Layer Basics 2

Previous lesson activity

• This set of tutorials  is Meant to augment Chapter 5 of Classroom in a Book. Get it! Learn It! Live it!

Rearranging | Opacity and Modes | Linking | Gradients

1. Open your layers1.psd.

2. Make the doorway visible by clicking in the first column on the layers panel in front of the doorway to show the eye.

3. The door appears behind the doorway. We would like it to appear in front  of it. The relative positioning of the images in this case is editable by changing the stacking order. To change the stacking order, or the layer position on the layers palette, grab the door layer with your left mouse button. Holding your mouse down, drag the Door layer above the Doorway layer. The door now appears to be in front of the doorway.

Layer Opacity and Blending Modes

1. Make sure the door layer is still selected. Using the Opacity box at the top of the layers palette, change the opacity to 50%. Click the fly out menu for opacity and you will find a slider bar. Adjust to 50%. Only the active layer will change in opacity. You will be able to see through the door now to layers behind.

2. While the Door layer is still the active layer, we will change the layer mode. Notice the box at the top of the layers palette that says normal. This is the mode box. Click the drop down menu of the mode box and select the luminosity option.

3. Readjust the Opacity value to 90% for the final value.

4. Save your work.

Linking layers

1. Select the move tool (V) and drag your door to the right so the left edge of the door aligns to the right of the right side of the doorway inner arch.
2. With your door layer still active, click the second column on the layers palette just below your brush on the doorway layer. This will put a chain link in the column and cause the active layer and the linked layer to move together.

3. With your Move tool (V) now drag the door with the linked doorway to the left until the right side of the doorway is flush next to the edge of the canvas. Notice that linked layers move together.

4. Click edit=> transform=> scale. Linked layers are scaled together. Make the archway the fill height of the image while holding the shift key to constrain proportions.. Apply the scaling changes by hitting enter.

5. Save your file.

Adding a gradient to a layer

1. Click on the background to make it active.

2. Click the icon on the bottom of the layers palette to add a layer.

3. Double click the new layer to edit the name to Gradient.

4. Select the gradient tool (G) from the toolbox. In the options bar, select the Linear gradient button.

5. Click on the fly out menu for the gradient and select the foreground to transparent gradient.

6. Click on the swatch palette tab and use the picker to select a orange color. Notice your gradient changes to orange to transparent now.

7. Draw a gradient from left to right on the gradient layer while holding your shift key down. Drag the gradient tool across your canvas.

8. Change the layer opacity to 60% so the sunset shows through the purple.

9. Turn on your Statue layer view. Save and move to Layers 3. Next layers activity