Photoshop CC: The Missing Manual

Global Lighting

When you add a layer style that includes embossing, a shadow, or other depth-related effect to a Video layer, you can set its lighting angle. And if you apply layer styles to multiple layers in a video project, you probably want all the light to look like it’s coming from the same angle. To ensure consistent lighting, you can add a global lighting track by heading to the Timeline panel’s menu and choosing Show→Global Light Track. The global lighting track overrides any other lighting angles that may have been set in individual layers. (To change the angle of the light over time, you can add multiple global lighting keyframes that have different lighting angles.)

To set a global lighting angle and apply it to your video project:

1. From the Timeline panel’s menu, choose Show→Global Light Track.

   Photoshop adds the Global Lighting track to the top of the track stack in the Timeline panel.

2. Create a new layer by clicking the New Layer icon at the bottom of the Layers panel.

3. Add a layer style by clicking the fx icon at the bottom of the Layers panel.

   Pick Bevel & Emboss, Inner Shadow, or Drop Shadow, as those are the layer styles that offer a Use Global Light option. When you make a choice from this menu, Photoshop opens the Layer Style dialog box.

4. In the Layer Style dialog box, set the lighting angle and turn on the Use Global Light checkbox.

   Use the Angle dial to set the angle you want for the first portion of your project (you can also type a number into the field to its right), ...