Photoshop is constantly updating and getting better as newer versions emerge. Some people have their favorite versions of Photoshop and choose to stick with it for as long as possible. There may be cases when there is a need to share Photoshop files with persons who have lower or higher versions. For this reason, it is good to know how to save Photoshop files in lower versions.
How to save Photoshop files in lower version
Photoshop versions differ because newer versions may have features and tools that may not be available in lower versions. Since there will be interactions between different versions because some persons may hold on to older versions. This article will show you how to save Photoshop files in lower versions.
- Open and Photoshop
- Go to Preferences
- Change File handling
- Change file save option
- Confirm and close Preferences
- Save the file
1] Open Photoshop
To open Photoshop, find the icon and double-click it. when Photoshop is opened, you may want to open a recently created file or create a new file. To open a previously created file, go to File then Open. Locate the file and select it then press Open. If you want to create a new file, go to File then New. The New document options window will appear. enter the options that you want for your file then press OK.
2] Go to Preferences
Whenever you save a file in Photoshop, there is an option window that pops up and you can choose to save with maximum compatibility. Maximum compatibility gives you the option to save your Photoshop in a way that it can be opened in older or newer versions of Photoshop. You can choose to turn this feature on or off in Photoshop’s preferences.
To turn this feature on go to Preferences by clicking File then Edit then Preferences then File handling.
The preferences window will appear and here you would look for Maximize PSD and PSB file compatibility.
3] Change File handling
Click on the down arrow beside Maximize PSD and PSB file compatibility. You will see the options Never, Always, and Ask. By default, Ask will be the selected option.
This means that whenever you go to save your file as a PSD, Photoshop will always ask you to confirm that you want to save the file with Maximum compatibility. You can choose to tell Photoshop to keep Maximum compatibility on Always or just Ask.
4] Change file save option
If your File handling has the Maximum compatibility on Never, whenever you save a file it may not open on older versions of Photoshop. This means you need to turn Maximum compatibility to Always or Ask.
5] Confirm and close Preferences
When you have changed the Maximum compatibility to Always or Ask, press OK to keep the changes and close the Preferences window.
6] Save the file
Now that you have Maximum compatibility turned on, you can then resave the Photoshop file. You can then open the Photoshop file then go to File then Save as.
The save as options window will appear, you can then give the file a name check As a Copy to use the same file name but have Copy added at the end of the file name. You would then click Save to commit the options. The file will now be saved so that it can be opened in lower versions of Photoshop.
Note however that some features and other things may not work in the lower versions of Photoshop.
Read: Photoshop is taking forever to save
How do I save a Photoshop PSD file as a JPEG file?
Photoshop PSD file is the editable version of the project that you are working on. The PSD file has all the layers and effects editable. This PSD file is large because of this. The PSD file can only be opened in Photoshop so this and the large size make it hard to share. Share the file in a way that makes it smaller and easier to share, you can save it as a JPEG. To save the Photoshop PSD file as a JPEG file go to File then Save as. When the Save as dialogue window appears, click the drop-down arrow at Formatthen and click JPG. With this done, click Save.
What can I do if a Photoshop file is not saving as JPEG?
If your Photoshop file is not allowing you to save it as JPEG, you should check the as Copy option. This will allow you to save the Photoshop file as a copy in JPEG. The reason you are unable to save the file as JPEG is that JPEG den now supports the options and features of the file. Photoshop is trying to save you from losing valuable data in the file, so it is only allowing you to save the file as a copy. You will have to save the file as an editable PSD file so that you can make changes later and you keep the features.
Read: How do I convert an Illustrator file to an older version?
