Chapter 9: Layers, Masking, And Blending - MACROMEDIA FIREWORKS 8-USING FIREWORKS Use Manual

CHAPTER 9
9
Layers, Masking,
and Blending
Layers divide a Macromedia Fireworks 8 document into discrete planes, as though the
components of the illustration were drawn on separate tracing paper overlays. A document
can be made up of many layers, and each layer can contain many objects. In Fireworks, the
Layers panel lists layers and the objects contained in each layer. Fireworks layers are similar to
layer sets in Photoshop. Photoshop layers are similar to individual Fireworks objects.
Masking gives you creative control over layers and objects. You can apply masks and blending
modes from the Layers panel. You can also create masks using options on the Select and
Modify menus. You can use a vector object or a bitmap object to block out part of the
underlying image. For example, if you want to block out part of a photograph so that it
appears to have an elliptical frame around it, you can paste an elliptical shape as a mask on top
of the photograph. All areas outside the ellipse disappear as if cropped, showing only the part
of the picture inside the ellipse.
Blending techniques give you another level of creative control. You can create unique effects
by blending the colors in overlapping objects. Fireworks has several blending modes to help
you achieve the look you want.
This chapter contains the following topics:
Working with layers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
Masking images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
Blending and transparency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230
203