Photoshop can be confusing. It’s a massive program with countless tools and techniques. However, it’s not the advanced stuff that throws most people, but the very basics. As soon as you start using Photoshop, you’ll probably need to use Layers and Layer Masks. If you don’t wrap your head around them, you’ll never be able to get much further.

Photoshop可能会造成混乱。 这是一个包含无数工具和技术的庞大程序。 但是，引发大多数人的不是高级的东西，而是最基本的东西。 一旦开始使用Photoshop，您可能需要使用“图层”和“图层蒙版”。 如果您不专心于它们，那么您将永远走不下去。

So, let’s take a look at what Layers and Layer Masks are, and how to use them to edit your photos. (And if you’re new to Photoshop, be sure to check out our 8-part beginner’s guide to Photoshop too.)

因此，让我们看一下“图层”和“图层蒙版”是什么，以及如何使用它们来编辑照片。 (如果您是Photoshop的新手 ，请务必同时阅读我们的8部分Photoshop入门指南 。)

什么是图层？ (What Are Layers?)

Photoshop is built on the idea of layers and the layer stack. Everything you do in Photoshop takes place on a layer. All the layers in a document are arranged one on top of the other. Whatever is on the layer at the top of the stack appears above the content on all the Layers below.

Photoshop是基于图层和图层堆栈的思想构建的。 您在Photoshop中所做的一切都在一个图层上进行。 文档中的所有层都一层一层地排列。 堆栈顶部的图层上的任何内容都显示在下面所有图层的内容上方。

The easiest way to think of it is to imagine you’re a kid again making a collage in school. You start with a white background sheet, cut some pictures out from a magazine and stick them to the page. Maybe you grab a marker and add write something on top. All your materials are physically layered. You can take a picture from the bottom of the pile and move it to the top. Or you can take something from the top and move it to the background. The only difference with Photoshop, obviously, is that the layers are digital.

想到它的最简单方法是，想象您还是个在学校里拼贴的孩子。 您以白色背景纸开始，从杂志上剪下一些图片并将其粘贴到页面上。 也许您抓住一个标记并在上面添加一些内容。 您的所有材料均已物理分层。 您可以从堆的底部拍照，然后将其移到顶部。 或者，您可以从顶部取出某些东西并将其移至背景。 显然，与Photoshop的唯一区别是图层是数字的。

图层入门 (Getting Started With Layers)

Layers are surprisingly simple once you’ve grasped the basic concept. Let’s move away from metaphors and look at an actual Photoshop document.

一旦掌握了基本概念，各层将非常简单。 让我们远离隐喻，看看一个实际的Photoshop文档。

The new document in the image above has only the single white-filled layer Photoshop adds to all new documents. To add a new layer to your documents at any time, click the New Layer button or use the keyboard shortcut Control-Shift-N (Command-Shift-N on a Mac).

上图中的新文档只有Photoshop向所有新文档添加的白色填充层。 要随时在文档中添加新图层，请单击“新建图层”按钮，或使用键盘快捷键Control-Shift-N(在Mac上为Command-Shift-N)。

I’ve added a second layer to the example document; this time it’s a black square.

我在示例文档中添加了第二层； 这次是一个黑色正方形。

In Photoshop, each layer works independently. What gets saved out as the final image is the sum total of all the layers working together. The little eyeball next to each layer controls whether or not it’s visible. To turn a layer on or off, click on the eyeball. In the image below, I’ve turned off Layer 0, the white background.

在Photoshop中，每个图层都是独立工作的。 保存为最终图像的是一起工作的所有图层的总和。 每层旁边的小眼球控制着它是否可见。 要打开或关闭图层，请单击眼球。 在下图中，我关闭了第0层，即白色背景。

The checkerboard pattern is Photoshop’s way of showing that an area is completely empty. The white layer is filled with white pixels so, although it might look blank, it really isn’t. Other than the black square, there is nothing else on the second layer. If you were to export this as an image that supports transparency–like a PNG–the checkerboard area would be transparent.

棋盘格图案是Photoshop显示区域完全空白的方式。 白色层填充有白色像素，因此，尽管它看起来可能是空白的，但实际上并非如此。 除了黑色正方形以外，第二层上没有其他内容。 如果将其导出为支持透明性的图像(如PNG)，则棋盘区域将是透明的。

I’ve added a pink circle on a third layer. It’s at the top of the layer stack, so it appears above the black square and the white background.

我在第三层上添加了一个粉色圆圈。 它位于图层堆栈的顶部，因此它显示在黑色正方形和白色背景上方。

When I move it below the black square’s layer, it gets covered by the content on the layer above. Whatever layer is on top is going to appear on top, even if it covers up things below. To move a layer to a different position in the stack, Click and Drag it around the Layer Panel.

当我将其移动到黑色方块的图层下方时，它会被上方图层的内容覆盖。 即使最上面的任何层都将显示在最上面，即使它掩盖了下面的内容。 要将图层移动到堆栈中的其他位置，请在“图层面板”周围单击并拖动它。

图层不透明度 (Layer Opacity)

Layers aren’t always fully visible or completely switched off; they can also have some transparency. In Photoshop, you can set the Layer Opacity to anywhere between 0% and 100%. Its visibility will be reduced to that amount.

图层并不总是完全可见或完全关闭。 他们也可以具有一定的透明度。 在Photoshop中，可以将“图层不透明度”设置为0％到100％之间的任意值。 它的可见性将减少到该数量。

In the example below, the pink circle layer is set to an Opacity of 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100%. Look at how the image changes with the layer’s opacity. Photoshop combines all the information from the visible layers to get the final result. At 50% opacity, it’s taking information from both the pink circle and black square layers.

