# Photoshop Canvas Size giving me a hard time



## awe (Mar 18, 2007)

Either I'm too stupid to understand how the "Canvas Size..." dialog in Photoshop works, or something's seriously wrong.
Usually, I want a 1 pixel border first and after that a bigger one with the opposite color (e.g. white, then black). The big border is never a problem, but the small one works only sometimes: often, the border is created just at two sides (usually on the right and at the bottom). What am I doing wrong?

Anchor is set to the middle, and it doesn't matter if I work with relative or absolute values.


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## EOS_JD (Mar 18, 2007)

Make sure the centre of the canvas size is selected and you'll get the border around all of your image.  Make sure relative is selected too and you add 1 pixel to both axis.


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## awe (Mar 18, 2007)

EOS_JD said:


> Make sure the centre of the canvas size is selected and you'll get the border around all of your image.  Make sure relative is selected too and you add 1 pixel to both axis.


That's exactly what I do every time, but it doesn't seem to work. But thanks anyway!


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## Digital Matt (Mar 18, 2007)

If you are doing this to a high res document, ie, larger than your screen resolution, and you have it scaled down below 100%, some small strokes and lines will be hidden.  Be sure and check it at 100% to make sure it's not working.  I know you said anchor is set in the middle, but just double check


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## EOS_JD (Mar 18, 2007)

I just tried it and guess what!!! I only see the 1 pixel border down the right edge and bottom edge!! 

No matter whether high or low res!!!

Looks like you'll need to select all (CtrlA) and add a white 1 pixel stroke around the inside of the image.

Weird!


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## awe (Mar 18, 2007)

@Digital Matt:
Hehe, I always checked at 100%, and yes, anchor is set to the middle 

@EOS_JD:
Yeah, that really sucks. But it's getting even weirder: I found out that it usually doesn't work with a PSD that contains more than one layer. However, if I convert the file to a bitmap (which of course has only one "layer") it works, but only if I choose *2 pixels*. Those 2 pixels are then displayed as *1.* I'm serious.


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## EOS_JD (Mar 18, 2007)

Yes I saw that! Weird! I was trying with a tif. So doesn't work with tifs and I tried with a low res jpg which didn't work either!

The stroke works just as well though


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## Digital Matt (Mar 19, 2007)

Must be a glitch in CS2.  I've always done that successfully in 7.


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## droyz2000 (Mar 26, 2007)

Did you only increase the numbers by one? If you did that means you are only increasing the whole picture by 1 pixel each direction. Try 2 pixels and you should get a 1 pixel border around the whole thing. Basically, if your picture is 200x300 pixels don't change it to 201x301, change it to 202x302. You must take into account you are adding to two sides each direction.


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## Digital Matt (Mar 26, 2007)

If you add 2 pixels, you'll get 1 on one side, and 2 on the other.  It is a glitch.  This dialogue is supposed to add canvas uniformly to all sides when the anchor is in the middle.


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## droyz2000 (Mar 26, 2007)

It works for me, I get one on each side.


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## awe (Mar 27, 2007)

droyz2000 said:


> It works for me, I get one on each side.


With CS or CS2?


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## droyz2000 (Mar 27, 2007)

CS2


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## Digital Matt (Mar 27, 2007)

It doesn't work with 2 versions I have tried.  Both exhibit the problem.  Perhaps there is an update for it.


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## EOS_JD (Mar 27, 2007)

Doesn't work in CS2 or CS3 with mine.


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## droyz2000 (Mar 27, 2007)

Did you zoom in on the sides that you do not think you have the one pixel border? When I do it, the top and the left side do not look like they have the added border and when I zoom in, I see it. I do not mean to insult anyone's intelligence but I know that this could be easily overlooked.


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## Digital Matt (Mar 27, 2007)

If you read the responses to this thread prior to yours, you'll see that mentioned.  I mentioned it, thinking that was the problem, without actually checking it myself.  I have since checked on both my computer at home, and my work computer, and the problem happens in both places.


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## droyz2000 (Mar 27, 2007)

My bad, I had over looked that.


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## droyz2000 (Mar 29, 2007)

I have the student (educational) edition of the software, that might be the difference? Just thought of that.


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