How to Use Photoshop Cs3 Layers

Photoshop CS3, part of the Adobe Creative Suite, comes with a functionality that allows you to create something similar to the child's old flip-book toy. You've got the sturdy base of the book (your image's background) and the many thin, flippable pages (Photoshop's layers). A layer in Photoshop works to add something to your design without changing the actual design; it's added on top of the design until you decide to meld the two together. Layers give you that extra design room and more control over your final product.

Instructions

1. Open Photoshop CS3, pull down the "File" menu and click "Open." Browse to a digital image and double-click the file to open it in the Photoshop workspace.

2. Pull down the "Window" menu and click "Show Layers." The "Layers" palette opens on the right side of the screen with one layer called Background, which is your image.

3. Click the "New Layer" icon, which looks like a bent sticky note, at the bottom of the "Layers" palette. A new layer called Layer 1 is added. Right-click Layer 1 and select "Layer Properties." Change the name of the layer to "Lines" and click "OK."

4. Click the "Paintbrush" tool on the "Tools" palette on the left side of the screen. Draw a couple of squiggly lines over your image, as if you are spray painting some graffiti.

5. Click the icon of the eyeball on the "Layers" palette to the left of your "Lines" layer. This hides the layer and only shows your original image. It doesn't delete the layer, it just makes it temporarily invisible. Click the eyeball again to bring the lines back. Right-click the "Delete Layer" option and click "OK" at the warning window to delete the layer.

6. Add a new layer and rename it "Filter."

7. Pull down the "Filter" menu, click "Artistic" and select "Neon Glow." Click "OK" and review the changes to your image; it now takes on a night-light artistic style.

8. Click the eyeball and the filter style is hidden; you're back to your original image. Click the eyeball again to bring the filter back out.

9. Click the right-pointing triangle in a circle icon or the three lines icon at the top of the "Layers" palette. Select "Flatten Image." Notice that the "Filter" layer goes away and you only have the "Background" layer, but all you can see is the filter. This is because the "Flatten" function works to blend all of your layers together as one, from top to bottom. Pull down the "Edit" menu and select "Undo Flatten Image" as a way to step back and get your layer back.

10. Pull down the "File" menu and click "Close." When Photoshop CS3 asks whether to save your image, click "No" so you do not overwrite the original.

References

• University of Washington: Working with Layers