Frequently Asked Questions

Please search here for answers to the most common questions regarding Album DS, if you don't find an answer please use the support form to contact us, thanks. 

I get a Photoshop error while inserting a background
Please disable Version Cue in Photoshop preferences - File handling

In Windows 64bits I get a message "Communication error with Photoshop"
This is due to a problem in the identification of the Photoshop version internally, please follow this steps:
1.- Uninstall all Photoshop versions ( installer selects both usually)
2.- Install only one if possible, by default Photoshop installer will install both but you may select Personalized or Advanced installation and check only CS4 64bits leaving unchecked the option bellow for CS4
3.- Make sure you only have one Photoshop, in "Program files" or in "Program files(x86)" but not in both
4.- If you have both please rename one of the Photoshop folders, from "Adobe Photoshop" to "Adobe Photoshop renamed" for sample
5.- Start Photoshop, at the NOT renamed folder if both are installed
6.- Make sure no warning or welcome window is available in Photoshop
7.- Start Album DS and make sure you have selected the correct Photoshop version

May I use templates from other designers or my old ones with Album DS ?
As long as the template files are PSD documents, you may convert them to Album DS templates. Please select the space to be filled with a picture and click at "Selection to shape" in Album DS Extras, this has to be done with all picture places. Finally save the document with Abum DS option Sheet - Save as template. 

Sometimes when I use a picture, it doesn't recognize that the image has been used.
Please make sure to use Album DS saving options and not the Photoshop ones, only Album DS will take care of the used pictures.

When I import pictures which are numbered sequentially (as in the filename) they are not kept in order within Album DS, try as I might I cannot seem to get them to display in numerical order.
Pictures are sorted in the main Album DS window in two ways:
- Picture capture date and time following EXIF data, this is the default order.
- Filename
You may change from one to the other by selecting the appropiate value in the Preferences window.

Does Album Ds support RAW format?
Album DS supports files in JPEG and TIFF format, but you will find very usefull a way to indirectly work with NEF ( or any other raw format) files.
First convert your RAW files to JPEG format in a fast way using batch method or use the JPEG files provided by your camera if it is capable to save both formats, the you can start to design the album with this JPEG files; please use Album DS scaled mode as this is the fastest method.
Once finished the design you only have to convert the actually used (for the album) RAW files to JPEG and correct them if necessary, copy them to the Pictures folder of your album overwriting the actual JPEG files and finally Generate the album using the Album DS - Generate album feature. This will resize the whole album to final resolution and replace any used picture with the "good final" ones.
Please take in mind that the file name of the temporary JPEG files and the definitive are to be exactly the same.

Template counter is incorrect
the counter shows the number of places for pictures available at the shown templates and not the number of templates. This is very usefull for the automatic template filling process because you will know how many pictures can be placed in the shown templates.
A similar counter is also used for filtering the templates, please use the right mouse button to access the optional menu at the templates folder control and select filter, there you may filter by number of pictures you can input in a template.

Does Album DS include printing features ?
Regarding that Album DS uses Photoshop's working area and the files are true PSD and JPG files you may use Photoshop's own printing options which will take care also for color profiles which may be very important for printing albums.

The demo includes all the templates that the full version does ?
The demo version is fully functional for 30 days but only includes a small subset of the templates, masks, etc of the final version. It will notmark your pictures or sheet, this way you may create a full album with it. 

Album DS stays on top, can I disable this ?
Album DS will stay at top like a real toolbar for Photoshop allowing to interact with this program, you may deactivate this feature by unchecking Window - Stay on top or using F2.

