Adobe Creative Cloud Design Tools Digital Classroom

Photoshop Lesson 6: Introduction to Photoshop Layers

 

Once you discover how to use layers, you can expand your capabilities to create incredible compositions, repair images, and easily apply effects.

What you’ll learn in this lesson:

• • Starting to create layers
• • Selecting and moving layers
• • Using layer masks
• • Creating compositions
• • Understanding clipping masks

Starting up

Before starting, make sure that your tools and panels are consistent by resetting your preferences. See “Resetting Adobe Photoshop CC preferences” in the Starting up section of this book.

You will work with several files from the ps06lessons folder in this lesson. Make sure that you have loaded the CClessons folder onto your hard drive from www.digitalclassroombooks.com/CC/DesignTools. See “Loading lesson files” in the Starting up section of this book.

Discovering layers

Think of layers as clear sheets of film, each containing its own image content. Layers can be stacked on top of each other, and you can see through the transparent area of each layer to view the content on the layers below. Each layer is independent of the others and can have its contents changed without affecting the others. You can reorder layers to create different stacking orders, and change the blending modes on the layers to create interesting overlays. Once you have mastered layers, you can create composites and repair image data ...