In Photoshop, layers are used to work on individual parts of an image while not affecting other parts. You might say that layers are like transparency papers stacked on top of one another which can be repositioned and separately drawn on without disturbing each other.
Explaining Layers
Consider the following Graphic created in Adobe Photoshop:
To the viewer, this is simply one flat graphic. However, in Photoshop, it is actually 4 separate layers (graphics if you will) stacked on top of one another. There is a Blue Background layer, two separate layers with a T9 Cloud, and a top layer with the “Tutorial9″ text.
As you can see, layers are more like transparencies stacked on top of one another, each with something different sketched onto them.
Let’s put this knowledge to use now!
How to use Layers in Photoshop
You may have an easier time understanding how to use layers if we take on a simple task in Photoshop that allows you to play with them yourself. Go ahead and Create a New Document (File > New). Set it up to be 400 x 400px, with a resolution of 72px/inch.
We’re going to create the following graphic using layers:
Filling the Background
Typically, when I’m working in Photoshop, I like to work from the background to the top (probably because that’s how the graphic is seen by viewers), so to start things off we are going to fill our background layer with a nice dull green.
Select a Dull Green Foreground Color. To do this, click your foreground color, and use the color sliders to find a suitable color. Alternatively, you can enter the HEX value 36442a next to the “#” symbol on the lower right side.
Click OK to confirm the color value you’ve picked. Now grab the Fill Tool from the Toolbox, and click anywhere in your working image area. Upon clicking the mouse button, your entire background layer should be filled with the foreground color.
Create a New Layer
Let’s take a quick peek at the Layers Palette, and examine some of it’s more basic functions:
To create a new layer, Click the “New Layer” icon shown above.
As you can see, a new layer “Layer 1” has been created. You can rename this layer by clicking the name of it twice, and entering whatever name you desire. While this layer is selected (highlighted) you will be working on this layer alone in the photoshop document!
Drawing the Grass
Select the Brush Tool from the toolbox. Adobe Photoshop already has a preset brush called “Dune Grass” which we are going to use to create the grass in our graphic.
In the brush tool’s Option Bar, open the Brush Preset Picker (Small down arrow to the right of the currently selected “Brush”). Scroll a ways down the list, and select the Dune Grass Brush.
We’re not going to go over brushes in great detail in the tutorial, but you do need to know that this brush is setup to alternate between foreground and background colors. Because of this, we need to select a background color with a similar green value (Such as #19250f).
Once you have a good foreground and background color selected, start painting with your brush in the working image area on your new layer. Hold down the Mouse Button to use the brush tool.
Let’s add some text now!
The Type Tool
Select the Horizontal Type Tool from the toolbox. Set your Foreground Color to White. Click anywhere in your working image area to begin typing.
Once you’ve typed something, select all of the text with your cursor (hold down the mouse button, and drag over the text to select). We’re going to adjust some of the type attributes in the Type Options Bar.
Set the Font to Arial, the font weight to Bold, the text size to 60 pt, and the anti-aliasing to Crisp.
As you can see, the Type Tool has created a new Type Layer in your layers palette for the text. To apply the text, click this new layer (Or click Ctrl + Enter).
Great! Now let’s position our new type tool so that it appears to be emerging from the grass.
Moving Layers
The first thing we need to do is position our Type Layer below the Grass Layer so that the Grass will appear in front of it. In your layers palette, click and drag your Type Layer below the Grass layer.
Now we can use the Move Tool to reposition our layer in the working image area. While the Type Layer is selected,get the Move Tool from the toolbox, and drag the text in the working image area to where the grass starts to end.
Pretty Simple, eh? Now that you have the general idea of layers down, let’s create a few more and play with some of their options.
Opacity, Blending Modes & Filling Selections
Create a New Layer just above the background (below the type and grass layers), and drag out an elliptical selection using the Elliptical Marquee Tool (this tool may be hidden behind another marquee selection tool).
