To get my source files, sign up at is showing you how I did the 3d elements that I added from my last tutoria. Adobe Photoshop and Blender can be categorized as 'Graphic Design' tools. Avocode, VisualPharm, and Redsift are some of the popular companies that use Adobe Photoshop, whereas Blender is used by Kaftmeister BV, MultiModal Health, and CubeLab Media. Advanced Blending is the second installment in Deke McClelland's series on making photorealistic compositions in Photoshop. The course explores blending options and shows how to use them to create sophisticated effects and seamless compositions, often without masking.

In this tutorial, I'll show you three easy ways to blend two images together in Photoshop! We'll start with the most basic way to blend images, and that's by using the Opacity option in the Layers panel. Then we'll look at how to get more interesting and creative results using Photoshop's layer blend modes. And finally, we'll learn how to blend two images seamlessly together using a layer mask. I'll also include a quick tip in each of the three sections to help speed up your workflow and get the best results.

Let's get started!

How to blend images In Photoshop

For this tutorial, I'm using Photoshop CC but everything is compatible with Photoshop CS6.

You can also follow along with my video of this tutorial on our YouTube channel. Or download this tutorial as a PDF and get my Complete Guide to Layer Blend Modes PDF as bonus!

Method 1: The Layer Opacity Option

The first way we'll look at for blending two images together is by using Photoshop's layer opacity option. Here's the first image I'll be using:

And here's the second image:

If we look in the Layers panel, we see both images on their own separate layers. The beach photo is on the Background layer, and the portrait is on 'Layer 1' above it:

The Opacity Value

The Opacity option is found in the upper right of the Layers panel. By default, it's set to 100%, which means that the currently-selected layer ('Layer 1') is completely blocking the layer below it from view:

The Opacity value controls a layer's level of transparency. By simply lowering the value, we make the layer more transparent, allowing some of the image below it to show through. The more we lower the opacity, the more the top image will fade into the bottom image. I'll lower the opacity from 100% down to 75%:

This means that we're now blending 75% of the image on the top layer with 25% of the image on the bottom layer. And here we see that the woman is starting to blend in with the beach photo:

If I wanted to fade her even more into the background, I could simply lower the opacity value even further. I'll lower it to 30%:

At 30% opacity, we're seeing just 30% of the top image and 70% of the bottom image, creating a nice blending effect. You'll want to adjust the opacity value as needed for your images:

Quick Tip: Setting the Opacity value from the keyboard

Here's a quick tip to speed up your workflow. You can change a layer's opacity value directly from the keyboard. Press 1 for 10%, 2 for 20%, 3 for 30%, and so on. Press two numbers quickly, one right after the other, for more specific values (like 2 and then 5 for 25%). You can also press 0 for 100% opacity, or quickly press 0 twice for 0%.

Method 2: Layer Blend Modes

The second way we'll look at for blending two images together is by using Photoshop's layer blend modes. Blend modes are great for blending any two images together, but they're especially useful for blending a texture with a photo. Here's a portrait image that I have open:

I'll blend the portrait with this texture image:

Again if we look in the Layers panel, we see each image on a separate layer. The portrait is on the Background layer and the texture is on the layer above it:

The Blend Mode Option

Blend modes in Photoshop are different ways that layers can interact with each other. The Blend Mode option is found in the upper left of the Layers panel, directly across from the Opacity option. By default, a layer's blend mode is set to Normal. 'Normal' just means that the layer is not blending at all with the layers below it:

Click on the word 'Normal' to open a menu with lots of different blend modes to choose from. We won't go through all of them here, but I cover the most important ones in detail in my Essential Blend Modes tutorial. Three of the most popular and useful blend modes you'll want to try are Multiply, Screen and Overlay. The Multiply blend mode creates a darkening effect, Screen creates a brightening effect, and Overlay blends the two layers to increase the overall contrast:

The results you get from the various blend modes will depend entirely on your images. In my case, I get the best result using the Soft Light blend mode:

Like the Overlay blend mode, Soft Light blends the two images together in a way that boosts the overall contrast. The difference is that Soft Light produces a more subtle and natural looking effect:

