MasterPhotoshop CS4 with this visual, hands-on guide to using layers, under the expert guidance of digital imaging specialist Richard Lynch. Layers, Photoshop's most powerful feature, is the core of a nondestructive image-editing workflow.Step-by-step instructions and practical examples illustrate how to. Polish: correct and enhance color, fix composition problems, and repair damage or flaws Manipulate: isolate image areas for changes, adjustments and experimental concepts Understand: use all forms of layer blending, including transparency, clipping masks, opacity/fill, layer masks, layer modes, channel targeting, Blend If, and Effects/Styles. The accompanying downloadable resources come complete with a generous library of practical actions based on techniques from the book that add functional power to Photoshop, along with practice images for all the exercises in the book. This focused, highly accurate, comprehensive, and practical guide offers invaluable advice for all users of Adobe Photoshop CS4.

Richard Lynch is the author of eight books on Photoshop and Photoshop Elements, including his bestselling Hidden Power series. A photographer, designer, editor, and web developer, he writes for PCPhoto, Popular Photography, Digital Photographer, and Digital Photography Techniques. He teaches photography and image editing courses at betterphoto.com and Daemen College and is a beta tester for Adobe Photoshop.

(Previous edition TOC) Basics; Layer Management; Object & Image Area Isolation in Layers; Masking; Applying Layer Effects; Exploring Layer Modes; Advanced Blending; Breaking Out Components; Taking an Image Through the Process; Making a Layered Collage or Composite Image; Index