Tutorial Objective

Use a Mask Layer to protect an area of your photo from change. Regardless of how many effects you use, the Mask Layer will protect the defined area from changes. In this tutorial you will learn how to setup a Mask Layer and apply it to an image with multiple effects.

Open an Image

Open up a photo by going to the File > Open Photo menu command.

Select the Panning Focus Effect

Under the Select Effect menu choose the Panning Focus effect (A).

The Panning Focus effect will now be applied to the entire image (see below).

Select the Vignette Effect

Under the Select Effect menu choose the Vignette effect (A).

The Vignette effect will now be applied to the entire image (see below). For our image we adjusted the Feather (A) setting higher and the Dark Mood (B) to 15 to add more mood and drama to the shot.

Add a Masking Layer

There are two ways to add a Masking Layer to your photo. Under the Select Effect > Special catagory you can choose Masking Layer (A) or you can click on the Mask Layer (B) button on the Layer Palette. Both create a Masking Layer and add it to the Layer Palette.

When the Masking Layer is added to the Layer Palette it will first appear above whatever layer you had selected. Click and hold down on the Masking Layer and drag it to the bottom of the effect stack so it is the bottom-most effect on the Layer Palette (A).

Use the Lasso Tool to Create a Protected Area

Click on the Lasso-On (A) tool and draw around the subject making the lasso path slightly on the inside of the subject (B). You can draw lose as the lasso will be spread and blended as the mask is formed and it does not require a tight shape.

Adjusting the Protected Area

Once you have drawn the selection using the lasso it will highlight with red (A) showing the areas that are protected. You will a selection line on the screen.

To remove the selection line from around the protected area go under the View menu and choose Hide Selection Lines (A).

Preview the Mask Results

Once you have created the protected area using the Masking Layer you can preview the results by clicking on any of the effect layers above it. The effects will generate using the Masking Layer and update the preview to show the results. In the case of our example we click on the Vignette (A) effect layer. Notice how both the Vignette and the Panning focus apply to everything but the protected area.

Adjust the Masking Layer

You can easily go back to the Masking Layer and adjust the protected area using any of the tools. In the example below we use the Lasso-Off (A) tool to select around the arm to bring more of the effect into that area (B). Next we'll use the Lasso Palette > Spread (A) control to increase the blend on the protected area. In our example we change this to 25.

You can use any of the Masking Layer tools (Brush-Off / Brush-On / Lasso-Off / Lasso-On) to refine the protected areas.

Final Results

Here is what the final result is with the mask adjustments completed.

Now that the Masking Layer is complete it is very easy to add new effects and experiment with seeing how this affects the photo. In the example below we've added Glamour Glow and Grain and Noise.

Summary

Masking Layers allow you to create a protected area that shield effects from changing the area you specify. You can stack the Masking Layer above or below any effect. Effects below a masking layer are not masked. Effects above a masking layer are protected.