Photoshop Elements 5: The Missing Manual

168 Photoshop Elements 5: The Missing Manual

Moving Layers

Between Images

Full Photoshop uses layer masks for many other purposes, but in Elements, these

layers are the only place you encounter a layer mask. The great thing about layer

masks is that you can edit them by painting on them, as explained on page 274. In

other words, you can go back later and change the part of your image that the

Adjustment layer affects.

Incidentally, the term layer mask may be a bit confusing if you’re thinking about

masking with the Selection brush. With the Selection brush, masking prevents

something from being changed. A layer mask really works the same way, but by

definition, it starts out empty; in other words, the mask can be used to prevent

your adjustment from affecting parts of the layer, but not until you mask out parts

of your image by painting on the layer mask. So to begin with, your entire layer is

affected by your change. You can learn how to edit layer masks on page 274.

Moving Layers Between Images

If you use layers, it’s extremely easy to combine parts of different photos together.

Just put what you want from photo A into its own layer and then drag it onto

photo B. The trick is that you have to drag the layer from the Layers palette.Ifyou

try to drop one photo directly onto another photo’s window, you’ll just wind up

with a lot of windows stacked up on top of each other (unless you activate the