Installing and Running Actions in Adobe Photoshop

Elevate your Photoshop efficiency by mastering actions — pre-recorded steps that automate repetitive tasks or apply unique image effects. This guide walks you through installing and running actions, enabling you to apply complex effects with a single click.

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Requirements for Using Adobe Photoshop Actions

Operating System:	Windows, macOS.
Software Requirements:	Adobe Photoshop CS6 and later.
Photoshop Action File:	.atn file format.
Hardware Requirements:	PC: Multi-core processor with 64-bit support. MAC: Intel or Apple Silicon.
RAM:	Minimum 8 GB; recommended 16 GB or more for handling large documents.

ⓘ Adobe Photoshop actions are usually run smoothly, but for more complex actions, having a well-equipped computer can help everything run more efficiently.

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➊ What Are Actions in Photoshop?

Photoshop actions are pre-recorded steps that automate repetitive tasks, making it easy to apply complex effects or edits with a single click.
These actions are saved in .atn files.

 

 

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➋ How to Install Actions in Photoshop

You can bring the set of actions from one computer to another by manually importing them using the .atn file. Photoshop offers several of ways to import actions:

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🅰 Load via the Actions Panel

1. Open the Actions Panel:

• Go to Window > Actions
• or press Alt + F9 (Windows)
• or Option ⌥ + F9 (Mac) to open the Actions panel.

 

2. Load the Action:

• Click the small hamburger menu ☰ in the top-right corner of the Actions panel.
• Select Load Actions… from the dropdown menu.
• Navigate to the folder where the .atn file is saved, select it, and click Open.

 

3. Your new actions will now appear in the Actions panel.

 

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🅱 Drag the File into Photoshop

• Open Photoshop and drag the .atn file directly into the Photoshop workspace. The action will be installed automatically.
• Alternatively, you can double-click on the .atn file or right-click, select Open with… 
and then choose Adobe Photoshop from the drop-down list. The file might look blank, but your new actions will appear in the Actions panel (Window > Actions).

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➌ How to Run Actions in Photoshop

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1. Open a Document:
   
    • Open the image or document that you want to apply the action to. Ensure that the file meets any specific requirements mentioned with the action (e.g., image dimensions, layer types).
   
   
2. Select the Action:
   
   • 2.1 In the Actions panel, locate the desired action set (folder) and expand it by clicking the arrow next to the set name.
   • 2.2 Select the specific action you want to run.
   
   
3. Run the Action:
   
   • Click the Play button at the bottom of the Actions panel (a triangle pointing to the right).
   • The action will start running and apply the steps automatically to your document.

 

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⚠︎ Before running any action, it’s strongly advised to save your work — especially when working with complex or large documents.

In the event that Adobe Photoshop freezes or encounters an error during action execution, having a saved version will prevent any loss of progress and protect your creative efforts.

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➍ Tips for Using Photoshop Actions

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• Customization: Some actions may stop at certain points to ask for input, such as selecting a brush size or confirming a layer setting. Follow the on-screen prompts carefully.
  
  
• Editing Actions: Actions can be edited by expanding their steps in the Actions panel and tweaking individual steps or adding new ones.
  
  
• Batch Processing: 
  1. Go to File > Automate > Batch...
  2. Select the desired action in the Action dropdown.
  3. Choose the source folder containing the images you want to process.
  4. Set the destination folder to save the output.
  
  
• Organizing Actions:
  + Use folders within the Actions panel to group similar actions for better organization.
  + Delete unused actions by selecting them in the panel and choosing Delete from the menu.
  
  
• Enable Button Mode: From the ☰ dropdown menu, select Button Mode. The Actions panel will switch from the standard list view to a grid of colored buttons.

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➎ Troubleshooting Common Issues

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• Always save a backup of your original Photoshop document before running the action, in case you need to revert changes or may encounter any Photoshop lags.
  
  
• Ensure that you are using a compatible version of Adobe Photoshop. Some actions are created for specific versions (e.g., Adobe Photoshop CC 2025).
  
  
• Ensure that all necessary Photoshop features are still supported in your Photoshop version. Some features may be deprecated in newer versions (e.g., 3D features).
  
  
• Ensure that the correct layer is selected in the Layers panel before running the action.
  If the action requires a selection (e.g., marquee or lasso tool), make the selection before running it.

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⚠︎ㅤImportant Note: Language Requirements for Actions

Many Photoshop actions are designed to work with the English version of Photoshop. This is because the action steps rely on specific layer names, menu commands, and features that are written in English.

If you are using Photoshop in another language, actions may not work correctly or produce errors such as 'The command “Select” is not currently available'.

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Why Language Matters

1. Layer Names: Actions often depend on default layer names like Background or Layer 1, which may differ in other languages.
2. Commands and Tools: Menu items and tool names in the action may not match their non-English equivalents.

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How to Switch Photoshop to English

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To change the language of subscription versions of Photoshop to English, you must first change the language in the Creative Cloud desktop application.

To change the language of subscription versions of Photoshop, you must first change the language in the Creative Cloud desktop application. If you have more than just Photoshop installed from the Creative Cloud apps, making the language adjustment can also help change the language universally for all the apps.

Just note that you need to uninstall and reinstall all the applications for the language change to take effect. This is because changing the language is for future installations rather than the current ones.

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1. First, open the Adobe Creative Cloud application.

• Go to Account (icon at the top right) > Preferences.
• In the Preferences window, navigate to Apps on the left-hand side.
• Under the Installing section, you’ll find a drop-down menu for Default Install Language.
• Change this to English (International), click Done.
• You should now see an Install option next to Photoshop in the Creative Cloud app.
• Click Install to download and install the new language pack (restart Creative Cloud if you don’t see the button).

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2. Next, launch Adobe Photoshop, which will still be in the default language.

• Navigate to Edit > Preferences > General (Windows),
  or Photoshop > Preferences > General (macOS).
• In the Preferences window, click the Interface Menu, and set the UI Language settings to English.
• Hit OK, and restart! You’ve changed your Photoshop language to English.
• You can always change the Photoshop interface language back to your native language from the Interface settings.

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Alternatives If Using Creative Cloud Is Not Possible

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If you don’t have an active Creative Cloud membership, or using an older version of Photoshop like CS6 you will have to tweak the name of one of the files using Finder (macOS) or File Explorer (Windows) to change the language.

To do this, close Photoshop and go to the following location:

• On macOS: /Applications/Adobe Photoshop CS6 (2023, etc.)/Locales/ 
• On Windows: Local Disk (C:)/Program Files/Adobe/Adobe Photoshop CS6/Locales/
• Find the installed language subdirectory (de_DE format) and go to Support Files folder.
• Then select the tw10428_Photoshop.dat file (or similar) and rename it to tw10428_Photoshop.dat.backup.
• This should change the interface language to English next time you start Photoshop.
• You can always change the Photoshop interface language back to your native language by renaming the file back.

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☻ Congratulations!

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You’re now equipped with all the knowledge to install and run Photoshop actions seamlessly.

By automating repetitive tasks, you can save time and focus on unleashing your creativity. Explore our website for a wide range of professionally crafted Photoshop actions designed to enhance your workflow and inspire new possibilities.

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