Photoshop Elements 14 vs 13: what’s new and what’s not

Photoshop Elements 14 has been announced, but has Adobe pulled out all the stops for its new budget version of Photoshop? We take a look at what’s new in this Photoshop Elements 14 vs 13 comparison.

Adobe has announced a brand new Photoshop Elements – its cut-price, beginner-friendly version of Photoshop. With new features such as guided print resizing, the Dehaze command and smart effects, Elements 14 has much to offer for both beginners and experienced users. But which features will prove most useful?

Organiser tweaks
Arguably the most interesting new features are found not within the Editor, but in the Organiser. The three intelligent sorting modes – People, Places and Events – have all seen improvements.

The facial recognition feature within the People tab is much improved, making it easy to sort your photos by the faces that appear in them.

What’s more, as you add new photos, Photoshop Elements recognises faces and automatically adds relevant images to each person’s stack.

The Places tab has also been refreshed, with image slides overlaid on an interactive map to show exactly where they were taken.

SEE MORE: Best photo editing software – Photoshop CC + 7 alternatives tested and rated

New smart effects
There’s a smattering of new features in the Elements Editor, and a few others taken – as usual with each new Elements release – from its big brother, Photoshop CC.

In Quick Mode, the Effects panel lets you apply one-click edits. Along with the 50 or so useful ready-made effects familiar from Elements 13, there are new Smart Looks.

This feature analyzes an image, then makes intelligent suggestions of effects it thinks would work, pulling out a selection of five effects from a database of over 2,500.

As always with automated photo edits, it remains to be seen how well the tool performs on a wide variety of images. But it’s an interesting approach to the current craze for retro effects: rather than just adding a generic preset, Adobe tailors the preset to the specific content, color and tone of a particular image.

SEE MORE: The right way to process raw files in Photoshop Elements

Guided resizing
Switch to the Guided Edit mode, and the difference in the new Elements 14 is immediately apparent. The interface now opens with an array of images that show each guided edit in action, with interactive sliders for a before and after view.

There are two new guided edits to pick from. The first addresses one of the most frequent questions posed by beginners: “How do I resize my photo for web/print?” The solution is a step-by-step tutorial with quick access to all the relevant tools.

As such, the Resize Your Photo guided edit may not be offering anything new in terms of tools or features, but it’s an astute feature that helpfully guides beginners through a perplexing process.

The other new guided edit is for adding motion blur to suggest subject movement in your pictures.

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Remove haze
For more advanced users, there are three features in the Expert mode taken directly from Photoshop CC. Recently introduced into Camera Raw and Lightroom, the Dehaze command helpfully cuts through atmospheric haze in your photos for deeper shadow detail and extra clarity.

In keeping with the Elements ‘make it simple’ mantra, there’s an auto-dehaze feature alongside the manual control that does the job with a click.

Get rid of the shakes
The second new feature in the Expert mode is Shake Reduction. It’s an impressive command that sharpens up shaky photos, caused when the camera moves during the exposure.

By detecting the amount and direction of blur, Shake Reduction is able to reshape pixels into a sharper result.

As with Dehaze, there’s an automatic option, but the manual mode offers greater control, allowing you to place several focus points in your blurry image to account for shake in different directions.

SEE MORE: 27 incredible photo effects you can create from just one Photoshop menu

Complex cut-outs
The third new feature in the Expert mode is designed to make life easier for anyone who likes to make complex composites and cut-outs.

The Quick Selection Brush now features a sub-tool called the Refine Selection Brush, which lets you paint along edges to increase the area of refinement – helpful when trying to select tricky edges like soft fur or hair.

Elements 13 users can happily get the same results by dipping in to the Refine Edge command, though.

SEE MORE: 101 Photoshop tips you really have to try

Photoshop Elements 14 vs 13: our verdict

Photoshop Elements 14 is a useful update that brings several interesting new features, along with the usual smattering of hand-me-downs from Photoshop CC.

It’s certainly the best Elements yet, even if the improvements are minor. We’re used to Adobe drip-feeding new features into Elements, but this feels like a stop-gap version rather than a crown jewel moment.

And perhaps most disappointingly, other than the regular camera updates, the Camera Raw plugin has been left untouched.

In years gone by, Elements used to feel empty, like a half-full stadium. It was as if Adobe had started off with the full list of Photoshop features then randomly hit the Delete key.

But in recent years, with a fresh interface and canny editing modes, the programme has shifted into something more worthwhile and beginner-friendly.

Photoshop Elements seems to have found its place in the image-editing roster, and that place is ever-more geared towards family snaps and selfies.

As such, beginners, smartphone snappers and those who like their one-click effects will all find plenty to enjoy in Elements 14, and advanced users will still discover greater depth in the Expert mode.

But serious photographers will find Lightroom offers more fine control and fewer gimmicks for a slightly higher price.

It’s also worth bearing in mind that, for the same cost as Elements 14 ($99.99), you can get 10 months worth of Photoshop CC plus Lightroom with a subscription to the Adobe Photographer’s Bundle ($9.99 per month). Put in those terms, the latter offers far greater value for money.

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