FAQ and Troubleshooting – Pioneer Woman Actions for Photoshop Elements

I can’t find the Photo Effects Folder.

Review your installation path and compare it to the installation instructions.  Did you select Program FILES or Program DATA?  The folder you need is Program DATA.  If you don’t see it, refer to the instructions for how to “unhide” hidden folders.

I have black thumbnails in my effects palette with no images, AND

I get error messages about the file not being compatible with this version of Photoshop and a lack of memory (RAM).

Return to the instructions for your version of PSE and your operating system.  You have pasted files that shouldn’t be in your Photo Effects folder.  These extra files are producing the error messages and the black boxes.  Also, make sure that you haven’t inadvertently changed the file name of any files.  This will also produce error messages.

Nothing happens after I press Stop at the end of an action.

Pressing stop at any part of an action in PSE will undo the action.  Always press Continue when given the option, even at the end of an action.

My action produces a message that says “The object “layer “Background”" is not currently available.

Run your action on a Flattened Image only.  This means that your image should only have one layer in the Layers Palette and should look like this:

To flatten an image, right click on the layers palette and select “Flatten Image.”  If the only layer isn’t named “Background,” double click on the layer’s name to change it.

Nothing happened when the action ran.

Look at the Layers Palette.  Do you see a layer mask that is completely black, like this?

Layer masks that are completely black hide the effect that the layer produces.  To reveal the effect in spots, paint on the mask with a white brush.  To reveal the effect everywhere, go to Edit/Fill and select White to fill the entire layer mask with white (like the Zing layer above).

I painted on my layer mask, but nothing happened or the changes didn’t look like I expected them to look.

First, make sure that your paint brush blend mode is set to normal.  This is not the same as the layers blend mode – look at the top of the screen with the brush options.  You can also increase the opacity of the brush if it is less than 100%.

Next, make sure that the layer mask is active for editing.  Click on the black or white box (the thumbnail on the right) to activate it.  It should have a white outline around it, otherwise it won’t work.

I want to increase (or decrease) the overall effect of a layer.

To increase the effect of a layer, increase the opacity on the layers palette.  If the layer is already at 100%, you can duplicate the layer for twice the effect.  To decrease the effect of a layer, reduce the layer opacity.