Layers & Masks Flashcards

The 'Blend If' sliders in Layer Style allow you to:

Answer: Control which tonal ranges of the current layer or underlying layers are hidden

Blend If sliders hide or reveal pixels based on their brightness values either on the active layer or the composite beneath it.

What is a Smart Object's key advantage regarding layer masks?

Answer: Editing the Smart Object's source does not destroy any applied mask

Because a Smart Object is a non-destructive container, you can edit, transform, or replace its contents without losing the mask applied to it.

Which panel lets you refine an existing mask with Feather, Density, and color range controls in one place?

Answer: Properties panel

When a layer mask is selected, the Properties panel shows Density and Feather sliders plus the Select and Mask button for advanced refinement.

How do you permanently apply (commit) a layer mask to its layer, merging the transparency into the pixels?

Answer: Right-click the mask thumbnail > Apply Layer Mask

Right-clicking the mask thumbnail and choosing 'Apply Layer Mask' merges the mask's transparency into the layer pixels permanently.

Which type of layer can have both a pixel (layer) mask AND a vector mask simultaneously?

Answer: Any non-Background layer

Any regular layer (and Smart Objects) can have one pixel-based layer mask and one vector mask applied at the same time for combined masking.

When painting on a layer mask, which color fills (reveals) the layer's content?

Answer: White

White on a layer mask reveals the layer (fully opaque), while black hides it and gray produces partial transparency.

What does the 'Stamp Visible' command (Ctrl/Cmd+Alt/Option+Shift+E) produce?

Answer: A flattened copy of all visible layers merged into a new layer at the top

Stamp Visible creates a new merged layer above the current layer containing the composite of all visible layers while keeping originals intact.