Photoshop for iPad gets another batch of desktop features

Photoshop is getting a couple of important new features on iPad today: the refined edge brush and the canvas rotation tool.

The refined edge brush is great for photographers as it is practically the only way to select the edges of the skin or hair precisely. The tool allows you to brush the edges you want to refine the selection, and then play around with a few controls to refine exactly what you want to select. The interface has been simplified for use with touch controls, but Adobe says the tool will offer the same results as the desktop version.

Image: Adobe

Rotating canvas is the other addition. This is not such an exciting tool, but it is likely to be much more useful on the iPad. You can now rotate the canvas you’re working with by tapping and rotating it with two fingers, which should be useful for drawing without repositioning the tablet itself.

Photoshop users were frustrated by the lack of features when the app debuted on the iPad last year. The desktop version is 30 years old and has created a long list of detailed and powerful tools, and Adobe will never bring them to the tablet. But many basic and commonly used tools such as curves were missing, which meant that the app was not usable by many people. Adobe promised that it would quickly ship new features, and continued to develop the capabilities of the app with regular updates in the following months.