User Manual

26 Layers and Masks
You can create any
number of new layers
in your image. Each
new one appears on
top of the currently
active layer,
comprising a stack that
you can view and
manipulate with the
Layers tab. We call
these additional layers
standard layers to
differentiate them from
the Background layer.
Standard layers behave
like transparent sheets
through which the
underlying layers are
visib le.
In the example above, the standard layers Surfer Girl, Beach, and Sky are
arranged foreground to background by their position in the layer stack, with the
Background layer not being used.
Other types of layers also exist in PhotoPlus:
• Shape layers are specifically designed to keep drawn lines and shapes
(including QuickShapes) separate from the other layers so that they
remain editable. (See Drawing and editing lines and shapes; p. 137)
• Text layers, work like Shape layers, but are intended exclusively for
Text. (See Creating and editing text; p. 135)
• Adjustment layers apply corrective image adjustments to lower
layers. (See Using adjustment layers; p. 50)
For now though we're concerned mainly with the Background and standard
layers.
A key distinction is that pixels on the Background layer are always opaque,
while those on standard layers can vary in opacity (or transparency—another
way of expressing the same property). That’s because standard layers have a