Adobe Photoshop CS4 Studio Techniques

Adjusting Methods

You can adjust a layer directly, or apply the adjustment through an adjustment layer. Let’s look at the fundamental differences between these approaches.

Making Direct Adjustments

When you adjust a selected layer by choosing Image > Adjustments and making a selection from the submenu (Figure 5.1), the adjustment affects only the active layer, and the original state of the layer will be changed permanently once you save and close the document. Think of this approach as your “in a hurry and not too worried about changing it later” adjustment. Direct adjustments have two major downsides:

• If you need to isolate an area, you have to create a selection before applying the adjustment or use the History Brush after the adjustment is ...