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Participant
November 7, 2012
Answered

Brush/pencil not working in Photoshop [2012] [CS5]

  • November 7, 2012
  • 12 replies
  • 231152 views

My brush/pencil tool isn't working in Photoshop CS5...when I try and use it it just makes a dot and doesn't allow me to draw a continuous line...

This topic has been closed for replies.
Correct answer Trevor.Dennis

rossiam wrote:

I may have stumbled upon a solution.I was just fooling around with photoshop when suddenly my brushed tool stopped working.I just so happened to look down at my keyboard and noticed the caps lock button was on.I turned it off and my brush tool started working again.I hope this helps.

Just to clarify that, the annoying Caps Lock gotcha that I think every Photoshop® user falls foul of at least once, only affects the brush cursor (turning it into the cross hairs cursor) touching down and using the brush will still be fine.

12 replies

grasssnake485
Participant
January 11, 2015

I have the same problem as well, I have Photoshop elements 11. Ive tried mouse, trackpad, and wancom bamboo tablet, none seem to work. Ive also tried reinstalling, resetting all tools, everything.

gener7
Community Expert
Community Expert
November 7, 2012

If a tool is not performing the way you expect, try resetting that tool by right-clicking on its' icon in the Options bar,and choosing "Reset Tool" from the context menu.

Also check your foreground/background colors at the bottom of the Toolbox. They should be black/white. Press D to reset it if it isn't.

Participant
November 7, 2012

I have reset all my tools and it still doesn't work properly...ahhhhhh

gener7
Community Expert
Community Expert
November 8, 2012

yes there are brushes there...and when I go to the brush tab in the preset menu it says under "shape dynamics" it says control "pen pressure" because I am using a tablet...but and it has a little warning symbol next to it stating that the use of a pressure sensitive tablet is required...which I have...its only a problem with the brush and pencil tools...


I got called away, so excuse me for not getting back sooner.

I did not know you were using a tablet. If you disconnect the tablet does the mousepad or trackpad give the same results?

If so, you may try resetting prefs. I do not know if you are using a Mac or PC

http://www.macprovideo.com/hub/photoshop/quick-tip-reset-photoshops-preferences       (Windows and Mac)

If not then you may have to troubleshoot your tablet and check your tablet's maker for the latest drivers.