From Display to Image Revolution: The Birth of Photoshop
In 1987, Thomas Knoll began developing Display, a program designed to render grayscale images on monochrome screens. His brother, John Knoll, recognized its potential and collaborated with him to expand its capabilities. In 1988, they pitched it to Adobe, which acquired the distribution license in September of that year. After further refinements, Photoshop 1.0 was officially released for Macintosh in February 1990.
Adobe Photoshop 1.0.7
Photoshop 1.0 introduced grayscale editing with basic color support, selection tools, and simple brightness and contrast adjustments. It also featured brush and eraser tools, basic layers, and clone and stamp tools for retouching. These elements laid the foundation for the revolutionary software it would become.
The Icon Evolution
The very first Photoshop icon was inspired by the 1-hour photo shops. This simple design reflected the initial focus on providing fast, efficient image editing tools.
The first Photoshop Icon
Photoshop’s icon has evolved as much as the software itself.
Each version tells a story of innovation, adaptation, and the ever-changing landscape of digital creativity. More than just a design update, this timeline captures how Photoshop has shaped and responded to the needs of creators worldwide
Each version tells a story of innovation, adaptation, and the ever-changing landscape of digital creativity. More than just a design update, this timeline captures how Photoshop has shaped and responded to the needs of creators worldwide
Adobe Photoshop Icon Evolution – Curated by alej
Jennifer in Paradise: The First Photoshopped Image
Taken by John Knoll in 1987, the photo features his then-girlfriend Jennifer sitting on a beach in Bora Bora. This image became the first to be edited in Photoshop and was used as a demonstration file to showcase the software's capabilities. It allowed users to see firsthand the potential of digital retouching, from color adjustments to the removal of unwanted elements.
Jennifer in Paradise – Enhanced by alej
Knoll later recalled: "It was a good image to do demos with. It was pleasing to look at and there were a whole bunch of things you could do with that image technically"
