Adobe Photoshop CC for Photographers, 2015 Release, 3rd Edition

Chapter 8

Layers, selections and masking

For a lot of photographers the real fun starts when you can use Photoshop to create composite photographs and combine different image elements into a single photo. This chapter explains the different tools that can be used for creating composite photographs as well as the intricacies of working with layers, channels, mask channels and pen paths. To begin with, I shall focus on some of the basic principles such as how to make a selection and the interrelationship between selections, alpha channels, masks and the Quick Mask mode.

Figure 8.1 A selection is represented in Photoshop using marching ants. ...