How To Open Vector AI or EPS Files In Photoshop

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How To Open Vector AI or EPS Files In Photoshop

If you’ve ever been wondering, can Photoshop open EPS files? You’ve just landed on the right tutorial!

We received a lot of e-mails about how to open EPS files in Photoshop and how to use them without losing the quality of the vector in the process. This will make photo editing a lot more easy.

Whether you are using a PC or a Mac, the process is similar; the only difference is you will use “Cmd” instead of “CTRL.” We’re going to cover 2 ways to do the same. That said, let’s get straight to the point!

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Table Of Contents

Steps By Step Guide On How To Open EPS File In Photoshop

Step 1: Open Photoshop & Select File

Open Photoshop, then go to File > Open… and select your vector file. We will need a test subject for this, so we’ll use one of our vector packs: Mythical Creatures Vector Pack 1.

open EPS in Photoshop tutorial step1
Image showing Steps to Open EPS in Photoshop

Step 2: Input a File

Unlike a regular raster file, the .ai and the .eps files will prompt you to input a file size before it will be opened. This step is very important because Photoshop will open the file as a raster, not as a vector or a Smart Object (we’ll discuss this type of file later).
We recommend you input a fairly large size; then you can scale it down without losing quality.

open EPS in Photoshop tutorial step 2
Image showing how to Rasterize EPS Format

Now we have the full vector file converted to a raster (don’t worry, your original vector file is intact!) and can use it as a raster. But now we have an entire pack and want just a shape.

You might want to check 8 free portrait Photoshop actions to save you time.

photo of vectors
Image showing Mythical Creatures Vector Pack

Step 3: Remove Background

Some vectors may have a background because some vectors use transparency that requires a background (Multiply, for example, inherits a darker tone of the flat color below it). What do we do then? Don’t panic; We’re here to explain that too.
In the original file, grab the Magic Wand Tool (W), select the background color, and hit Delete. Hit CTRL+D to deselect.

import EPS to Photoshop tutorial showing Mythical Creatures Vector Pack
Image showing how to import EPS to Photoshop tutorial showing Mythical Creatures Vector Pack

Step 4: Copy & Paste

Here’s what to do: Grab the Rectangular Marquee Tool (M), select your shape, and copy it (CTRL+C). Now go to your document (CTRL+Tab) and paste it in.

open EPS file in Photoshop
Image showing how to copy and paste EPS file in Photoshop

Step 5: Scale it

Hit CTRL+T (Free Transform Mode), hold the SHIFT key, and scale it to fit your design. Hit Enter to exit this mode.

how to open EPS file in Photoshop
Image showing EPS file ready to be scaled

The downside of this workaround with vectors is the inability to rescale the elements to a larger size after you’ve shrunk it. But there is a way to do this if you copy a vector from Illustrator and paste it as Smart Object.

Step 6: Experiment With Scaling Up and Down

The Smart Object thingy is a vector file with scalable properties. If you double-click it, it will automatically open it in Illustrator and will allow you to fully edit it, just like a normal vector. Let’s scale them down, then scale them up and see what happens!

step by step tutorial image - EPS Photoshop tutorial
Image showing the before-after effects of scaling the EPS file

As you can see, the smart object preserves its quality, unlike the raster version, which dramatically gets ruined. We’ve exaggerated a bit with the scaling so the difference would be more obvious.

How to Convert an EPS File into PSD?

There is another way you can convert vectors into scalable Photoshop – Compound Shapes. This technique converts your vector shapes into Photoshop shapes (yes, the ones you usually create using the Path Tool).
Here’s how you convert them! (by the way, for this one, you’ll need Illustrator).

Step1: Open the File

Open your vector file in Illustrator (File > Open…). Select the vector you want, copy it, and create a new document (File > New…). Paste in the vector.

open vector in Photoshop
Image showing how to open vector in Photoshop
EPS Photoshop
Image showing how to open EPS file in Photoshop

Step 2: Use Magic Wand Tool

Grab the Magic Wand Tool (Y), hit Enter, and set the “Tolerance” value to “0”.

image of tutorial
Image showing how to use the magic wand tool

Check Out: 1830 Creative Photoshop Brushes

Step 3: Make Compound Shape

Select the outline go to the Pathfinder window (Window > Pathfinder) and access the floating menu. Select “Make Compound Shape.” Repeat this for every color in the vector.

open vector in Photoshop
Image showing how to make compound shapes

Step 4: Verify Every Layers

how to open EPS file
Image showing steps to verify each compound shape

To verify if you’ve done this for all shapes, expand the layer, then the group, and check if there are any “Path” sub-layers. If there are, click the small circles near the layer and convert them to compound shapes, like before. In the end, you should have only “Compound Shape” layers.

Step 5: Export the File 

Now we have compound shapes ready to be exported to Photoshop!

how to convert EPS file into PSD
Image showing how to export EPS file into PSD

Go to File > Export, select. PSD in the file type, name it, set the location to Desktop, and hit OK.

tutorial
Image showing how to save EPS in a PSD file

Step 6: Open Your PSD File

tutorial - EPS Photoshop
Image showing PSD file and various layers of the compound shape

Double-click the newly created. PSD file to open it in Photoshop. But wait, now instead of having a single layer with a vector, there are more layers, each with its own editable color, and organized nicely into a group.

More so, this file is also scalable, just like a vector and you can change each color with just a few clicks: simply double-click the square layer thumbnail and select the color.

how to open EPS file in Photoshop
Image showing how to pick a solid color for your compound shape
resulting PSD vector - EPS File Photoshop
Image showing the final conversion of an EPS file to a PSD file

And that’s it! That’s how you open EPS file in Photoshop. If you have any doubts, let us know in the comments below.

