Adobe PHOTOSHOP 5.0 User Manual page 280

272 CHAPTER 11
Using Layers
If you have selected a tool without an
opacity option in its Options palette, use
the following shortcuts to change the opacity of
the active layer:
Press a number key to set the opacity in
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multiples of 10% (pressing 1 sets to 10%,
pressing 0 sets to 100%).
To specify an exact opacity, type the desired
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value.
Specifying layer blending modes
You use layer blending modes to determine how
the pixels in a layer are blended with underlying
pixels on other layers. By applying modes to
individual layers, you can create a variety of special
effects.
Note: There is no Clear blending mode for layers. In
addition, the Color Dodge, Color Burn, Darken,
Lighten, Difference, and Exclusion modes are
unavailable for Lab images.
For a color illustration of layer blending
modes, see page 234.
Specifying a range for blending layers
The sliders in the Layer Options dialog box let you
control which pixels from the active layer and
which from the underlying visible layers blend and
appear in the final image. For example, you can
drop dark pixels out of the active layer or force
bright pixels from the underlying layers to show
through. You can also define a range of partially
blended pixels to produce a smooth transition
between blended and unblended areas.
To define a range for the blending operation:
In the Layer Options dialog box, select a Blend
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If option:
Gray to specify a blending range for all channels.
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An individual color channel (for example, red,
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green, or blue in an RGB image) to specify
blending in that channel. For more information,
see "Color channels" on page 67.
Use the This Layer and Underlying sliders to set
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the brightness range of the blended pixels—
measured on a scale from 0 (black) to 255 (white).
Drag the white slider to set the high value of the
range. Drag the black slider to set the low value of
the range.
To define a range of partially blended pixels,
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hold down Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac OS),
and drag one half of a slider triangle. The two
values that appear above the divided slider indicate
the partial blending range.
Keep the following guidelines in mind when speci-
fying blending ranges:
Use the This Layer sliders to specify the range of
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pixels on the active layer that will blend and
therefore appear in the final image. For example, if
you drag the white slider to 235, pixels with
brightness values higher than 235 will remain
unblended and be excluded from the final image.