Practical SharePoint 2010 Branding and Customization

List of Required Applications

You only need a handful of tools to create a custom branding for SharePoint 2010. You can create and edit everything in a simple application like Notepad. However, SharePoint Designer 2010 provides better readability by adding color to the separate out code elements and auto suggestions for coding. In most cases, you don't need anything more advanced than that. If you plan to create a featured solution file, you will need to use Visual Studio to package up the files into a .wsp file. Here is a list of some helpful tools for branding SharePoint:

• Adobe Photoshop or alternative: You need some type of photo-editing software to create and modify images to be used for the visual design.
• Microsoft SharePoint Designer 2010: ...