Is there a way to respace shapes evenly from each other while designing templates ?
The biggest advantage of Album DS is using Photoshop working area, this way you may benefit from all the Photoshop tools and one of this great tools is the spacing one.
To place 4 shapes evenly from each other you have to place the one at most left at the desired position and then the one at most right, now select the 4 shape layers and select the Photoshop Move tool and make sure you have selected to view Options in Photoshop; many of the Move tool options are for alignment and one of them is for horizontal spacing.
Press at this option and the 4 layers will be placed with the same distance between in the sheet, you may also use the options to align at top or bottom and many other positions

When we use Album DS to edit photos, does it change our original photo files as well, or does it just apply the changes as it builds the final album files?
While using Album DS you first have to select your own folder for the album, the next step is selecting the pictures and importing them. This will copy the picture files to the Pictures subfolder of your project.
When you edit a picture using Album DS you will edit the picture in the Pictures folder and not your original one, if you are working in full size ( no scaled mode) then you may edit also directly the picture in the sheet but I kindly recommend to edit the picture first and then create the design because this way the edited picture may be reused for another sheet or changed in size or position without having to edit it again due to a loss of resolution.
After finishing the album you will have the album sheets but also the edited pictures ready for any single copies you may want of them.
Recommended workflow is:
- Define size of album
- Select and import pictures for the album ( recommended not to import more than needed, for example 150 for a 30 sheets album)
- Define exactly the pictures to be used for the album, the layout tool will help you with this process
- Edit, retouch, color correction the pictures from the Pictures folder of your album
- Design the album using the retouched pictures.

When I double click in a image the program auto-resizes it to fit the height or weight of the frame/mask, but is it possible to just insert the image, inside the mask, using the program without any change in the size/resolution of the image? I ask it because many (real many) times, after we insert an image there is the need to put it biger just to frame a part of the image, but if we do so, the image will lose quality because it was scaled up after it was resized to the frame.
This is just one of the big advantages of Album DS, let me explain:
When you double click the image is inserted to fill the shape layer, then you may freely resize the image as many times as you want. You may also change the location of the picture and rotate it ( for rotations you HAVE to use the Pictures - Rotate menu).  Once you are satisfied with your design of the sheet then you have two possibilities.
1.- If you work in scaled mode simply save the sheet, after generating the album the original picture will be placed instead of the one used for the design and the resize is done only one time to assure maximum quality.
2.- If you work in unscaled mode ( at 250, 254 ppi f.s.) then please use the Sheet - Update Pictures option, all pictures of the opened sheet will be replaced with the original ones for maximum quality.

This way you may even apply a parcial desaturation if you do it using a mask layer, when the picture is replaced by the original one the mask will be applied to the final picture in the same way; this is very usefull to decolorate the bride and let the bouquet colored, for sample.

You have to keep in mind that you should not apply a retouch or color correction to the picture in the sheet, instead use the Picture - Edit command to edit the original picture itself, this way after finishing the album you will get also all pictures corrected and retouched in original format allowing for single copies. You may also edit all pictures before designing the album, Album DS adapts to your workflow. But if you are satisfied with the design and work in unscaled mode you may, of course, retouch the pictures directly but remember NOT to update them or you will loose this changes.

The program starts but I can't see the main Album DS window
Album DS saves the position of the window when closed, this data is saved to the file Position.txt in the main Album DS folder. After deleting this file Album DS will open at the default initial position.

The program starts but I can't see the main Album DS window
Album DS saves the position of the window when closed, this data is saved to the file Position.txt in the main Album DS folder. After deleting this file Album DS will open at the default initial position.

How many pictures may I import to an album?
The maximum number of pictures you may place in the Pictures folder is 2000. We recommend you place only the selected ones there. Keep in mind that the application has to maintain thumbnails and control over all these files and this is a time consuming process.

Can I modify the supplied templates?
Of course, after opening a template you may use the Photoshop move tool to redesign it. You may also delete a shape layer or add a new one with the rectangle tool. Remember that rotations should be made with the Album menu option or Ctrl + R (Cmd + R for Macintosh).

Can I resize the picture in the album sheet?
Yes, please select the picture layer and use the Photoshop Move tool to resize or reposition the picture. Press Shift to maintain the picture proportions.
To rotate use the Album option.
Resizing or repositioning your pictures doesn’t affect the final quality of the album because at the generation all the pictures will be replaced with the original ones and therefore resizing processes are only done one time assuring maximum quality.