Using the Fill Tool, fill this selection (on your new layer) with White. Once filled, Deselect everything (Select > Deselect, or Ctrl + D).
You should have a large, white circle in your document now. Set this layers Blending Mode to Overlay in the layers palette:
Setting the blending mode is that easy! I won’t go into details about blending modes in this tutorial, but please experiment with them to get an idea of what they do.
Now set the Opacity to something like 15-20%.
Simple! Now right click this new layer, and select Duplicate Layer. This will create an exact copy of this layer (retaining layer opacity and blending mode). Using the Move Tool reposition this layer so that you can clearly see the two different circle edges.
See how you can see through the top circle to see the circle behind it? This is because our circle layers are somewhat transparent, otherwise known as less opaque. By setting the opacity to something below 100%, we are able to see through objects.
Finally, let’s take a look at one more useful feature in the layers palette. Click the New Group icon at the bottom of the layers palette (the one shaped like a folder).
Groups function in a similar manner to a folder. You can put multiple layers inside of a group, and then when you select the group (versus an individual layer), you’re able to adjust the opacity, blending mode, and position of all those layers at the same time (as well as several other things).
Let’s give it a try! Drag your two circle layers inside of the group.
Once both layers have been placed in the group (they should appear indented from the other layers), Select the Group in the layers palette. Using the Move Tool, drag inside of your working image area. Both your circle layers should move at the exact same time, yet they still retain their individual layer attributes!
Now that you have a better understanding of layers, learning some of Photoshop’s more interesting features should be a breeze!
How to Make Great Fireworks in Photoshop
Creating Holiday Wreaths
Create a Vibrant Blueprint in Photoshop
Create a 3D Glossy Box Logo in Photoshop
Man, you’re really great, every day another Tutorial xD. Thank you man, they’re great, though I don’t need them. But I think there are many people out there who really, really need them.
thank you prof
this website is very helpful to the beginners like me!
thank you so much for this tutorials..
Keep up the Good work!
No problem mate! Hope you enjoy the rest of our School of Photoshop series. It’s specifically targeted to people like you
Whoa! Thats a really nice 3D diagram you did for layers. Once again, very good explanations on something that is very important to designers like us! Are you going to explain the other kinds of layers sometime soon?
Thanks Marcus, I appreciate it mate!
And to answer your question, yes, I will be covering adjustment layers, and other types of layers in future tutorials, so stick around
Great tut man, all your tuts are great. very easy and fast explanations. Congratz! Keep working like this! you’re helping a lot of people to improve! Way to go!
Cheers!
Thanks! This is exactly the kind of tutorial I’ve been looking for. I made it through with no problems!
Another excellent tutorial. Thank you!
Thank you!
For taking the time out of your day just to help us noobs at this PS stuff. this helped out very much, Amazing!
usefull website
Thanks!! Great tutorial, exactly what I needed.
Very good, well detailed explanations with excellent accompanying graphics. Much better than even some explanations in some photoshop books.
Keep up the good work.
Even though I’m not a noob, I still find it helpful to get as much info as I can on PS. You never know what new insight, or tip, you might gleam.
Thanks for sharing this! It’s the one I’ve been looking for! With this, I made my own Tutorials similar to yours. I extend my credits to you!
man thank you soooo much this is what i need some simple photoshop tuts you make photoshop a breeeze thnx
Thank you for this tutorial, it is my first time doing a “real” Photoshop tutorial and I was really nervous. Thank you it’s brilliant
Everything was fin euntil I had to move the group. Because the circles just won’t move! I selected the group (my layers palette looks the same), picked the move tool, but they just won’t move!
@ Jana - Make sure you drag the two circle layers into that Group. When they are inside of the group, they will appear indented from the rest of the layers.
oh! thank you so much!
this is a very useful tutorial thanks for making it !!
thanks so much for the tutorial! I am, now able to make my own touched with psd! ^^ But, I have a slight problem. I noticed that I only have a rectangular Marquee tool 1. — I can’t using any circle or oval marquee tool.. huhu. I really hope you can help where I can found the tool? For an info, I am currently using Photoshop CS3.
