Graphics Zone - Layer Effects

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Layer Effects - Creating Layers and Overlapping Effects

by BarryHilton, Adult NetSurprise

In this tutorial we'll look at how to overlap layer effects by creating layers... We'll be using a Photoshop psd file for this tutorial, click here to download. The psd file contains three layers, Special/Effects/White Background and is pictured below.

First, we need to add our effect to the SPECIAL text. For our tutorial, use the values below and add a Glow and Stroke...

Now, go to the main Layers Menu (Window > Show Layers if you can't see it... if on the Windows menu it shows up as Hide Layers... Look again on the right hand side of your screen, as the main Layers menu is there somewhere!)

On the main Layers menu click on the SPECIAL layers name to select the working layer (the bar will go blue). Then right click on the layer name (special) and select Copy Layer Style. Now, right click on the EFFECTS layer name and select Paste Layer Style to repeat the style we made for the SPECIAL text. You should now have something looking like...

At the moment our two layers overlap each other, we want to have the effects we just created behind our original text... So, for each of our two text layers SPECIAL and EFFECTS right click on the F symbol to the right of the layer name and select Create Layers... this will produce three separate layers for both EFFECTS and SPECIAL... You should now have 7 layers, three for SPECIAL, three for EFFECTS and the White Background layer.

NOTE: You will need to repeat the right click on the F and select Create Layers for BOTH the SPECIAL and EFFECTS layers.

Now, look at the three SPECIAL layers... the three layers are... special, special's outer stroke and special's outer glow. You need to click on the special's outer glow and while holding the left mouse button down drag the layer to the effect's outer glow layer to make a pair.

Then do the same with the special's outer stroke layer, dragging it to the effects outer stroke layer to make a pair. The layer order should now be...

special
effects
special's outer stroke
effect's outer stroke
special's outer glow
effect's outer glow
white background

And should now look like this...

By creating layers from Photoshop's Effects you can now have even more control over how your project looks!