This method of drop shadow creation may also require knowledge about After Effects 3D cameras and light positioning. Usually, drop shadows aren't meant to be realistic looking as they are only used for decoration, however, if you're trying to achieve a real-life look, you can do so by using separate black or dark solid layers as a drop shadow instead of the drop shadow effect itself. What Are Drop Shadows In After Effects?ĭrop shadows in After Effects (and in general design) are used to add depth and dimension to an object in your video, which ultimately accentuates the appearance that a foreground element is positioned above another element. This could be text in front of a plain background, or even a transparent object nestled In front of other layers. When used correctly, shadows can dramatically enhance the feel of your video sequence, and best of all, they're easy to use even if you're just a beginner! This post will not only teach you the technicalities of creating shadows, but it also help you master the art of creating visually appealing designs by using pre-made templates that are created using complex effects and expressions.Īdding a drop shadow element to your foreground elements such as text, solid layers and images can add a sense of depth to your video. You can only do this on one layer at a time, so I’ll turn off the right side of the image to make things easier to see.We've created this in-depth guide on creating various drop shadow effects in Adobe After Effects to help beginner and experienced users create more aesthetic depths to their videos. Which means I need a way to tell Photoshop that my layer masks should hide both the contents and the layer effects.Īnd we can do that using an option called Layer Mask Hides Effects. I need the two strokes in the middle to disappear. Sometimes hiding a layer’s contents and just reshaping the layer effects is what you want, which is why it’s the default behavior in Photoshop.īut in this case, it’s not what I want. But when I added a mask to hide one side of the image, the stroke simply reshaped itself around the other side.ĭownload this tutorial as a print-ready PDF! How to mask layer effects in Photoshop That’s why my stroke initially surrounded the entire image. Instead of hiding the layer effects, Photoshop reshapes the effects to fit the content that’s not hidden by the mask. What’s happening is that by default, a layer mask hides the layer contents but it does not hide any layer effects that are applied to the layer. So what’s going on here, and how do we fix it? How do I get rid of the two strokes in the middle of the image? How layer effects and layer masks interact in Photoshop And it’s the stroke, not the image itself, that will be our main focus. The border was created using a stroke, which is one of Photoshop’s layer effects. Notice the white border around the main image. Behind it is a wood texture image that I’m using simply as a background.
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In this document, I have a photo of a couple sitting on a park bench, which is the main image I’ll working with. You can get the latest Photoshop version here. I’m using Photoshop 2023 but this applies to any recent version. In this tutorial, I show you some examples of problems you can run into when combining layer effects with a mask, along with the tricks you need to know to get your effects and masks working seamlessly together. And the reason is because of the way layer masks and layer effects interact, which is different from how masks work with a layer’s normal contents. Problem is, they don’t always work as expected when used together on the same layer. Layer effects and layer masks are two of Photoshop’s most powerful and creative features.