cs5 crop leaves same pixel count

I don't think I changed anything that would affect this and I certainly don't recall it being this way in cs4 but when I use the crop tool in photoshop itself, not ACR, I am left with an image of the same pixel count of as the original. I.e. if I have a 3000x5000 image, crop it to what should be 1500x2500, I am left with the zoomed in image but image size still shows 3000x5000.

Am I missing something really simple here?

e: I should note that this is only the case when using the crop tool. If I use the rectangular selection tool and go to image - crop, the image size is reduced as it should be.

It sounds like you've got values in the Options Bar for the crop tool. More specifically, it sounds like you've hit the "Front Image" button. Press the "Clear" button before cropping.

Thanks! Yes, I have hit that and when I hit clear things work as they should. I was mistakenly under the impression that all front-image does is maintain the original aspect ratio.

There's no benefit in cropping to the same aspect ratio.

In fact, I would strongly discourage cropping AT ALL during the course of post-processing. Cropping should only be done at the desired output shape/size when you're ready to print or post to the web.

Damo77 wrote in post #10278128
There's no benefit in cropping to the same aspect ratio.

Cropping should only be done at the desired output shape/size when you're ready to print or post to the web.

Good advice, Damien. Think I'd better incorporate that philosophy into my workflow (I've always cropped before saving).
That said, how much do you think will be lost when any given jpg is edited and saved for a second time given that jpg is a lossy process?

A good quality jpeg has to be opened/edited/resaved many times before any visible degradation presents itself.

But that wasn't the point of my reply. The point of not cropping during editing is that you allow yourself plenty of flexibility to choose any print size. Many's the time that we see people lamenting on these boards that they can't properly print an 8x10 because of their tight crop or composition.

Much better to edit the whole photo, and keep it at full size, then just crop for the specific output purpose, and save a jpeg for said purpose.

A little food for thought here.

Cool. Thanks! Good to know. I've always been a little paranoid about how much was truly lost during multiple saves. And thanks for your link. Good info.
I understood the point of your reply (and totally agree). My question was one that popped into my head at the last moment .
I never touch the original jpeg. But I do tend to hold onto too many copies. Something else I may need to rethink.