Design isn't just an art—it’s a system. And my system runs almost entirely on one powerhouse: Photoshop. Sure, there are sleeker, newer tools in the design galaxy. But for me, Photoshop is the sun—everything orbits around it.

This is not a love letter. It’s a blueprint. A breakdown of how I use Photoshop to balance creativity, technology, and the kind of inspired mess that makes good work great.

Photoshop: My Everything App
Photoshop is my sketchpad, my lab, my final rendering engine. It's the place where ideas become prototypes and rough cuts become polished deliverables.

• When I use it: Mockups, UI comps, moodboards, social graphics, digital collages, thumbnail drafts—basically everything with pixels.
• Why I love it: It’s a beast. Not always elegant, but endlessly powerful. From photo manipulation to pixel-perfect design, it does what I need before I realize I need it.
• Tech perspective: Think of it as a full-stack creative IDE. Layers are components, masks are conditions, and adjustment layers? Those are the elegant hacks you’re proud of but never explain.

My Workflow: Creative but Calculated
My Photoshop workflow isn’t just about pretty pictures—it’s built like a system. Here's the basic architecture:

1. Rapid Roughing – Quick composition with shape tools, reference drops, and some “ugly is okay” energy.
2. Layer Logic – Naming, grouping, smart objects. This is my version of writing clean code.
3. Polish Phase – Blends, lighting, filters. I treat it like a build step—final optimizations before ship.
4. Export Ritual – Presets, slices, WebP when needed. Bonus points for automating with Actions.

Just Enough Chaos
Here’s the part they don’t teach you: chaos is fuel. That sketch that makes no sense? That blurry photo you found on page 6 of Google? That’s the good stuff.

Photoshop is where I let chaos breathe—but then give it structure.

• A brush stroke becomes a layout.
• A random photo becomes a color scheme.
• A happy accident becomes the signature style.

I don’t resist the mess. I design with it.

Why Not Use Figma or Illustrator?
Simple answer: I don’t need to. Photoshop does what I need, and it lets me break the rules. It’s less collaborative than Figma, and less mathematically clean than Illustrator, but that’s the point.

I’m not always designing for a team or a client. Sometimes I’m designing for the thrill of seeing something that didn’t exist five minutes ago.

The Balance
My design life is a tightrope between precision and play. Photoshop lets me walk that line—with grid systems on one side and paintbrushes on the other.

And when it gets messy? That’s where the magic starts.

Final Render

• Photoshop is my Swiss Army knife.
• My workflow is structured, but flexible.
• Chaos isn’t a problem—it’s part of the process.

So no, I don’t have a full design suite.
I have Photoshop.
And just enough chaos.