在下面的示例中，粉红色圆圈层设置为0％，25％，50％，75％和100％的不透明度。 查看图像如何随着图层的不透明度变化。 Photoshop合并了可见图层中的所有信息，以获得最终结果。 在不透明度为50％的情况下，它将从粉红色圆圈和黑色正方形图层中获取信息。

To adjust the opacity of a layer, enter a value of between 0 and 100 for the Opacity or Click and Drag on the number to use a slider to set it.

要调整图层的不透明度，请为“不透明度”输入0到100之间的值，或者在数字上单击并拖动以使用滑块进行设置。

图层蒙版 (Layer Masks)

Layers on their own can’t do much. It’s rare that you want to just place things on top of each other in Photoshop. Normally, you want to combine different parts of different layers to create the final image. This is where Layer Masks come in.

单独的层不能做太多事情。 您很少想在Photoshop中将事物放在彼此之上。 通常，您需要组合不同图层的不同部分以创建最终图像。 这是图层蒙版的出现。

A layer mask selectively controls the visibility of the different areas of each layer. Each layer mask only affects the layer it’s attached to. Areas of the layer mask that are black conceal the respective area on the original layer, while areas of the layer mask that are white reveal those areas of the original layer. Just remember “black conceals and white reveals”.

图层蒙版有选择地控制每层不同区域的可见性。 每个图层蒙版仅影响其附着的图层。 黑色的图层蒙版区域隐藏了原始图层上的各个区域，而白色的图层蒙版区域则显示了原始图层的那些区域。 只要记住“黑色掩盖和白色掩盖”。

To create a new layer mask, select the layer you want to mask and then click the Add Layer Mask button. By default it will be filled with white. If you want to start with a black layer mask, hold down Alt or Option when you create it.

要创建新的图层蒙版，请选择要蒙版的图层，然后单击“添加图层蒙版”按钮。 默认情况下，它将用白色填充。 如果要从黑色图层蒙版开始，请在创建时按住Alt或Option。

In the image below, I’ve added a new layer mask to the pink circle layer. It’s white, so it doesn’t affect the layer.

在下图中，我向粉红色的圆形图层添加了新的图层蒙版。 它是白色的，因此不会影响图层。

When mask is black, it conceals the pink circle even though the layer is still on.

当遮罩为黑色时，即使该图层仍处于打开状态，它也会隐藏粉红色圆圈。

The real power of layer masks is that they let you control different areas independently. In the example below, I’ve added a white square to the layer mask. Only the area of the pink circle that intersects with square is visible in the image. It looks like there are two square layers rather than a square and a circle.

图层蒙版的真正功能是可以让您独立控制不同区域。 在下面的示例中，我在图层蒙版中添加了白色正方形。 在图像中仅可见与正方形相交的粉红色圆圈区域。 看起来好像有两个正方形图层，而不是正方形和圆形。

Masks can also be used to add transparency. You don’t have to just use black and white, you can also use gray—the layer’s opacity will be reduced by that amount. I’ve added a 50% gray square around the edge of the white square to the layer mask. The image now looks like there’s a pink square, surrounded by a dark pink circle, sitting in a black square.

遮罩也可以用来增加透明度。 您不必只使用黑白，也可以使用灰色-图层的不透明度将减少该数量。 我在图层蒙版的白色正方形边缘周围添加了50％的灰色正方形。 现在，图像看起来像是一个粉红色正方形，周围是黑色正方形，周围是深粉红色圆圈。

This is a bit of an abstract example, but it can be really useful in photos. For example, you can use layer masks to remove the background of a photo completely, which is very cool.

这是一个抽象的示例，但在照片中可能确实有用。 例如，您可以使用图层蒙版完全删除照片的背景 ，这非常酷。

使用图层蒙版 (Working With Layer Masks)

You can work on a layer mask with any of the regular Photoshop tools. The only difference is that layer masks are grayscale, so you can’t add colors.

您可以使用任何常规的Photoshop工具在图层蒙版上工作。 唯一的区别是图层蒙版是灰度的，因此您不能添加颜色。

To modify a layer mask, select it. You’re then free to add black, white, or any shade of gray with the tool of your choice. Photographers do a lot of work with the Brush tool, while in this article, I’ve used the Marquee tool to create all my masks.

要修改图层蒙版，请选择它。 然后，您可以使用自己选择的工具随意添加黑色，白色或任何灰色阴影。 摄影师使用“画笔”工具做了很多工作，而在本文中，我使用了“字幕”工具来创建我的所有蒙版。

To leave a layer on while turning the layer mask off, right click on the mask and select Disable Layer Mask. You can also select Delete Layer Mask to get rid of it entirely.

要在关闭图层蒙版的同时保留图层，请在蒙版上单击鼠标右键，然后选择“禁用图层蒙版”。 您也可以选择“删除图层蒙版”以完全摆脱它。

Masks are one of the most important tools in Photoshop. You’ll use them in every project. Below, you can see a mask from one of my own images. I’m using it to selectively brighten the model, while keeping the background dark. It was painted with the Brush tool.

蒙版是Photoshop中最重要的工具之一。 您将在每个项目中使用它们。 在下面，您可以从我自己的图像中看到一个遮罩。 我正在使用它选择性地使模型变亮，同时保持背景黑暗。 它是用“画笔”工具绘制的。

翻译自: https://www.howtogeek.com/274608/what-are-layers-and-masks-in-photoshop/