How To Arrange Layers In Photoshop

Rearranging layers

The social club in which the layers of an epitome are organized is called the stacking order. The stacking social club determines how the image is viewed—y'all tin change the order to make certain parts of the image announced in front end of or behind other layers.

You lot'll rearrange the layers so that the beach image is in front of another image that is currently subconscious in the file.

Make the Stamp, HAWAII, Flower, Pineapple, and Background layers visible past clicking the Show/Hide Visibility cavalcade adjacent to their layer names.

The beach epitome is near entirely blocked by images on other layers.
In the Layers panel, drag the Embankment layer upwards and so that it is positioned betwixt the Pineapple and Flower layers—when y'all've positioned it correctly, you'll meet a thick line between the layers in the panel—and then release the mouse push button.

The Beach layer moves up one level in the stacking order, and the beach image appears on top of the pineapple and groundwork images, only under the postage, bloom, and the word "HAWAII."

Changing the opacity of a layer

You can reduce the opacity of any layer to reveal the layers below it. In this example, the postmark is likewise dark on the flower. You'll edit the opacity of the Stamp layer to let the flower and other images show through.

Select the Postage layer, and and then click the arrow next to the Opacity field to display the Opacity slider. Elevate the slider to 25%. Yous can as well type 25 in the Opacity box or scrub the Opacity label.

The Postage stamp layer becomes partially transparent, so you tin can run across the other layers underneath. Observe that the change in opacity affects only the paradigm expanse of the Postage layer. The Pineapple, Embankment, Flower, and HAWAII layers remain opaque.
Cull File > Save to save your work.

Duplicating a layer and changing the blending manner

You can apply different blending modes to a layer. Blending modes affect how the color pixels on one layer alloy with pixels on the layers underneath. Commencement you'll use blending modes to increase the intensity of the epitome on the Pineapple layer then that information technology doesn't look so dull. So you'll modify the blending fashion on the Postage stamp layer. (Currently, the blending mode for both layers is Normal.)

Click the eye icons next to the HAWAII, Flower, and Beach layers to hide them.
Right-click or Command-click the Pineapple layer, and choose Indistinguishable Layer from the context menu. (Make sure you click the layer proper noun, not its thumbnail, or you'll come across the wrong context bill of fare.) Click OK in the Duplicate Layer dialog box.

A layer called "Pineapple copy" appears to a higher place the Pineapple layer in the Layers console.
With the Pineapple copy layer selected, choose Overlay from the Blending Modes bill of fare in the Layers panel.

The Overlay blending mode blends the Pineapple copy layer with the Pineapple layer beneath it to create a vibrant, more colorful pineapple with deeper shadows and brighter highlights.
Select the Postage layer, and cull Multiply from the Blending Modes carte du jour.

The Multiply blending manner multiplies the colors in the underlying layers with the color in the top layer. In this case, the postmark becomes a picayune stronger.
Choose File > Salvage to salve your work.

Resizing and rotating layers

Y'all tin can resize and transform layers.

Click the Visibility cavalcade on the Beach layer to make the layer visible.
Select the Beach layer in the Layers panel, and choose Edit > Gratis Transform.

A Transform bounding box appears around the beach image. The bounding box has handles on each corner and each side.

Starting time, you'll resize and bending the layer.
Press Shift equally you drag a corner handle inward to scale the beach photo down by about 50%. (Watch the Width and Height percentages in the options bar.)
With the bounding box nonetheless active, position the pointer simply outside 1 of the corner handles until it becomes a curved double arrow. Drag clockwise to rotate the beach image approximately 15 degrees. You tin besides enter fifteen in the Set Rotation box in the options bar.
Click the Commit Transform button () in the options bar.
Make the Bloom layer visible. Then, select the Motion tool (), and elevate the beach photograph so that its corner is tucked neatly below the flower, as in the illustration.
Cull File > Save.

Using a filter to create artwork

Side by side, you lot'll create a new layer with no artwork on information technology. (Calculation empty layers to a file is comparable to calculation blank sheets of flick to a stack of images.) Yous'll use this layer to add realistic-looking clouds to the heaven with a Photoshop filter.

In the Layers panel, select the Groundwork layer to make it active, and so click the Create A New Layer button () at the lesser of the Layers panel.

A new layer, named Layer i, appears between the Background and Pineapple layers. The layer has no content, and then it has no issue on the prototype.
Double-click the name Layer 1, type Clouds, and press Enter or Render to rename the layer.
In the Tools panel, click the foreground color swatch, select a sky blue color from the Color Picker, and click OK. We selected a color with the post-obit values: R=48, G=138, B=174. The Groundwork Color remains white.
With the Clouds layer still agile, choose Filter > Render > Clouds.

Realistic-looking clouds appear backside the image.
Choose File > Save.

Dragging to add a new layer

Yous can add a layer to an paradigm by dragging an epitome file from the desktop, Bridge, or Explorer (Windows) or the Finder (Mac Os). You'll add another blossom to the postcard now.

If Photoshop fills your monitor, reduce the size of the Photoshop window:
In Photoshop, select the Pineapple copy layer in the Layers panel to brand information technology the active layer.
In Explorer (Windows) or the Finder (Mac OS), navigate to the Lessons folder you downloaded from the peachpit.com website. Then navigate to the Lesson04 folder.
Select Flower2.psd, and elevate it from Explorer or the Finder onto your image.

The Flower2 layer appears in the Layers console, straight above the Pineapple copy layer. Photoshop places the paradigm equally a Smart Object, which is a layer you can edit without making permanent changes. You'll work more extensively with Smart Objects in Fifty***esson 8.
Position the Flower2 layer in the lower left corner of the postcard, so that virtually one-half of the top flower is visible.
Click the Commit Transform button () in the options bar to accept the layer.

Adding text

Now you're ready to create some blazon using the Horizontal Type tool, which places the text on its ain type layer. You'll and then edit the text and use a special effect.

Brand the HAWAII layer visible. Yous'll add text just below this layer, and apply special furnishings to both layers.
Choose Select > Deselect Layers, so that no layers are selected.
In the Tools console, select the Horizontal Blazon tool (). Then, cull Window > Character to open up the Grapheme panel. Practice the following in the Character panel:
Click only below the "H" in the discussion "HAWAII," and type Island Paradise. So click the Commit Any Electric current Edits push button () in the options bar.

The Layers panel at present includes a layer named Island Paradise with a "T" thumbnail, indicating that it is a type layer. This layer is at the top of the layer stack.

The text appears where you clicked, which probably isn't exactly where you want information technology to be positioned.
Select the Move tool (), and drag the "Island Paradise" text then that it is centered beneath "HAWAII."