- Chapter 7: Speedy Gonzalez: Layer Tips
- NAMING LAYERS (AND WHY YOU SHOULD)
- LOCK ALL THOSE LAYERS IN JUST ONE CLICK
- TOGGLE THROUGH THE BLEND MODEs
- HIDE YOUR OTHER LAYERS IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE
- WHY DRAGGING AND DROPPING STYLES ROCKS!
- APPLYING LAYER STYLES TO YOUR BACKGROUND LAYER
- LOCK, LOAD, AND MOVE LAYERS
- MANAGING YOUR LAYERS
- INSTANT OPACITY CHANGE
- COPY A LAYER IN THE SAME LOCATION IN ANOTHER DOCUMENT
- MOVING MULTIPLE LAYERS FROM DOCUMENT TO DOCUMENT
- CENTERING DRAGGED LAYERS THE EASY WAY
- EASIER DROP SHADOW ANGLE ADJUSTMENTS
- LAYER NAVIGATION SHORTCUT
- SUPER-FAST LAYER COPIES
- INSTANT LAYER ALIGNMENT
- SEPARATION ANXIETY: PUT A LAYER STYLE ON A SEPARATE LAYER
- LAYER EFFECTS REMOVAL SPEED TIP
- JUMP TO ANY LAYER JUST BY CLICKING IN YOUR IMAGE
- COLOR-CODING MADE EASY
- CAN'T PAINT ON A LAYER? HERE'S WHY
- SPEED UP PHOTOSHOP BY MERGING LAYERS
- LAYER SET SUPER-SPEED TIP
- SAVE ROOM IN YOUR LAYERS PALETTE
- CAN'T WE ALL JUST HAVE THE SAME STYLE?
- LAYER PALETTE NAVIGATION SPEED TIPS
- QUICK COPY YOUR LAYER MASK
- SELECT EVERYTHING ON YOUR LAYER IN ONE CLICK
- VIEW YOUR LAYER MASK AS A RUBYLITH
- SELECTING JUST ONE OBJECT ON A LAYER
- KEEP LAYER STYLES FROM AFFECTING NEW WORK
- UN-FILLING FOR FUN AND PROFIT
- OPACITY SLIDER SPEED TIPS
- CHANGE LAYER SET BLEND MODES WITH CAUTION
- AVOIDING THE LAYER MENU
- MORE CONTROL OVER BLENDS: ADVANCED BLENDING
- SHAPES WITHOUT THE SHAPE LAYER
- SECRET OPACITY SEE-THROUGH PART OF A LAYER TIP
MORE CONTROL OVER BLENDS: ADVANCED BLENDING
Using Blend Modes is a great way to get the layer you're on to interact with the layers beneath it. The only problem is you don't have much control over these Blend Modesthey either look the way you want them to, or not. They're pretty much an "on" or "off" tool. If you're looking for that next level of control over how layers interact with each other, you need the advanced Blending Options. These are found by double-clicking on the layer. What appears onscreen looks like the Layer Style dialog box (and in fact, it is), but if you look closely, you'll see two slider bars giving you control over how your layered images interact. Here's another quick tip: If you hold the Option key (PC: Alt key) before you drag one of the sliders, it will split the slider in two, which gives you smoother transitions and more usable blend effects.