Thanks in advance!
@ ladyheart - Very happy to hear you found this tutorial useful! To get to the additional selection tools, press and Hold the mouse button on the rectangular marquee tool to reveal the others.
Hope that helps!
@ Jana & benisbob - Thanks for the feedback folks =)
oh.. yup! haha.. very funny I didn’t know it was hidden there! hehe..
Thanks so much! your page is my num 1 psd reference! ^^
Thanks for this tutorial it was exactly what I needed, its so clear and easy to follow thank you so much!!
I have at least 12 sites with tutorials saved on my PC, but
it seems every one I go to, I always run into some kind of
problems, because most of them assume you know how to do a
specific step & just pass it by.
But your site, is fabulous, thus far. Super easy to follow,
especially for beginners like myself. And I appreciate you
putting forth the time & effort to help out people interested
in the Photoshop world.
Thanks a ton, & I hope your site only
continues to grow!
Thanks so much Josh =) We wanted to make sure we had an easy way to reference basic steps in Photoshop, that way we never left anyone out, and at the same time introduce ANYONE into software like Photoshop without the need to shell out tons of money. The School of Photoshop solves both problems, and I think a lot of people are finding it to be very useful so far!
Again, thanks for your feedback! Really appreciate it mate!
Love it! Excellent tutorial, I understand layers a lot better now.
Thanks man! Ive bought many books to help me work out this PS, but they all seem to think people have enough knowledge to get through without showing what the icons look like (very frustrating), you’ve opened up a whole new interest! Many thanks.
Jonathan
Thanks.I thing it is the best for beginer.Keep going.
Wow. i just practise this and i made it! but your grass is more pretty than mine
thanks alot! u helped peoples beginner like me.
My man David, i salute u…. u have taken so much pain to reduce ours… hats off to u!!!!
I never thought layers could be this easy….
Cant waste time…. I am going to the next lesson!!!
Thanx again!!!
Thanks a lot for such an interesting lessons!
I’ve tried studing Photoshop with help of different other resourses, but this one is the most effective!
I’M NOT LAZY!
It’s a miracle!
Best Photoshop site around, be it for begginers or pro’s. =D
Wow….this was awesome. I had to look up a chart of the tools separately, since I did not realize some tools ‘hide’ behind others…but once I did that, this was great!
You may want to add graphics of the main tools and the hidden tools somehow!
Thanks so much for this.
Well done. You are a very good instructor, I look forward to seeing other applications and tutorials in the future.
thank you so much, I am very new to photoshop and always wanted to learn layers. This is great!!
Are all your tutorials free?
Is there a tutorial on cloning that I can access?
@Joe Busuttil: Yup, every single one! We have a tutorial for the Retouch and Healing tools in Photoshop, which is probably what you’re looking for.
You might be interested in all the tutorials from our “School of Photoshop” series.
Thank you so much for the great tutorial!
It work great the layers,I have a lot learned and play with this stuff. It make me a happy artist. And taught that it was so difficult.
This tuturial is very nice, simple to understand for someone who have not touch photoshop before, couldnt thank you more enough, good job!
You are officially my hero. I just downloaded Photoshop for the first time, and I was having SO much trouble understanding it, but this tutorial really helped to clear up a lot of the problems I had been having. The walk-through was exactly what I needed to understand it. Thanks!
I am a newbie to Photoshop. Searched for ages for “how to’s” then found all I needed right here on your site. Thanks a lot - keep up the good work.
I am new to photoshop and have struggled to understand anything until I found this tutorial and for the first time ever am beginning to think there is hope even for me!!
Many thanks for this and I look forward to the next one
thanks very much
Just when I think iv found just about all the resources I could possibly want to learn more in Photoshop, I come across this! Many thanks. Having been playing with PS only a couple of weeks I’m still getting to grips with the basic controls and this was very helpful. Sometimes you need tutorials this simple just to get you going, so many thanks! Keep it up o/