Photoshop's AI tools finally made me stop avoiding the app

I steered clear of Photoshop for years, thinking that even the simplest tasks would be a little difficult. Last week, I finally decided to give the Adobe AI tools in the Firefly workspace a try, and it turned a simple picture of my desk into a beach scene after one sitting. I had to use a few features, which only took a few prompts, and the tools finished editing the image. I was surprised to see how easy and fun it was to make the edits I needed in half the time it would have taken me to do them myself.

The Prompt did all the work for me

I only had to add the details in plain English

The Prompt is the one I kept going back to use. I was able to make all sorts of edits to my pictures, such as placing my desk on a tropical beach and even adding thatched bungalows in the background. Since I only needed to edit an existing picture, and not create one, I went with Gemini 3.1 with Nano Banana 2 from the model picker.

While experimenting with the image’s quality, I chose 1K and clicked Generate. I was expecting something I knew I had to edit or tell it to choose a better-looking beach. However, the background it added was just right, at least for me. I only had to add a few more prompts, like zooming out a bit more or adding a few more palm trees, but nothing major.

I could switch between aspect ratios, such as Widescreen, Classic, and Wide, so I could fit as much of the specific image I was editing as possible. The “Use Google Search” option also helped gather details for the prompt I gave it, giving me a better idea of what I wanted. That’s what made Photoshop’s AI editing an easier-to-use tool, and a lot less intimidating.

Generative Expand kept the whole scene going right out to 3:2

Even the little shadows on the palm trees came out just right

I liked how my beach image came out. It had palm trees and a couple of huts in the background, but there was one issue I was not happy with: it was stuck in the square shape of that original desk photo. I wanted the picture to be wider, closer to a 3:2 aspect ratio that would work better as a wallpaper-style image. The fix was easy. All I had to do was use Generative Expand through the Crop tool, set the ratio to 3:2, and drag the edges past the original.

I repeated the process with a Yorkie of mine who is no longer with us, and had Adobe Generative Expand put her in a soft dog bed in a living room. It filled a cream couch behind her, a tall plant in the corner, and wood floors to finish it off. I wasn’t too happy with the first result since the dog bed cut off at the bottom, so I dragged the canvas down and ran it again. I was impressed by the detail, since everything looked seamless, and I couldn’t tell where the image ended and the expansion began.

The Remove Tool erased boats I didn’t want

I had to use the tool twice, but the image was finally boat-free

In the image with my desk in it, the tropical beach background came out great, except for one thing: the boats. There were two small boats I wanted to get rid of, so I reached for the Remove tool. I brushed over the boats, but the first time, I only got smudges instead of a clear background.

So I tried again, and that’s when I got the results I wish I had gotten the first time. There was no trace of the boats, not the slightest smudge. I got these results by reducing the brush size from 28 to 12 and being as precise as possible when selecting what I wanted erased. With this tool, I could run as many processes as I wanted since it didn’t cost me any credits.

You can only use them if you subscribe to the app

You either pay for the app alone or get the whole bundle

Money doesn’t grow on trees to pay for something you’re not going to use regularly. If you only edit an image once in a while, there are plenty of free apps that can probably make the changes you need. The feature is great for quick, good edits you'd probably need help with if you’re not familiar with the app, but the downside is that you can only use it if you subscribe.

You either have to pay for the app alone, that’s $22.99 a month, or if you want the whole bundle, you can go for the Creative Cloud Pro, which will set you back $34.99 for the first three months, and after that it’s $69.99. If the only feature that really catches your eye is the AI tool, paying that amount can feel like too much. There is a free trial, but it only lets you use the feature for seven days, and if you forget to cancel, you'll be charged automatically.

The cost is real, but so is the benefit you get from the features

If you edit pictures often and have room for one more subscription, you’re fine

I admit the price may not seem very appealing, but if you know you’ll use it regularly, it’s worth it. I have to edit images regularly, and sometimes I don’t have much time to do it. Or maybe I need creative ideas to improve an image, but I can’t think of anything. That’s when I used the Prompt, and it added details that were better than what I was thinking at the moment. So, yes, I’m paying for it, but I don’t just get the editing tools I know are available on other apps, I get the help I need where I need to edit or add something, and I don’t have time to learn how to do it at the time.

The AI tools are the reason Photoshop finally clicked for me

For years, I avoided Photoshop because I could use other apps to get the editing features I needed. But when Adobe added AI tools, I had to admit they were enough to get my attention. When I got the chance to test the features during the free trial and saw firsthand what it could do for me, I stayed. There are still some parts of the app I need to master, but with the AI tools, I’m in no rush to learn them just yet.