I have a finished album and want to change resolution, is this possible?
Just change the resolution at Album – Selection and Preferences and generate the whole album again. This way you don‘t have any quality loss as you would get if the sheets are re-sampled in Photoshop. If you are working in full resolution ( Scaled sheets disabled in preferences) please enable them temporarily to generate the album.
If working in full resolution you may also change the resolution by setting the new in Album – New/ open and then selecting the option to resize the whole album available at the main Album menu.

Is it possible to change the size of a finished album?
Yes, you have to change the size at Selection and preferences, then open each album sheet and select Sheet – Resize sheet to template. The application will resize the sheet and reload any picture. You should inspect if important portions of your pictures are affected and then save the file.
At version 5.5 you may also resize the whole album with Album – Resize to fit new size.

May I design an album by parts, like groom home, bride home, and ceremony?
From version 5.5 you may import pictures by groupping them into 5 different groups and only show the ones you need at any moment. Groupping is available at the Pictures management feature and by right clicking over the picture thumbnails at the main Album DS window.
For older versions, first select Hide used pictures at Selection and preferences. Then import the first group of pictures (like groom home), design the sheets and delete the not used pictures (with the right mouse button over the picture thumb).
Import the second group of pictures and design these sheets.
You should continue with this workflow until finished with the whole album.
From version 5.5 you may import pictures by groupping them into 5 different groups and only show the ones you need at any moment.

After generating the album I have got a disproportioned picture, why?
This is due to rotating a picture or shape with the Photoshop Move tool. You should only rotate a picture or shape layer using the Album – Pictures – Rotate option or F5,

The application generates an error after inserting a picture in a template
This is due to library conflicts or a faulty Photoshop installation. Please remove the actual Photoshop installation, if possible delete the Photoshop folders and install again.

May I use templates from other vendors?
If these templates are PSD files you may use them. You have to convert the predefined picture spaces to shape layers. This may be done by selecting this space and execute the action supplied with our program to convert a selection in to a shape layer. When done, delete the old layers and save the template with the Album application.

How to create a template for B&W pictures?
Select the shape layer where you want a B&W picture, CTRL+click on the mask and you will get a selection with the same size and form as the shape layer. Now select the Tone and saturation adjustment layer at bottom of the layers palette, slide saturation to 0. Next time you insert a picture in this shape it will be a B&W picture.
Remember to select the adjustment layer with the shape layer when resizing or rotating the shape layer.
You may add any kind of adjustment layer in this way, a sepia toning layer or a curves layer. You may also create a partial desaturation layer for mixing B&W and color in the same picture, just create a tone and saturation layer and paint with black at the new adjustment layer mask; the black areas will be colored areas.

May I rename the templates folders?
Yes, you may delete or rename any template folder and create your own ones. You only have to keep the main Templates folder.

Is it possible to join templates?
Our templates are PSD files and you may do with them almost any Photoshop available process like:
Horizontal or vertical flip.
Add more shapes or delete them.
Add backgrounds or drawings, we recommend you use the rectangle tool for drawing and modify them with the pen tool as this will create vectorial shapes.
Change the opacity of the layers
Add adjustment layers.
Include text, even path guided text.Etc.
The design possibilities are almost infinite. You only have to keep in mind that rotations should be done with the application and you should not modify directly the pictures in the sheet because this will be replaced with the original ones (in scaled mode)

What about color space settings and lab profiles.
Album doesn’t manage the color of your pictures or album because all the files are opened and saved by Photoshop.
Most users should set the space color management by Photoshop as default in Selection and Preferences. The other options only tell Photoshop which color space to use.
As you are working in Photoshop, you may if necessary convert the final album files to laboratory profiles just as you were doing up until now.

