Even experienced Photoshop users might overlook one of its most underrated features: Quick Actions. These one-click tools let you automate common edits like background removal, image blurring, or dramatic color effects in seconds.

While Quick Actions won’t justify Photoshop’s subscription price for newcomers, they’re a game-changer for those already using it. They simplify repetitive tasks, save time, and keep your creative projects running smoothly without the need to dive into complex menus or workflows.

What are Quick Actions and how do you use them?

Quick Actions are Photoshop’s one-click tools that can handle common tasks like background removal, image blurring, or dramatic color effects. They’re designed to simplify tedious edits and make your workflow faster, without needing to dig through menus or rely on advanced techniques. It's very easy to access Quick Actions.

1. Select the Layer you want to apply an effect to.
2. Go to Help > Photoshop Help from the top menu, or press Ctrl + F (Windows) or Cmd + F (Mac) to open the Discover window.
3. In the Discover window, click on Quick Actions to view the available options.
4. Choose the Quick Action you need, and Photoshop will automatically apply it directly to your selected layer.
5. To refine the effect after applying a Quick Action, double-click on the Smart Filter or Mask thumbnail in the Layers panel to adjust the settings as needed.

While Quick Actions provide convenient one-click solutions, it’s almost guaranteed that you’ll need to refine the effect after applying them. These tools aren’t unique — they use the same actions and effects found elsewhere in Photoshop, such as in the Filter menu or the Contextual Task Bar, but here they're consolidated into a single list with helpful thumbnails to show what they do.

Once applied, Quick Actions require the same level of adjustment as if they were initiated from those other areas. For example, the Remove Background Quick Action uses Photoshop’s AI auto-detect feature, just like the Select Subject tool. While it’s effective, it’s not perfect. The AI might fail to recognize parts of the subject or background, so the resulting mask may need refinement. This is especially true with intricate details like hair, where you’ll likely need to adjust the edges for a cleaner cutout.

In the example images provided, the effects have been intentionally exaggerated to demonstrate their functionality more clearly. Despite their simplicity, Quick Actions still demand a hands-on approach to achieve professional-quality results.

6 Remove a background with one click

Quickly isolate your subject on a transparent background

The Remove Background Quick Action is a practical choice for quickly isolating subjects, especially for projects like creating products or composites. Using Photoshop’s AI-powered subject detection, it automatically applies a mask to separate the subject from the background, leaving you with a transparent canvas.

For this example, I’ve used my digital artwork of a cute Lovecraftian Cthulhu wearing pink pajamas and pouring coffee from a French press into a mug that reads “I ❤️ Coffee.” This image is used for real-life products like mugs, T-shirts, and magnets, sold on platforms like Printify and Etsy, so removing the background is an essential step. Following the steps outlined earlier, Photoshop did a decent job identifying the subject and masking most of the edges.

However, it wasn’t perfect. In the final result, there’s a noticeable gray area to the right of the coffee stream that the AI failed to detect. On closer inspection, though, the edges around most parts of the subject were well-defined, likely due to the high resolution of the image (6209 x 9309 at 300 ppi). This additional pixel information gave Photoshop more data to work with, improving the accuracy of the mask.

While Photoshop’s Remove Background tool provides a strong starting point, manual refinement is almost always necessary, particularly for low-detail images. Using the Select and Mask workspace, you can clean up problem areas and achieve the level of precision needed for professional results.

5 Turn your background black and white

Add drama and emphasis to your subject

The Make B/W Background Quick Action transforms the background of an image into black and white while leaving the subject in full color. This effect creates a striking contrast that draws attention directly to the subject, making it a great choice for portraits, product photography, or artistic designs.

In this example, I used a photo of myself playing guitar against a colorful background in low lighting. Photoshop’s subject detection worked reasonably well overall, but there were areas where manual adjustments were required. The tool initially failed to detect the entire guitar neck, so I added that to the mask manually. Around the hair, the edges of the mask were left as-is to show how the tool performed out of the box.

This Quick Action is an excellent way to experiment with dramatic effects quickly. For those working with complex subjects or low-contrast areas, additional refinement will likely be needed to achieve the desired level of detail and polish.

