Adobe Photoshop 27.11 on Mac

You open a layered file, tweak a mask, and the whole composition shifts. That's the daily rhythm for anyone using Photoshop on a Mac. Version 27.10 keeps that core workflow while adding a few new tools.

Editing photos

The new Light adjustment layer handles exposure, contrast, highlights, and shadows non-destructively. You can adjust a photo without permanently changing the pixels.

Compositing and design

Combine photos, diagrams, and text into a single image. The tools for posters, packaging, banners, and web graphics are all still there. Brushes, including custom ones, cover digital painting and illustration.

Guiding AI generation

Masks and selections now control where generative edits apply. The Markup tool lets you draw visual annotations to guide AI editing, and the AI Assisted editor (Beta) is built in.

Dragging layers into Pages and Keynote

Photoshop doesn't sit in isolation. You can drag a layer from a photo straight into a Pages document or paste a selection into a Keynote slide. The clipboard holds transparency, so layered content moves across apps without flattening. For video editors, it's common to send a still frame from Final Cut Pro into Photoshop for a quick retouch, then save it back.

macOS features like Quick Look work with PSD files, so you can preview compositions in Finder without opening the app. If you use iCloud Drive, saving a project there lets you pick it up on an iPad — the iPad version of Photoshop reads the same layered files. The Neural Filters Pack, once extracted to the correct Adobe UXP plugins folder, also stays available across sessions, so you don't reconfigure it every time.

For users who switch between ARM and Intel Macs, the architecture support in this version covers both. If you are on an Intel Mac, no extra steps. If you are on Apple Silicon and an older plugin demands Intel code, Rosetta handles it — just install Rosetta first and repeat the installation if prompted.

Nadia builds a music festival poster

Nadia runs a small design studio from her Mac. She gets a brief for a weekend music festival poster: three headliner photos, a sponsor logo, and a textured background. She starts in Photoshop by placing the background layer — a gradient she built with the new Light adjustment layer so the exposure stays even. Then she brings in each photo on its own layer, uses one-click selection to cut out the artists, and refines the edges with a mask. The Markup tool lets her draw arrows directly on the canvas to show where the sponsor logo should sit, which she sends to her client as a proof. When the client asks to swap one photo, Nadia replaces the layer content, and the mask stays intact. No rebuilding. The whole poster stays editable because nothing is flattened until export.

Workflow: retouching a portrait for a clean headshot

1. Open the image and duplicate the background layer. Keep the original untouched underneath.
2. Add a Light adjustment layer above the duplicate. Pull up the shadows slightly and reduce highlights to even out the face lighting. The adjustment is non-destructive, so you can go back and tweak it later.
3. Use the one-click selection tool to select the person. Photoshop generates a mask around the subject automatically. If the hair edges need work, paint on the mask with a soft brush.
4. Remove background distractions with the object removal tool. Click on any element you want gone — a stray microphone stand, a shadow on the wall — and Photoshop fills the area using surrounding pixels.
5. Apply a neural filter for skin smoothing if needed. Open the Neural Filters panel, find the Skin Smoothing filter, and adjust the strength slider. The effect stays on a separate layer, so you can mask out areas you want to keep sharp, like the eyes.
6. Export a flattened copy for delivery. Use Save As and pick JPEG or PNG from the customised file format list. The layered PSD stays on your Mac for future edits.

Best for RAW photographers and layout designers

This version of Photoshop suits anyone who works with images regularly, but a few groups benefit most. Photographers who shoot in RAW and need non-destructive editing get the Light adjustment layer and the full masking toolkit. Graphic designers building layouts for print or web rely on the compositing features and the ability to keep every element on its own layer. Digital illustrators use the brush collection and custom brush creation to paint directly on canvas, with the option to combine AI-assisted edits into their traditional workflow.

Users who work with Adobe Stock content inside Photoshop can browse and license assets without leaving the app, which saves time during tight deadlines. The AI Assisted editor (Beta) and Prompt to Edit feature appeal to anyone who wants to describe a change in natural language rather than digging through menus — useful for quick comps or client revisions. Even casual users who just want to remove a background from a holiday photo or adjust a scan find the core tools straightforward.

The version runs on both Apple Silicon and Intel Macs, so it covers the full range of modern Mac hardware. If you have an M-series machine, the app runs natively. If you are on an older Intel Mac, the 64-bit x86 build works the same way. For anyone who needs a reliable image editor that integrates with the rest of macOS and with other Adobe tools, this release hits the right notes.

• Light adjustment layer for non-destructive lighting edits
• AI Assisted editor (Beta) inside Photoshop
• Prompt to Edit and Markup for AI-assisted editing

• macOS 14 or later
• Intel or Apple Silicon

Kit check at a glance