Do you want to learn more about how to work with Photoshop? See our Illustrator and Photoshop tutorials. They are all FREE.

Vector Graphics Tool: 10,000+ Vector Graphics Bundle

Editors Note – How To Open EPS File In Photoshop

“This article was originally published in February 2012 and has been since edited and revamped to contain the latest information possible.”

Like this post? Check out more inspirational and informational posts on Graphic Design.

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113 Comments on “How To Open Vector AI or EPS Files In Photoshop”

  3. Hi there, thankyou so much for this Tut, I only use photoshop so learning to open Ai files in photoshop is great, am learning myself photoshop and this something I had tried to do in past to no success. This Tut is fantastic.

    Hugs
    Wendy xx

    Reply

    • Wow.. You have great post with great knowledge..Thanks for shainrg with…. It’s really good informative post. We offer / / Magento / Wordpress / Blogger / Zencart / Cube cart/ Drupal / osCommerce or PSD to CSS conversion quick services with hand coded facilities.

      Reply

  6. Hi Doink – I am very THANKFUL to u as u shared very useful info with us , – u solved my problem of working with VECTOR files PS in very easy way – really thanx – I tried what u said above and got the desired results with vector files, REALLY THANX

    Reply

  16. Hi there, I tried what you said and got… Could not complete your request because Photoshop was unable to parse the PostScript…

    I’ve got an eps file downloaded from shutterstock and so I’m trying to bring in not only as a vector file but to access the layer where there is type so I can change it, but it when I do bring into photoshop or illustrator there are no layers…can you help?

    Reply

    • For Type layers, the process is different. Go to File > Export and make sure the “Write Layers” is checked, as well as the checkboxes below it (preserve text editability is a must). This feat is influenced by the document’s color mode, so if you want the .psd file to be in CMYK, make sure you convert the vector file to CMYK first.

      Reply

  17. How would you then use this with another picture? Like if I have an .eps file of a logo and I want to put a logo ontop of another image? Sorry if thats a nooby question, but I am a noob lol

    Reply

    • .eps files are compatible with photoshop. you can use File > Place… and select the .eps file. It will be pasted in as a smart object into your .psd file. If you want to transform the logo into .psd, simply repeat the process and drag-drop the layers from one file to another. Use Window > Arrange > Tile Horizontally to do this easier.

      Reply

  18. hello doink. would you please help me out. i have tried your second method. trying to select each part in illustrator by using magic wand, but then when i made compound shape, the stroke turned out to be bigger and connected each other. do you have any idea how to fix that or maybe i miss the step that could have worked out for this problem. cheers.

    Reply

  21. This was a great tutorial. I’ve been looking for something that would explain it for a beginner in Photoshop working with Vectors etc. Thanks again!

    Reply

  22. This is a cool tutorial but there is a sacrifice converting to compound shapes. For this type of graphic is is an OK way to go but if you have gradient mesh in your illustration it gets messy really fast. I always tell people if you want to do it right leave the AI file as is, bring it in as a smart object and use the right tool for the job when you need to edit a vector.

    Reply

  28. First method didn’t work in Photoshop CS5. Image is completely degradated after converting. What’s wrong?

    Reply

  32. Yes you can say that in a sense. But still lettermark is different than an emblem in that it involves mainly typographical elements.

    Reply

  33. hi, I tried your tutorial and did not succeaded. i’m using adobe CC. opening an AI file lead it to ask me of selecting one artboard as a PDF file. then I saved the illustrator file as EPS and opened it as you instricted, and it went well. althought, when I wanted to cut or delete the background- nothing happend. when I copied a part of the image to paste it in another file- it did not paste it, it pasted some a layer with the colors white and black in it.

    Do you have any solution?

    Thanks.

    Reply

  34. Thanks for this WONDERFUL tutorial. It’s so great and exactly what I needed. I had been looking for other tutorials to explain this and none of them come close to make it easy to understand with so many details. It’s a great post.

    Reply

  38. HY HOW TO REMOVE OR COLOUR WHITE BACKGROUND FROM ANY VECTOR TO USE IT WITH OTHER FILES
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    Reply

  39. I use Photoshop 40 hours a week for work, and also for fun! Anything and everything is possible, and without PS my life would not be what it is!

    Reply

  40. You know in Affinity, a file can be created in Designer (vector) and opened in Photo (raster) without compromising anything! All the information is there, all files in the Affinity suite can be opened in other apps and you won’t lose anything–layers, masks, clipping masks, text layers, adjustments, etc. they are all cross-program! There aren’t any of these steps involved in this article. Yikes! That’s a lot of work! One file one suite.

    Reply

  49. This is great. Thanks for the tutorial. Do you happen to have a live demo of how it acts, so we can try out the actions before going through all the work? Sorry if I missed the link somewhere.

    Reply

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  54. Thank you so much for your easy instructions! I was able to copy/paste the vector I needed for a sample page I was working on. Noob here. Thank you!!! :)

    Reply

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  93. Vector graphics are digital images created using mathematical formulas that define shapes, lines, curves, and colors. Unlike raster graphics, which are composed of pixels, vector graphics are resolution-independent and can be scaled and resized without losing quality. However you can get much effective pixels by image tracing service in vector graphics. really great, thanks for sharing this.

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  95. This technique is very helpful for beginner designers who can’t open the vector file in Photoshop.
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