4 Convert your image to black and white

Bring timeless simplicity to your photos

The Make Image B/W Quick Action applies a black-and-white filter to your entire image with a single click. This tool is perfect for achieving a clean grayscale look, whether you’re digitizing old photos, creating a moody aesthetic, or simplifying an image for design purposes.

For this example, I used an old photo from a past band I played in, In Constant Motion, performing in the early 2000s. Over the years, the photo had developed a yellowish tint due to aging—it was originally developed in a darkroom by a friend who was an amateur photographer. When digitizing the photo for preservation, I wanted a version closer to the original look, and this Quick Action offered a quick and effective solution.

In the examples, you’ll see the one-click effect applied to the image, followed by the Black & White Smart Filter adjustment window. This allows you to fine-tune the grayscale effect by adjusting individual color channels, offering greater control over the final result. This flexibility makes the Quick Action particularly useful for restoring aged photos or customizing the mood of your images.

3 Quickly blur the background

Create depth and focus without expensive lenses

The Blur Background Quick Action uses Gaussian Blur to soften everything outside the detected subject, creating a shallow depth-of-field effect. While quick and easy, its blending between the subject and background can feel abrupt.

For example, I used a playful photo of my cat lying on cat grass, sporting a classic derp face. Photoshop successfully masked my cat, but the transition between the blurred background and the subject wasn’t seamless, especially when increasing the blur radius. This effect works great for fun edits, like highlighting a pet’s goofy expression to make it even more hilarious. For more serious applications, I prefer using Lens Blur in Camera Raw, or manually painting masks with graduated opacity for smoother blending.

The Blur Background Quick Action is perfect for casual edits and playful creativity, but advanced techniques are better suited for polished, professional results.

2 Add a vignette around your image

Highlight the center of your image by darkening the edges

The Add a Vignette Quick Action darkens the edges of your image to draw attention to the center, creating depth and emphasizing your subject.

In my example, I used a hybrid of AI-generated and traditional digital art featuring a hooded and cloaked figure with glowing eyes, illuminated by a light source above and behind. Applying the vignette significantly tightened the composition, amplifying the contrast between the glowing light and the darker surrounding environment.

In my example, I demonstrated the effect with one click, followed by the maximum adjustment of the Vignette setting in Camera Raw, set to -100. While this creates a strong vignette, the range of the effect isn’t particularly wide. To increase the intensity beyond this limit, you can duplicate the effect by layering another vignette on top of the first.

The Add a Vignette Quick Action is an easy way to refine focus and add atmosphere to your image.

1 Easily isolate parts of your image with AI

Quickly select skies, subjects, or backgrounds

The AI-powered selection tools available in Quick Actions — Select Subject, Select Background, and Select Sky — work the same as they do elsewhere in Photoshop. These tools are excellent for quickly isolating specific parts of an image with just one click.

In my examples, I show how Select Sky struggles with messy edges, particularly in areas where trees meet the sky. The result is often incomplete and requires significant refinement. However, the Select Subject and Select Background tools are far more reliable. They’re incredibly handy for isolating people, objects, or other focal points and are part of my regular editing workflow.

These tools offer a convenient starting point for complex selections but typically need additional adjustments for a polished result.

Why you should give Quick Actions a shot

Photoshop’s Quick Actions are a great way to speed up your workflow while exploring the many powerful features that make Photoshop stand out. These tools highlight just a small part of what makes Adobe Creative Cloud an essential subscription for many creators, offering advanced capabilities and time-saving solutions that are hard to find elsewhere.

That said, Photoshop isn’t the only option. For those who want to avoid subscriptions, there are several open-source alternatives to Photoshop that are capable of handling a variety of editing tasks. While they don’t offer the same level of AI-powered features or seamless integration across apps, they could be an excellent choice for those looking to experiment or save money.

Quick Actions may not replace more advanced techniques, but they’re a fantastic starting point for refining your edits and exploring creative ideas. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or just diving into Photoshop’s many features, these tools are worth a try.