When you first open Photoshop Elements, you'll see a Welcome Screen that'll look similar to this, but might vary a bit depending on your version.

If you have an older style of Welcome Screen like this, skip this video and go directly to the one called Get Rid Of The Welcome Screen for Versions of Photoshop Elements 2018 or Older for both Mac and Windows. But ever since version 2019 Photoshop Elements has used this style of Welcome Screen.

At the top you have a search option. And below that there are suggestions for fun creative projects. And on the lower left, you also have an option to import media such as photos or videos into the Organizer, which is the photo organizing program that comes with Adobe Photoshop Elements. But for this class, the Photo Editor button on the right is the most important because clicking it will open Photoshop Elements. We don't need the Organizer for these lessons. In the class I only mention the Organizer once and I don't access it from the welcome screen. So unless you're using the Organizer yourself, you can ignore that icon.

And you can also ignore the Video Editor icon. This icon is for Adobe Premiere Elements, a program for video editing that you have to purchase separately. So if you don't have that program, you can totally ignore this icon. I never refer to it in this class.

So click on the Photo Editor icon and that opens Photoshop Elements. This doesn't automatically close the Welcome Screen though. You have to manually access it and click the Close button. So now you have clicked three times to open one program. I don't know about you, but once I've looked at the Welcome Screen a few times, I'm ready to go directly to Photoshop Elements when I click to open the program.

Besides, if I ever want to access the Welcome Screen, I can simply click on the Home Screen in the Photoshop Elements Taskbar and it pops right up. Here it is again. I'll go ahead and close it.

Since it's so easy to access right here in the Taskbar, you might want to do what I've done and that is bypass the Welcome Screen all together. I have two videos on how to do that, one for Windows and one for Mac, because the two methods are totally different.

So that's a quick introduction to the Welcome Screen. Feel free to check it out on your own but I won't be using it for any of the lessons in this class.

Here's how to get rid of the Photoshop Elements Welcome Screen using Windows for versions 2019 through the current version. This information is in the manual as well.

Start by navigating to your computer C Drive, then go to Program Files, Adobe, and your version of Photoshop Elements. Scroll down the menu options until you find the photoshop-elements-editor.exe file. Right click on this file to get a pop-up menu and choose Create Shortcut.

Windows will ask if you want to place a shortcut on the desktop. Say yes, you'll now see the new shortcut on your desktop. To make it easier to identify, click on the shortcut name to highlight it and rename it using the name of your version, such as PSE 2021. You might want to delete the default Photoshop Elements icon so you don't get confused.

Here's how to get rid of the Adobe Photoshop Elements Welcome Screen on a Mac for versions 2019 through the current version. This information is in the manual as well.

If you already have Adobe Photoshop Elements in the Dock, click the icon to open the program. If you don't yet have it in the Dock, open a Finder window, click on Applications in the navigation on the left, click your version of Adobe Photoshop Elements. And as you can see I have a lot of versions! And then double click on the Adobe Photoshop Elements icon for your version.

This will open the Welcome Screen and it will add an Adobe Photoshop Elements icon to the end of the Dock. On the Welcome Screen, click on the Photo Editor icon to open Photoshop Elements. This will add a second Adobe Photoshop Elements icon to the end of the Dock. Hover over each icon to see the name. The one that opens Adobe Photoshop Elements is called Adobe Photoshop Elements Editor.

To save this icon in the dock, Control click on the icon and choose from the Options menu, Keep In Dock, or you can just simply click and drag it to another spot in the Dock and that will automatically pin it to the Dock. Now when you click on the Photoshop Elements icon in the Dock it will open directly in Photoshop Elements.

Don't forget, you can click on the Home Screen icon at any time to instantly access the Welcome Screen. Also, if you use the Organizer, you can follow these same instructions to bypass the welcome screen and open the Organizer.

Welcome to Part One of QwikLearn Photoshop Elements. My goal is to take you from knowing nothing about Photoshop Elements to where you feel totally comfortable using it to create great projects. Let's start at the beginning. When you install Photoshop Elements in open it for the first time, you'll get a Welcome Screen. Your Welcome Screen may not look exactly like this if you're not using the exact version I'm using, but the idea is the same.

At the bottom of the Welcome Screen, there are three program tabs, Photo Editor, Organizer, and Video Editor. Photoshop Elements comes standard with the Photo Editor and the Organizer but the Video Editor is an optional purchase.

As you might expect, the Photo Editor allows you to edit photos, but it's also a powerful program or you can create useful documents and amazing art once you know how.

The Organizer is a program for organizing your photos and videos.

The Video Editor opens Premiere Elements, a program for editing your videos, but only if you've purchased and installed it. You can access a link to a free trial of Premiere Elements from the menu. But we won't be talking about videos in this class. 99% of my instruction will be on how to use the Photo Editor. Since that's the case, here's how to change the Welcome Screen preferences.

Click on the gear in the upper right corner to access a drop down menu that lets you choose what will open when you launch. By default, it's set to the Welcome Screen. Instead, open the menu and choose Photo Editor and click Done. The next time you launch Photoshop Elements it will open directly in the editor without you having to choose it from the Welcome Screen. For now I'll click on the Photo Editor tab to open Photoshop Elements. Once you open the editor, you can easily access the Organizer by clicking on the organizer icon in the Taskbar at the bottom of Photoshop Elements. And if you ever want to change the Welcome Screen preferences, or access the Welcome Screen again, in the Menu Bar, choose Help, Welcome Screen... and there it is.