Adjustment Layers are a way to make nondestructive Adjustments in Photoshop. Although we've seen that many selective Adjustments can be made in Camera Raw, there are plenty of instances when I find it easier to make my selections in Photoshop using the many tools available and then adding my refinements to those selected areas using Adjustment Layers. In addition, when you use Adjustment Layers in Photoshop, you can use them in conjunction with blend modes or opacity. And you can even use the mask that is automatically created when you add an Adjustment Layer. So they're quite powerful.
Now before we start working with Adjustments, I just want to make sure that you understand the difference between adding an Adjustment Layer and making an Adjustment under the Image menu. If I choose Image and then Adjustments, if I select something like the Black and White Adjustment and then I click OK, you can see in my Layers panel, I've actually made a permanent change here. If I were to save this file and close it. And then later I decide that I want a color version of it. Well the color is no longer in this image, so any options that you select under the Image Adjustment menu, those are all permanent changes.
So let's undo that, and instead we're going to take a look at the Adjustments panel. Now if the Adjustments panel isn't showing, you can go under the Window menu and then choose Adjustments and you'll notice a lot of different icons here and each one of these is a different Adjustment. And as I position my cursor on top of each of these Adjustments, we actually get the readout of what the Adjustment is, in case the icon doesn't make sense. So let's scoot down to the Black and White Adjustment. I'll click on it in order to add it. That automatically expands by Properties panel and I can make changes. So for example, I can decide how I want the reds to be translated into a shade of gray.
But if we look over at the Layers panel, you'll notice that I haven't made a permanent change to the background layer. I've just added a secondary layer on top. And I can actually toggle this on and off to hide it or reveal it. I could also decrease the opacity of this layer by clicking on the Opacity slider and decreasing the opacity. When I decrease the opacity of the Black and White Adjustment, you'll notice that I can start seeing some of the color from the background layer. I can also use the mask which was automatically created when I added the Adjustment Layer.
If I tap the G key to grab my gradient, and then I click on the left side of the image and drag over to the right side, you can see that I'm selectively hiding and showing that Adjustment Layer. Now, yours might look different depending on the foreground and background colors that you have. But I was dragging from white to black. We know that white is going to show the Adjustment Layer and black is going to hide it. To make this a little bit more obvious lets increase my opacity back up to 100%. Now we can see where the mask is white we can see the Black and White Adjustment there and where the mask is black it's hiding that Adjustment Layer.
And of course if I Save this file and then come back to it tomorrow or next week or next year, I'll always have the flexibility of deletion or changing this Adjustment Layer and I'll have the original photograph underneath it. So you can see that Adjustment Layers, because they're non destructive and because you can go back in and re-edit them at any time they're much more powerful than using the destructive edits under the image menu. So stay away from those and use the Adjustment panel instead.
Author
Updated
10/6/2014Released
6/17/2013- Using Bridge to batch rename files and add keywords and metadata to photos
- Viewing, rating, filtering, and creating collections to isolate your best work
- Comparing raw and JPEG file formats
- Retouching and automating workflow with Camera Raw
- Navigating documents and the Photoshop interface
- Understanding file formats, resolution, canvas size, and print size
- Cropping, straightening, transforming, warping, scaling, and resizing images
- Selecting, stacking, aligning, and grouping layers
- Making precise selections using the Marquee, Lasso, and Brush tools
- Using Refine Edge, Quick Selection, and layer masks to isolate soft edge objects
- Improving tone, contrast, and color selectively
- Converting to black and white and tinting images
- Retouching blemishes, smoothing skin, whitening teeth, and brightening eyes
- Retouching with the Liquify, Content-Aware Fill, Healing Brush, and Patch tools
- Merging multiple exposures
- Making nondestructive changes with Smart Filters
- Adding texture, edge effects, and drop shadows with blend modes
- Working with type
- Creating, modifying, and combining shapes using the Shape tools
- Adding layer effects
- Saving and sharing images via contact sheets, web galleries, and Save For Web
- Editing video and audio clips
- Panning and zooming still photos
Skill Level Beginner
Duration
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Q: This course was updated on 01/16/2014. What changed?
A: When Creative Cloud applications are updated, we refresh our training to make sure it covers the latest features and interface changes from Adobe. This update covers changes to Camera Raw, including nondestructive cropping, workflow and output settings, and the ability to save multiple files automatically.
Q: This course was updated on 6/18/2014. What changed?
A: In June 2014 Adobe released new features for Photoshop CC and added enhancements to several existing features. We added movies to introduce the new Focus Mask and Blur Gallery features, and changed several movies to reflect updates to instant type preview, font search, Typekit, Liquify, Content-Aware Fill, Adobe Camera Raw, and Smart Guides.
Q: This course was updated on 10/06/2014. What changed?
A: We updated this course to reflect the October 2014 changes to Photoshop CC. There are 16 new movies, which are indicated by the "(CC 2014.1)" tag that appears next to their names.
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Adobe Photoshop
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What is Photoshop?1m 42s
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Introduction
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Welcome1m
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Installing Adobe Bridge1m 23s
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What's new1m 26s
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1. It Begins in Bridge
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What is Adobe Bridge?3m 3s
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2. Whittling Down to Keepers
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Saving images in collections3m 52s
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Rating and labeling images4m 31s
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Using smart collections3m 39s
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3. Camera Raw Essentials
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Choosing output settings3m 34s
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4. Fixing Common Problems Quickly with Camera Raw
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Fixing blown-out highlights5m 42s
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Correcting lens distortion5m 17s
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Sharpening details7m 23s
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5. Retouching and Using Creative Techniques with Camera Raw
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Adding a radial gradient6m 35s
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6. Automating Camera Raw
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7. Photoshop Interface Essentials
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Managing panels5m 1s
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8. Documents and Navigation
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Arranging documents3m 37s
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9. Digital Image Essentials
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Understanding file formats8m 26s
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10. Cropping and Transformations
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Using crop options4m 20s
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Warping images4m 48s
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11. Working with Layers
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Exploring layer basics13m 25s
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12. Selections and Layer Masks
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Combining selections6m 40s
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Selecting with Focus Mask3m 10s
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13. Tone and Color Correction with Adjustment Layers
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Starting with a preset2m 36s
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14. Additional Options for Tone and Color Correction
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15. Retouching Essentials
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Taming flyaway hair4m 53s
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16. Combining Multiple Images
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17. Essential Filters
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Overview of filters3m 3s
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18. Essential Blend Modes
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19. Type Essentials
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Exploring character (point) type11m 58s
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Adding type on a path7m 3s
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Warping type2m 36s
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20. Basic Shape Layers
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Using the shape tools13m 45s
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Custom shape layers6m 15s
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Adding a keyline to an image4m 13s
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21. Essential Layer Effects and Styles
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Adding a drop shadow effect8m 57s
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22. Sharing Images
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Creating contact sheets4m 29s
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Creating PDF presentations3m 25s
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Saving for the web3m 49s
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23. Video
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Working with video clips12m 14s
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Conclusion
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Next steps1m 4s
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Video: Introducing adjustment layers