Ok, I don't normally blog about Photoshop, but this was just too darn cool not to share. Photoshop CC users today will get an update that adds a new feature called Generator. Generator lets you create image assets in real time as you work on a PSD. By simply naming a layer with a specific format (more on that in a moment), Photoshop will automatically create files for you.

To see a quick demo of this new feature, watch the very professional video below:

And here is another good example from Lynda.com:

So as I mentioned, there is a naming scheme you apply to your layers in order for this to work right. You can find good documentation for this here: Generate image assets from layers | Photoshop CC.

The best example I've seen of this so far is from a coworker, Paul Burnett. He created a PSD template that matches PhoneGap icons:

Using this new feature of Photoshop, you can then simply edit the Smart Object, save, and you immediately get all of the icons for every platform PhoneGap supports. I made my own video of it that demonstrates this in action:

You can download the PSD from Paul's GitHub page here: https://github.com/PaulBurnett/PhoneGap-Build-Icon-Template.

Speaking of GitHub, you can actually see the source behind this feature on the Adobe Photoshop GitHub account: https://github.com/adobe-photoshop

But wait - there's more! If you launch Edge Reflow, you should have another update waiting for you. Part of the new Photoshop update is a connection between Photoshop and Edge Reflow. Again, better people with better video skills can explain it better than I can:

A quick note as this may be confusing. In the video above you will notice a "Edge Reflow Project" menu item in Photoshop's Generate menu:

I did not have this immediately. I only saw this after I updated Edge Reflow and restarted Photoshop.