Intro+to+Blending+Modes

=Blend Modes: An Introduction= Blend modes affect how the pixels of a layer will interact with the pixels of the layer(s) below it. Photoshop CS3 has twenty-five layer blend modes. This document briefly describes what blending modes do to a layer. HINT: The blend modes drop-down menu is located on the //Layers// palette

NOTES: If the layer is a copy of the background layer, only certain blend modes will work: Darken, Multiply, Color Burn, Linear Burn, Lighten, Screen, Color Dodge, Linear Dodge, Overlay, Soft Light, Hard Light, Vivid Light, and Linear Light.The examples in this document show a butterfly layer on top of a background layer. The blend modes will be applied to the butterfly at 100% opacity.

Blending Modes

 * **Normal** This blend mode has no effect on the layer below it.
 * **Dissolve** This blend mode randomly selects pixels that make up the top layer image and sets their opacity to zero. Adjusting the opacity level of the entire layer will change the appearance of the dissolve effect. In the example, the opacity of the butterfly layer is set at 75%. NOTE: When the opacity of the top layer is set at 100% for this blend mode, there is no dissolve. The opacity needs to be less than 100%.
 * **Darken** This blend mode looks at the pixels of both the top and bottom layers and "projects" the darker color on the bottom layer to "come through" the lighter color on the top layer. In the example below, notice how the darker colors of the clothing show through the butterfly, but the detail of the lighter buildings in the background does not.


 * ~ Normal ||~ Dissolve ||~ Darken ||
 * [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_norm.jpg width="157" height="112"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_dis.jpg width="160" height="113"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_dark.jpg width="156" height="110"]] ||
 * **Multiply** This blend mode multiplies the color intensity of the top layer with the bottom layer. This produces darker colors within the composite image, giving the blend more contrast.
 * **Color Burn**This blend mode brightens the light pixels of the top layer and darkens the dark pixels of the top and bottom layers.
 * **Linear Burn** This blend mode uses channels (i.e., colors) to determine the degree of darkness for each pixel in the top layer. Channel information for each color is used and the darkest color's intensity is increased by a certain degree. NOTE: Channels contain color information in each pixel. For example, RGB color mode has three channels: Red, Green, and Blue.


 * ~ Multiply ||~ Color Burn ||~ Linear Burn ||
 * [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_mult.jpg width="158" height="114"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_clrbrn.jpg width="156" height="110"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_lnrbrn.jpg width="156" height="113"]] ||
 * **Darker Color** This blend mode compares the values for all channels in both layers, then displays the lowest values only. It does not create a third, blended color, like the //Darken// blend mode, but instead only displays the lowest values already in the layers.
 * **Lighten**This blend mode lightens the composite image by comparing the pixels in the top and bottom layers: the pixel that is the lightest is the one that is shown. Therefore all dark colors are replaced with the lighter color. In the example, notice how the butterfly almost disappears, since the background pixels were almost all lighter than the butterfly's pixels.
 * **Screen**This blend mode is used for highlighting. It lightens all colors on the top layer by decreasing its opacity. The dark colors are not lightened as dramatically as the light colors are.


 * **Darker Color** || Lighten || Screen ||
 * [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_darkercolor.jpg width="154" height="111"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_light.jpg width="157" height="110"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_screen.jpg width="157" height="114"]] ||
 * **Color Dodge** This blend mode brightens all of the colors of the top layer and then blends the two layers together. No changes are made to black.
 * **Linear Dodge** **(Add)** This blend mode brightens the color on the bottom layer using the channel information of the top layer colors to increase the brightness of the colors on the top layer. The bright colors show up on black, unlike in the //Color Dodge// blend mode.
 * **Lighter Color**This blend mode has the opposite effect of the //Darker Color// mode. It compares all the values in both layers, then displays the lightest values.


 * ~ Color Dodge ||~ Linear Dodge (Add) ||~ Lighter Color ||
 * [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_clrdg.jpg width="157" height="111"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_lnrdg.jpg width="156" height="112"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_lightercolor.jpg width="154" height="111"]] ||
 * **Overlay:** This blend mode blends the two layers together by changing the opacity, darkness, and lightness of the top layer.
 * **Soft Light**: This blend mode lightens or darkens the image depending on the color of the top layer: if the top layer's pixel is dark, then the bottom layer's pixel is darkened; if the top layer's pixel is light, then the bottom layer's pixel is lightened.
 * **Hard Light:** This blend mode combines two other blend modes. If a pixel of the bottom layer is darker than midgray (50% gray), then the //Multiply// mode is applied to that pixel. If a pixel is lighter than midgray, then the //Screen// mode is applied to that pixel.


 * ~ Overlay ||~ Soft Light ||~ Hard Light ||
 * [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_over.jpg width="153" height="107"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_softlght.jpg width="156" height="110"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_hardlght.jpg width="156" height="112"]] ||
 * **Vivid Light:** This blend mode specifically dodges or burns the colors on the bottom layer. If the top color is darker or lighter than midgray, contrast in the bottom layer will increase or decrease, respectively.
 * **Linear Light:** This blend mode adjusts the brightness of the bottom layer depending on whether the top layer is darker or lighter than midgray. If it is lighter than midgray, it is brightened; if it is darker, there is no change.
 * **Pin Light:** This blend mode replaces the colors on the bottom layer if they are lighter than the blend color.


 * ~ Vivid Light ||~ Linear Light ||~ Pin Light ||
 * [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_vividlght.jpg width="156" height="111"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_lnrlght.jpg width="157" height="112"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_pinlght.jpg width="154" height="111"]] ||
 * **Hard Mix** This blend mode is a combination of the //Vivid Light// mode and a posterization effect (i.e., where the image appears more pixelated). It will posterize the bottom layer pixels through the blend layer and recolor the image using the specifications of the //Vivid Light// mode. A higher //Fill// //Opacity// on the top layer will increase the posterization effect on the image. In the example, the //Fill// //Opacity// is set at 100%.
 * **Difference**This blend mode displays the difference between the blend and base colors. If you blend with white, it will inverse the base color values; blending with black has no effect.
 * **Exclusion**This blend mode is a softened version of the //Difference// blending mode.


 * ~ Hard Mix ||~ Difference ||~ Exclusion ||
 * [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_hardmix.jpg width="155" height="111"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_difference.jpg width="154" height="111"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_exclusion.jpg width="154" height="111"]] ||
 * **Hue** This blend mode uses the //hue// of the top layer color and the //saturation// and //luminance// of the bottom layer to create the composite image.
 * **Saturation** This blend mode displays the //saturation// of the top layer color and the //luminance// and //hue// of the bottom layer.
 * **Color** This blend mode displays the //luminance// of the top layer color and the //saturation// and //hue// of the bottom layer.


 * ~ Hue ||~ Saturation ||~ Color ||
 * [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_hue.jpg width="159" height="113"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_sat.jpg width="158" height="113"]] || [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_color.jpg width="157" height="112"]] ||
 * **Luminosity** This blend mode displays only the //luminance// of the top layer color and ignores the //hue// and //saturation// values of the bottom layer.


 * ~ Luminosity ||
 * [[image:http://www.uwec.edu/help/PhotoshopCS3/Images/other/blndmd_lumin.jpg width="158" height="114"]] ||