Opacity icon

Blend Modes

Layers in Opacity each can have a blend mode. This determines how the contents of the layer are drawn into the image. There are many different blend modes you can use to achieve different effects.

Blend Modes:

The Normal blend mode simply draws the contents of the layer on top of its background. This is a good default blend mode.

Normal

The Multiply blend mode multiplies the values of the layer's colors with the background colors. The results are at least as dark as the layer and background.

Multiply

The Screen blend mode multiplies the inverse of the values of the layer's colors with the inverse of the background colors. The results are at least as light as the layer and background.

Screen

The Overlay blend mode uses the multiply or screen blend mode depending on the background's color. The result reflects the lightness or darkness of the background.

Overlay

The Darken blend mode chooses whichever of the layer's color and the background's color is darker.

Darken

The Lighten blend mode chooses whichever of the layer's color and the background's color is lighter.

Lighten

The Color Dodge blend mode makes the background's colors lighter based on the layer's colors.

Color Dodge

The Color Burn blend mode makes the background's colors darker based on the layer's colors.

Color Burn

The Soft Light blend mode lightens the background color (similarly to Color Dodge) if the layer's color is lighter than 50% gray, or darkens the background (similarly to Color Burn) if the layer's color is darker than 50% gray. If the layer's color is 50% gray, the background is not changed. This is useful for adding highlights to your image.

Soft Light

The Hard Light blend mode lightens the background color (similarly to Screen) if the layer's color is lighter than 50% gray, or darkens the background (similarly to Multiply) if the layer's color is darker than 50% gray. If the layer's color is 50% gray, the background is not changed. This is useful for adding highlights to your image.

Hard Light

The Difference blend mode subtracts the layer's color from the background's color if the background's color's brightness is greater than the layer's color's brightness, or subtracts the background's color from the layer's color otherwise. Black in the layer shows the background and white in the layer shows the inverse of the background.

Difference

The Exclusion blend mode is similar to the Difference blend mode but with lower contrast.

Exclusion

The Hue blend mode uses the luminance and saturation of the background's color and the hue of the layer's color.

Hue

The Saturation blend mode uses the luminance and hue of the background's color and the saturation of the layer's color.

Saturation

The Color blend mode uses the luminance of the background's color and the hue and saturation of the layer's color. This is useful for tinting a grayscale image with a color.

Color

The Luminosity blend mode uses the hue and saturation of the background's color and the luminance of the layer's color. The result is the inverse of the result of using the Color blend mode.

Luminosity

The Copy blend mode replaces the background with the layer.

Copy

The Source In blend mode draws the layer but only with the opacity of the background.

Source In

The Source Out blend mode draws the layer but only with the inverse opacity of the background.

Source Out

The Source Atop blend mode draws the layer limited by the background's opacity on the background limited by the inverse of the layer's opacity.

Source Atop

The Destination Over blend mode draws the layer behind the background.

Destination Over

The Destination In blend mode draws the background but only with the opacity of the layer.

Destination In

The Destination Out blend mode draws the background but only with the inverse opacity of the layer.

Destination Out

The Destination Atop blend mode draws the layer limited by the inverse background's opacity on the background limited by the layer's opacity.

Destination Atop

The XOR blend mode draws the layer limited by the background's opacity on the background limited by the layer's opacity.

XOR

The Plus Darker blend mode draws whichever of the background's color and layer's color is darker.

Plus Darker

The Plus Lighter blend mode draws whichever of the background's color and layer's color is lighter.

Plus Lighter

Related Topics

Layers