Change mask opacity or refine edges, Change mask density, Feather mask edges – Adobe Photoshop CS4 User Manual
Page 333: Refine mask edges, Select and display the layer mask channel, To the mask edges. see
326
USING PHOTOSHOP CS4
Layers
Last updated 1/10/2010
To paste a copied selection into a layer mask, Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the layer mask
thumbnail in the Layers panel to select and display the mask channel. Choose Edit > Paste, then Select > Deselect. The
selection is converted to grayscale and added to the mask. Click the layer thumbnail in the Layers panel to deselect the
mask channel.
Change mask opacity or refine edges
Use the Masks panel to adjust the opacity of a selected layer or vector mask. The Density slider controls mask opacity.
Feathering lets you soften mask edges.
Additional options are specific to layer masks. The Invert option reverses masked and unmasked areas. The Mask Edge
option gives you a variety of controls to modify the mask edges, such as Smooth and Contract/Expand. For
information on the Color Range option see .
Change mask density
1
In the Layers panel, select the layer containing the mask you want to edit.
2
In the Masks panel, click the Pixel Mask button or the Vector Mask button.
3
Drag the Density slider to adjust the mask opacity.
At 100% density, the mask is completely opaque and blocks out any underlying area of the layer. As you lower the
density, more of the area under the mask becomes visible.
Feather mask edges
1
In the Layers panel, select the layer containing the mask you want to edit.
2
In the Masks panel, click the Pixel Mask button or the Vector Mask button.
3
Drag the Feather slider to apply feathering to the mask edges.
Feathering blurs the edges of the mask to create a softer transition between the masked and unmasked areas.
Feathering is applied from the edges of the mask outward, within the range of pixels you set with the slider.
Refine mask edges
1
In the Layers panel, select the layer containing the mask you want to edit.
2
In the Masks panel, click the Pixel Mask button.
3
Click Mask Edge. You can modify mask edges with the options in the Refine Mask dialog box and view the mask
against different backgrounds. For a description of options, see “
4
Click OK to close the Refine Mask dialog box and apply your changes to the layer mask.
Select and display the layer mask channel
For easier editing of a layer mask, you can display the grayscale mask by itself or as a rubylith overlay on the layer.
❖
Do one of the following:
•
Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac
OS) the layer mask thumbnail to view only the grayscale mask. To
redisplay the layers, Alt-click or Option-click the layer mask thumbnail, or click an
eye icon
.
•
Hold down Alt+Shift (Windows) or Option+Shift (Mac
OS), and click the layer mask thumbnail to view the mask
on top of the layer in a rubylith masking color. Hold down Alt+Shift or Option+Shift, and click the thumbnail again
to turn off the color display.