By using software shortcuts you can boost up your productivity. here are some useful photoshop shorcuts and tips as i know.

Hope it helps some of you out…..

1. Ctrl + 0 (Fit to Screen) — This is a command to get the entire photo in front of your eyes.
2. [Ctrl + Alt + Z] — this is a command usedm for Undo, Multiple Times
3. Shift + [ (Decrease Brush Softness) — Decrease the softness of the brush by 25%
4. [Ctrl + Tab] — when working on multiple files you can Switch Document Windows quickly
5. [Ctrl + =] – [Ctrl + -] – [Ctrl + 0] ——— zoom in , zoom out , fit to window
6. Tab —With this you can show or hide your all palettes and take a quick look only on your picture.
7. Shift + R — Use it to cycle through other tools in blur tools group.
8. Ctrl + Alt + Shift + K -Show Keyboard Commands
9. Ctrl + P – Print Dialogue Box
10. Ctrl + J – Automatically creates a duplicate of the currently selected layer
11. Ctrl + Shift + N (New Layer) — This will bring up the new layer dialog box and place a new layer on top of the active layer.
12. ALT+Click —- just alt + click on the “eye” icon in the layer’s palette to hide all other layers.
13. Double Click —- on the stage (the gray area) to open a file
14. CTRL+Double Click —— to create a new file.
15. Hold +Alt and click on any of the history step, that step will be copied and become the most recent one.
16. Ctrl+Shift+E —— will merge all visible layers to one layer
17. Ctrl+Shift+Alt+E —– will make copy of the original and merge all visible layers.
18. Shift + click —- To draw a straight line, click then move to the end point and hold shift + click.

Shortcut keys:

V (Move tool) — Use this to move layers around in an image.
T (Type tool) — Brings up the type tool.
C (Crop tool) — Brings up the crop tool.
N (Notes tools) — Brings up the notes tool.
W (Magic wand tool) — Brings up the magic wand tool
M (Marque tool) — Brings up the marque tool.
Z (Zoom Tool) — This command brings up the zoom tool, which allows you to zoom in.
E (Eraser tool) — Brings up the eraser tool.
f1 – Toggles Adobe Online Help
f5 - Toggles Brush style palette
f6 – Toggles Colour, Swatches, Styles palette
f7 – Toggles Layers, Channels, Paths palette
f8 – Toggles Navigator, Info palette
f9 – Toggles Actions, History, Presets palette

Some tips:

• Press Tab will hide tool bar and palette, Shift+Tab will hide only palette.
• Double click the top blue bar, on any palette window, to minimize it.
• Caps lock will switch your cursor for accuracy.
• To draw a straight line, click then move to the end point and hold shift + click.
• Press F button, it will switch between 3 different screen modes and give you more working area.
• With Measure Tool, draw a line then hold Alt and draw another line from the end of the first line, it will measure the angle.
• Ctrl+Alt+Z and Ctrl+Shift+Z will go back and forth in the history.
• Hold Space bar, it will make any tool into “Hand Tool” until you release Space bar.
• When free transforming with Ctrl+T, hold Alt to keep the original image and then to transform a duplicated layer of it. Ctrl+Shift+T to repeat whatever you did in the last transform.
• While using Marquee Tools, hold Alt it will make the starting point as a center of the selection.
• Select a layer, hold Alt and click the top edge of another layer, it will group them.
• File> Automate > Contact Sheet: this can create a small thumbnail for every file, this can save you some time from searching.
• Alt drag a step from a serial action can copy it to another action.
• If you create something in Illustrator, copy and paste it in Photoshop, it will ask you if you want this to be a pixel, path, or shape layer.
• To center an image, Ctrl + A , Ctrl + X, Ctrl + V, I think it also puts that image on a new layer.
• Pressing X will switch the selected foreground and background colors.
• Pressing D will reset the foreground and backgrounds colors to black and white.
• To see what your layer mask looks like (and edit it), Alt+click its thumbnail in the layers palette
• After you created a text you can click on font type tab and tap “down” key over and over to scroll through the font list and see the changes in (relatively) real time. A feature that I am tired of waiting to happen in illustrator.
• When you select something, pressing Ctrl+J will copy the selected area and add another layer with the copied area – opposing copying the layer, making a new layer, and pasting it.
• If you have a mini scroll on your mouse, you may use that to zoom in (scroll up) or zoom out (scroll down).
• Need to get rid of a background quick? Assuming you at least know how to crop around an object, do so. Now press Ctrl+I or Shift+Ctrl+I for Inverse Selection. Press Ctrl+X to %@#!* that part out, and you should be left with the object!

cheers!!