How to Invert Colors in Photoshop – 3 Easy Steps

Photoshop makes the color inversion process quite easy. You can invert the colors of an entire image or the parts of an image. It is also possible to invert the colors of multiple photos at once using the Action feature in Photoshop.

What Is Color Inversion?

Color inversion is the process of applying the opposite colors in the spectrum to the selected colors in an image. There are many tools available for inverting the colors of an image including Photoshop.

Photoshop offers multiple ways to invert the colors of an image. Here we are going to describe a few ways you can apply color inversion in Photoshop.

1. Invert the Colors of an Entire Photo

1. Open Photoshop on your computer. Click File>Open, and then select the image that you want to work on.
2. From the top menu bar, select Image > Adjustments > Invert.

3. Doing so will invert the colors in your photo.

Invert colors using the keyboard shortcut

There is an alternative and quick way to put the above color inversion process in effect, i.e. to use the keyboard shortcut method. This is really helpful when you need to perform a handful of tasks within a short time. The keyboard shortcut for windows is Ctrl + I, and Command + I for Mac. Press those buttons simultaneously to apply the inverted color effect.

2. Invert the Colors of a Selected Area of a Photo

It is also possible to invert the colors of a selected portion of an image. For this, you need to select a specific part of an image using the selection tool and invert the colors of only that portion. To do this, follow the steps below.

1. Open the image in Photoshop.
2. Select the portion of the image you want to invert using Marquee, Lasso, or other selection tools.
3. Then go to Image > Adjustments > Invert from the top menu bar.

4. Photoshop will invert the colors of the selected area.

You may also read: How to Change Background Color in Photoshop [Multiple Methods Explained]

3. Color Inversion of Multiple Images at Once

Photoshop lets you invert the colors of multiple images at once using its Action feature. This process requires only a few clicks, and you do not have to do this for each photo individually.  Below we are describing the process to create an action to invert colors of multiple images in Photoshop.

1. Create two folders on your desktop and name them “Original Photos” and “Inverted Photos”.
2. Save all the photos you want to invert in the “Original Photos” folder, and once the colors are inverted in the photos, save them in the “Inverted Photos” folder.
3. Open an image in photoshop. Go to Window > Actions to activate the action panel.
4. Select “Create New Action” from the Action panel to create a new Action.

1. You can name the new Action “Invert Photo Colors”. Then click “Record”.
2. Once the Action record started, click Image > Adjustments > Invert.

1. This will invert the color of the photo. Save the file in the Inverted Photos folder by clicking File > Save As.
2. Click the Stop Recording button from the Actions Panel to stop recording of your action.
3. Click File > Automate > Batch to batch invert colors of your photos.
4. Select “Invert Photo Colors” from the Action drop-down menu. Keep Folder in the Source menu.
5. From beneath the Source menu, click Choose to select the Orginal Photos folder.

         6. Hit Ok. Photoshop will automatically invert the colors of all photos in the Original Photos folder. And, the inverted photos will be saved in the Inverted Photos folder.

You may also read: How to Change Hair Color in Photoshop- Tutorial

Wrapping Up

We have discussed several ways to invert the colors of an image in Photoshop. You can create beautiful effects in your designs using these techniques. Try and explore yourself!