 

Is it possible to work with pictures and templates at same time?
For the Windows version you may open a second instance of the program, then press Pictures at one and templates at the other. Both instances will work with the same Photoshop area.

Which is the system configuration recommended for Album DS?
Any hardware configuration cappable to work well with Photoshop may be used. Allthough we recommend a double screen system, being the first one a panoramic and calibrable monitor and the second a “cheaper” one with similar vertical resolution to the main screen. At first screen we will work and see the pictures and album sheets, in the second the Photoshop tools and windows will be placed with Album DS.
For sample, a first monitor of 1680x1050 pixels and a second one of 1280x1024 would be a good solution.

I can not see the Album DS window.
Because Album DS saves the last position of the window, if the last time you used the application this window was out of the desktop or in an auxiliar monitor not available now, it's possible that the Album DS window remains hidden now. Please close Album DS using the operating system close options and delete the file Position.txt at the main Album DS folder; then start again Album DS.

I get a Photoshop message to convert the template to the actual color space
To avoid this message you may set Photoshop so that any opened document will be converted to the working color space without asking, please see color space settings in Photoshop.

I get a Photoshop message “Retry – Continue”
When Album DS connects with Photoshop this application should be free of any user interaction, sometimes ( even inadvertendly) Photoshop is activated by the user and in this case this message may appear, simply Retry or continue until Photoshop takes control again.

In the PC version, the thumbnail for the sheet is not created after saving a sheet
This problem is typical of a problematic Photoshop installation like having installed more than one version and sometimes a long time installed version. The best and fastest solution is to uninstall all Photoshop versions and install again only one.

I have problems while adding my own actions to the Album DS actions system
Please make sure that you don't have included any Stop or asking parameters in the action, this will stop it's execution and Photoshop can not return the control to Album DS.

Are the Windows and Mac versions compatible, which are the main differences ?
The Album DS versions for Mac and Windows are very similar but you have to take in mind the windows behavior of both operating systems; at the windows version the application main menu is available at the top of the application window but in the Mac version the main menu resides at the top of the screen, in order to avoid having to move to this position for any feature, almost any most used option is available at the Mac version with the use of the mouse right click ( or CTRL+click).
Albums made with one version are compatible with the other, please copy the whole project folder to your other system and with Album – New/Open select this folder, you have to input the size and finally select the option Pictures – Check used pictures file to rebuild the database for the new system.

May I save my albums in an external drive ?
Yes, but take in mind that full resolution sheets may be very large and therefore you may notice a lack of performance at Photoshop and as consecuence at Album DS. Our recommendation is to work with an internal drive and create periodically backups in the external.

I get errors while importing my pictures or they don't add to the album
Please check the name of your picture files and avoid using non alphabeticall characters like apostrophe, $, % for naming them.

Can't execute the application or it stops
Please delete the file Album.txt in the main Album DS folder and empty the folders Sample and Sample/Pictures ( they should remain available but empty), then start Album DS.

I get an error while starting Album DS
Please check that Adobe Photoshop is not busy waiting for your confirmation or a welcome or warning window is open.

In Windows when I start the application I get a message like Error #:-2147217900 -unknown
This error is due to a problem in the Windows register for database drivers, please follow this steps:
- Start Windows main menu
- Select Accesories
- Select System symbol or Command prompt
This will open the system command prompt ( a black window), please type ( you may copy and paste from here using right mouse click):
regsvr32.exe C:\Windows\System32\msjtes40.dll
and press Enter.
For Windows 64 bits please type:  regsvr32.exe C:\Windows\Syswow64\msjtes40.dll
Finally start Album DS again

When starting Album DS other program opens and tries to install like Roxio, Microsoft Office, etc.
This is caused by a problem in the installation of the scripting engine for Windows, please make sure you are running Album DS as an administrator and if needed start the command prompt ( at Windows menu - Accesories ) and input "regsvr32 C:\Windows\System32\vbscript.dll", then press Enter.