starting position, if they want? I know you can hold 'Shift' while resizing, but for the vast majority of the time, I would like to maintain aspect ratio and it would be helpful to have either this option selected by default, or have control in Preferences for the default setting.

[IAH-1]

Adobe has the wrong philosophy, not any more customer-oriented... So many old bugs or missing improvements, they could put a programmer to solve all this within 6 months. I get from several forums frustrated feedbacks. I don't see any sense in spending much time on posting new ideas...

[Hannah Nicollet]

Hi Everyone,

Thank you for contributing to this discussion. Proportional transform is now the default behavior on Photoshop 20.0 with all but vector graphics. Photoshop 20.0 is available for download today. Please open the Creative Cloud app, download the update and let us know how it goes for you. If you do not see the update immediately, sign in and sign out of the Creative Cloud.

Thank you,
Hannah

[mlankeit]

Hallelujah!  Thank you for making this change!  I'm on my way to China on business--will download the update as soon as it becomes available.  Just in time for our new catalog!  Thank you Adobe!

[tea_drinker]

Brilliant! Took a while but it'll be a nice fix for an annoying little issue. Thanks Adobe.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Meh, I preferred it the other way. I've been using photoshop for 20 years, I don't think changing default behaviors at version 20 is making your software easier to use.

[Kukurykus]

Some behaviours they were not bugs that were present for so long shouldn't be changed from release to release so drastically ie. without giving choise the method we want to use them - the more we were used to do that other that after end could be more convinient for us.

Personally that one change doesn't matter for me, it's even better, however I have to see it in practise, so maybe not... but there are some other that annoyed me we have nothing to say about:

https://feedback.photoshop.com/photoshop_family/topics/digital-imaging-october-max-2018-release-note...

[stevec97593016]

I can't stand it, myself. Holding "Shift" while something is selected has always been the universal way to "constrain proportions." It's even how you continue to constrain proportions in other parts of photoshop, like cropping. Now we have to "unlearn" this skill for one item—free transform. Because holding "Shift" there does the OPPOSITE of what it does everywhere else. It "un sets" constrain proportion. Isn't there a way to set this default for Free Transform back to what it was before for those of us who use graphics software as pros and know to hold down "Shift?"

[Kukurykus]

Not only some bugs I waited months were fixed yet, so we have to live with this 'little' change 😞

[huh_what]

People were waiting YEARS for this fix. Professionals requested it because no pro wants a distorted logo or image by default. Anyway, if you don't like it, you can revert back easily enough:


How do I turn off the new proportional scaling by default behavior while transforming layers?

To revert to the legacy transform behavior, do the following:

1. Use Notepad (Windows) or a text editor on Mac OS to create a plain text file (.txt).
2. Type the text below in the text file:
   
   TransformProportionalScale 0
   
   
3. Save the file as "PSUserConfig.txt" to your Photoshop settings folder:
   • Windows: [Installation Drive]:\Users\[User Name]\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CC 2019\Adobe Photoshop CC 2019 Settings\
   • macOS: //Users/[User Name]/Library/Preferences/Adobe Photoshop CC 2019 Settings/

[stevec97593016]

KY,

Thank you! This is great and just what I needed.

I did see in the thread above—and was somewhat surprised—how people had been asking for this for years, and, I agree, that a logo or image shouldn't be distorted when scaled. But, again, to me, that is why we all know to hold down Shift in this situation.

But there are lots of times where you're scaling a box or a background or something that doesn't have to have the proportions constrained. So, it seemed counter intuitive, to me, to unlearn that Shift trick, especially since it was just for this one Free Transform task.

Either way, it's a moot point, since you have provided me a way to have it the way I like. Now the people who have been waiting for it can do it the new way, and those of us who liked it before can keep it as it was. Win-win for all.

Thanks again!

[Kukurykus]

Honestly I saw few times other users suggesting to use PSUserConfig.txt with some content, but that never was something I needed so I forgot about it. It's first time that a can make use of it! Thanks for sharing it. Btw can you tell us how you know what to type in that .txt file?

Ps. still that would be good to have it in preferentions.

[huh_what]

It was in the "What's New..." link.
https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/using/whats-new.html#

[Kukurykus]

Too bad that is extendable so although I read that earlier I missed the hidden content.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

While I do appreciate having this be a default, it feels like a partial fix employed by someone that doesn't fully understand the problem it's fixing.

It should be a preference that you can toggle in settings; not a default behavior whether you like it or not.So you can set it according to your workflow preferences.

Personally, I use Photoshop 90% of the time for my job, and 99% of the time when I scale things I need them to be proportionate.

Holding shift mostly worked, except if I watched the numerical percentage in the top bar I would see that it didn't actually always scale proportionally; unless I toggled the lock before scaling.

With the new version, it's working like I want it to, however if I drag an object from my Adobe Library and I enter a manual number in the field, I still have to toggle the lock to get it to scale both horizontally and vertically. If I drag it from the corner, and ignore the fields, it scales correctly.

[jod-zeee]

Steve and others that don't like the change ... I don't know what the new behavior is like (I'm still using CS6), but what we were originally looking for is to have proportional scaling by default or locked into memory when using numeric free transform via the toolbar, not when dragging. I'm happy to hear a change has been made. Maybe now I'll upgrade 🙂

[jod-zeee]

Collin, really?! Then no, it hasn't been fixed. Did someone change the title of this post/idea somewhere along the way? The URL is:

photoshop_numeric_free_transform_maintain_aspect_ratio_button

Which is what we've been asking for.

The title says:
Free Transform - ability to set Maintain Aspect Ratio as default

Hannah/Adobe, please don't mark this topic as implemented and change the title to what it originally was.

[jull1ano]

Hi Hannah!
How can we uncheck this in preferences so that proportional transform would not be a default behavior?
On groups or on texts it proportionally transforms without shift key, but on vector layers, it doesn`t. So this not be an overall behavior in PS, does more harm than good, especially, if we work on PS for years and using shortcut keys became second nature for us.
Can we simply toggle this off in Preferences, please?

[jull1ano]

Hello again! 😄
I found the FIX on Adobe website:

To revert to the legacy transform behavior, do the following:

1. Use Notepad (Windows) or a text editor on Mac OS to create a plain text file (.txt).
2. Type the text below in the text file:
   
   TransformProportionalScale 0
   
   
3. Save the file as "PSUserConfig.txt" to your Photoshop settings folder:
   • Windows: [Installation Drive]:\Users\[User Name]\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CC 2019\Adobe Photoshop CC 2019 Settings\
   • macOS: //Users/[User Name]/Library/Preferences/Adobe Photoshop CC 2019 Settings/

[Kukurykus]

If that default behaviour doesn't behave the same for vector layers so I agree it makes confusion as it's not consitent then. And that one situation you found seems to be bug.