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A route

I want to work without Photoshop.

What carries over, what is different, and where everything lives. 11 guides, about 55 minutes in total, in the order that gets you there.

The route, in order

  1. The migration guide: what carries over, what is different, and the three shortcuts that change.Coming from Photoshop: what carries over, what is differentMost of Photoshop carries over: layers, groups, masks, clipping masks, adjustment layers, selections with feather and select-and-mask, free transform, layer styles, the single-letter tool keys and the Ctrl shortcuts, plus opening PSDs with their layers. Three things are different by design: it runs in a browser tab with your files on your device rather than in a cloud library, it exports RGB only, and it does not write PSD. Three things are not there: smart objects, actions, and third-party plugins. And three shortcuts change because the browser owns them: New is Ctrl+Alt+N, Close is Ctrl+Alt+W, Export is Ctrl+E.Beginner4 minEditor
  2. What stops on the day, what to export first, and what a browser editor does not replace.Leaving Creative Cloud as a designer: the checklistYour files are yours; the apps and the fonts are not. The day the subscription ends, the apps stop opening (after any grace period) and every font activated through Adobe Fonts deactivates, which means any design using one will substitute a fallback wherever you open it. Before you cancel: make a list of the fonts you actually use and license or replace them, export vector work as SVG or PDF (AI files do not open in most other tools), flatten or export anything that depends on smart objects, actions or plug-ins, export libraries and swatches, and keep the PSDs, which open in other editors with their layers. Then check the honest map below of what a browser editor replaces and what it does not, because one or two jobs may still need a desktop tool.Beginner5 minEditor
  3. The desktop app on Linux, as a .deb or an AppImage.A layered image editor on Linux: the desktop appDownload the desktop app from the download page: Debian and Ubuntu (.deb), or the AppImage for other distributions (make it executable and run it; Ubuntu 24.04 and later may refuse to start AppImages, so use the .deb there). It is the same layered editor as the browser version: layers, masks, adjustment layers, selections, retouching, effects and PSD import, saving designs as .void files in a Voidcanvas folder in Documents. The AppImage updates itself. Or skip installing and run it in Chrome or Firefox.Beginner1 minStart here
  4. The full Editor on an iPad, with Pencil pressure.Layered image editing on an iPad, in the browserOpen the Editor in Safari. An iPad is wider than 768 px, so you get the full desktop Editor: menus, tool rail, Layers and Properties. Turn on Touch mode (View, Touch mode) for bigger controls; once you have used the Pencil, fingers pan and zoom while the Pencil paints, with pressure controlling brush size and opacity. Add to Home Screen from the Share button to open it full screen and use it offline. With a keyboard attached, Photoshop's shortcuts work.Beginner2 minEditor
  5. Start with your own files: what survives the move.How to edit a PSD without PhotoshopYes, a PSD can be opened and edited without Photoshop. A PSD is a layered file, and several editors read it, including Voidcanvas in a browser. What carries over cleanly: pixel layers, groups, opacity, blend modes, layer masks, clipping, simple text as editable type, most adjustment layers and most layer styles. What turns into flat pixels: smart objects, vector shapes, and text with mixed styling. Open the file, read the import report, replace any missing fonts, then edit as normal. You will get PNG, JPG, WebP or PDF out; you will not get a PSD back.Beginner7 minEditor
  6. Where the tools, panels and menus are.Find your way around the EditorWhat each part of the Editor does: the menu bar, file tabs, tool rail, options bar, canvas, panels and status bar.Beginner6 minEditor
  7. Most shortcuts are the ones you know.Every keyboard shortcut in VoidcanvasEvery shortcut in the Editor, grouped by menu, plus tool keys, modifier keys, touch gestures and the keys that work in Effects and Studio.Beginner7 minReference
  8. Layer, vector, clipping and quick masks.Hide and show parts of a layer with masksLayer masks, masks from a selection, vector masks, clipping masks and quick mask: hide parts of a layer without deleting anything.Intermediate4 minEditor
  9. Curves, levels, hue and saturation as layers.Change colour and tone with adjustment layersCurves, levels, hue and saturation, exposure and the other adjustments, added as layers you can change or remove at any time without touching your pixels.Intermediate7 minEditor
  10. Find any action by name with Ctrl+K.Find any action: menus, Ctrl+K and the shortcut sheetUse the menu bar, search every command with Ctrl+K, and look up any shortcut with the ? sheet.Beginner3 minEditor
  11. What you can open and export.File formats you can open and exportEvery file type Voidcanvas opens and saves, across the Editor, Effects, quick tools and Studio, and exactly what each one keeps.Intermediate9 minReference