SECTION 4
Lesson 4.1: Using Masks

   

 

 

It may happen that you want to move your layer mask from one layer to another. For example, in the layers palette shown below, you may wish to move your layer mask from the top layer, to the second layer, or bottom layer.

 

 

To move your mask to the second layer, select the second layer by clicking on it. Next, drag the layer mask icon from the first layer, over and down to the new layer mask icon at the bottom of the palette.

 


 

 

Performing this action will create a copy of the mask on the selected (destination layer).

 

 

When you right click on the layer mask icon associated with a layer, you will see several options. These options include:

 

Set Selection to Layer Mask

This option will place a selection border around all of the white (opaque) pixels in a layer mask. If you paste this selection to a new layer, you will see the transparent (black) parts of the layer the selection was made from. (The part of the layer mask that is not white is not selected, and therefore when the selection is pasted, the transparent areas (black parts) will have no white pixels and these areas will be transparent.

Add Layer mask to selection

This option is similar to the one described above, except that it adds to any existing selections.

Subtract Layer mask from selection

This option subtracts layer mask information from a pre existing selection

Intersect layer mask with selection

This option selects the opaque parts of a layer mask that overlap with an existing selection

Discard Layer Mask

This option will remove the layer mask

Apply Layer Mask

This option will apply the layer mask effects to its associated layer

Disable Layer Mask

This option will disable the layer mask so you will not see the effects caused by your edits, but the edits you make to the mask will still be applied. If you choose Enable Layer Mask, you will see all of the edits that you performed to the mask, even while it was disabled.