Is photoshop necessary for web design?

There is a lot of stuff we can do in HTML and with CSS3 it has increased manifold. Do you think photoshop is necessary for web design these days?

 

Nope. Technically, you don't even need images at all, in which case it has zero relevance.

Or you could have others make images for you. And work on the HTML/CSS only like me.

 

Technically, there was never a need of Photoshop ever since CSS2. But still, there are many who prefer to have a mockup of the design before they delve into the HTML and CSS - and as such, the knowledge of Photoshop or any other designing application still exists.

 

Personally, I've always preferred to design in HTML/CSS, since I can't draw and hence find it easier to code.

 

I'm the exact same, I'm am in no way an artist so I have to pay someone else to do any graphics or logos designed. I can just about create a decent theme for my site as that's just really using CSS and Background Colors.

I do however have Photoshop but I wouldn't know where to start, I stick to programs I'm more familiar with like Flash, Fireworks and even Microsoft Paint now and again

 

Well although you can pay someone to make your images and stuff, you could be saving a lot of money depending on what the 'quality' of the images you need. So Photoshop could be necessary, but then again if you don't know how to use it, you're better off just coding.

 

Nowadays, you can get away without it. It's useful for a quick mockup or if you need an image or two of something you can't easily recreate with CSS. I know that a lot of the web dev shops around me still do things that way.

 

I also just like to start coding for my design.

I was forced to use photoshop to do a mockup for class this past semester and it wasn't bad doing it that way but i just always preferred to just code.

Long time ago, i got a C in Cobol cause I didn't want to write out coding sheets... I wasn't happy since its the only computer class I didn't get an A in...

That said, I do like to code the html/css files in dreamweaver code view and then quickly switch to design to see what its looking like.

 

A few years ago I used to use Photoshop for mockup the sites I was working on. I wasn't too good at photoshop and it always took me a lot of time to create the design with it. Then I discovered Inkscape and have been using it ever since to create the sites layout before startign to write any HTML+CSS.

 

Photoshop does make you a versatile web designer. The freehand designing capability that photoshop provides you is irreplaceable. Now matter how good you are with the other web tools, you need to have a good grip over Photoshop in order to be able to perform all the work end to end all by yourself.

 

I don't think Photoshop is necessary for web design, it really depends on the user and what they prefer to design with. Personally I enjoy designing with Photoshop as it brings out my creativity and I know how to use it better then anything else, some people use Illustrator which I've never used but have seen someone that used it and they were very good with that program and creating some nice website images. Really love the work that this person did for me and they only used the Illustrator and no other program to work the imaging and text.

 

Necessary? No. In fact, most sites prefer not to use large images, making layered PNG images almost obsolete, especially for mobile themes.

 

I haven't found it mandatory when designing my websites but it surely is an useful tool. I have mostly created my website logos and other elements with simple, free to use online picture and text editors. It is quite handy and quick and it doesn't need Photoshop skills.

 

I think photoshop is so universally utilized it remains one of my " go to" programs. I love the ability to download additional fonts, techniques and brushes. There are a plethora of programs out there that allow you to integrate the Photoshop brushes and fonts for optimization but I think you can't get any better than the original. There are a few sites that offer the basic Photoshop program for free but I kind of find myself sighing and biting my tongue as I shell out about $400 + for the new versions each time they come out with a new extension of the original.

If you are a newbie to graphic design I would suggest using a programs like Gif or Xara. Xara is awesome with the capabilities it offers and the dashboards influences an ease of use for beginners.

 

No, I don't think it's needed. I can easily code a design without the need for Photoshop. However, if someone were to hire me for webdesign, I would rather design it first, and show them before I get to coding it.

 

My friend is very into web design, and he doesn't use Photoshop so I don't think it's necessary, but it'll definitely make your life a lot easier if you know how to use Photoshop.

 

I think it's vital to understand that the issue is the ability to edit images. Thinking that you need Photoshop to accomplish this is like thinking you need to get your own private jet...to go grocery shopping.

Unless you plan to truly get a monetary return on your investment in something like Photoshop, you are wasting your money and time. I would recommend the many alternative to Photoshop that range from costing nothing to a mere fraction of the cost of Photoshop.

Check out: GIMP, Paintshop Pro, Serif Photoplus (very close to Photoshop), and many others.

They all have the same functionality that you would get from Photoshop for doing anything related to building websites.

Save your money and invest it in marketing...or pizza and beer.

 

Photoshop is not necessary, but has the tools to make designing much easier.

 

Photoshop was never ever necessary for web design. Photoshop (or any digital image editing software) is only necessary for creating or editing digital images. I think your question is better stated as,

With the prominence of HTML5 and CSS3, is it still necessary to add image elements into a web design, to make it look good?

The answer to that question is, yes! You will always need images of some sort for a nice eye pleasing design or as part of the eye catching content. And yes, a lot of the things you would do with images are possible now through CSS3, like gradients. But images are still a part of any good web design. Every site, for instance, needs some sort of logo, and yeah, you could do your logo with a nice web font and leave it at that, but who does? Images will always be around. And even though SVG images are only XML, you still need an editor to create and edit them. Another question could be, is Adobe Illustrator now becoming the better web image design software. LOL!

Scott

 

No role in web development is also not quite true. There are a number of web designers that actually do up mock-ups in Photoshop first, to get the "look and feel" right and then start to design the web pages accordingly.

Scott