Another blend mode that works really well with these two images is Divide:

Divide is one of the lesser-known and rarely-used blend modes in Photoshop. But with these two images, the effect actually looks pretty cool:

Combining blend modes with layer opacity

Once you've chosen a blend mode, you can fine-tune the result by adjusting the layer's opacity, just as we saw earlier. I'll leave the blend mode of the texture layer set to Divide and I'll lower the opacity from 100% down to 50%:

And here's the result:

Quick Tip: How to cycle through blend modes from the keyboard

Here's another quick tip to help speed up your workflow and make working with blend modes easier. You can cycle through Photoshop's various blend modes directly from your keyboard. Press the letter V to quickly select the Move Tool. Then, press and hold your Shift key and use the plus ( + ) and minus ( - ) keys to move up or down through the list. This lets you quickly try out the different blend modes to find the one that works best.

Method 3: Using A Layer Mask

The third way we'll look at for blending two images in Photoshop, and by far the most popular way, is by using a layer mask. Unlike the layer opacity option or the blend modes which blend entire images as a whole, layer masks let us control exactly where the two images blend together. There's lots that we can do with layer masks, more than we could cover in a single tutorial. So here, we'll just learn the basics.

Here's the first image I'll be using:

And here's the second image:

Again looking in the Layers panel, we see each photo on a separate layer. The dandelion photo is on the Background layer and the girl is on 'Layer 1' above it:

Adding a layer mask

To add a layer mask, first make sure the top layer is selected. Then, click the Add Layer Mask icon at the bottom of the Layers panel:

A layer mask thumbnail appears next to the layer's preview thumbnail:

How a layer mask works

Layer masks control the transparency of a layer, just like we saw with the Opacity option in the Layers panel. But while the Opacity option affects the transparency of the entire layer as a whole, a layer mask lets us add different levels of transparency to different parts of the layer. In other words, we can use a layer mask to show some areas while hiding others, making layer masks perfect for blending images.

They work by using black and white. Any part of the layer where the layer mask is filled with white remains visible. And any part of the layer where the mask is filled with black is hidden. Let's see how we can quickly blend our two images together by drawing a black-to-white gradient on the layer mask.

Selecting the Gradient Tool

Select the Gradient Tool from the Toolbar:

Choosing the Black, White gradient

With the Gradient Tool selected, go up to the Options Bar and click on the down-pointing arrow next to the gradient swatch:

In the Gradient Picker, choose the Black, White gradient by double-clicking on its thumbnail (third from the left, top row):

Blending the two images together

Make sure the layer mask, not the image itself, is selected by clicking on the layer mask thumbnail. You should see a highlight border around it:

Then, click on the image and drag out a black-to-white gradient. Remember that black will hide that part of the layer, and white will show it. In my case, I want to keep the left side of the photo (the part with the girl) visible, so the left side of the mask will need to be white. I want the right side to be hidden, which means the right side of the mask needs to be black. Since the gradient will start with black and end with white, I'll click on the right side of the image and drag horizontally over to the left. Press and hold your Shift key as you drag to move straight across:

When you release your mouse button, Photoshop draws the gradient on the layer mask and blends the two photos together. Here, we're seeing the girl from the top image blending into the dandelions from the bottom image. If you're not happy with the first result, simply draw another gradient on the mask to try again:

Viewing the layer mask

If we look at the layer mask thumbnail in the Layers panel, we see where the gradient was drawn. The black area on the right is where the top image is hidden in the document, allowing the photo on the Background layer to show through. And the white area on the left is where the top image remains visible:

We can also view the actual layer mask itself in the document. If you press and hold the Alt (Win) / Option (Mac) key on your keyboard and click on the layer mask thumbnail, you'll switch your view in the document from the images to the layer mask. This makes it easier to see exactly what's going on. Again, the area of black on the right is where the top layer is hidden from view, and the white area on the left is where it's visible.

But notice the gray area in the middle, where the gradient gradually moves from black to white. This area creates a smooth transition between the two layers, allowing them to blend seamlessly together. To switch your view from the layer mask back to the images, again press and hold your Alt (Win) / Option (Mac) key and click on the layer mask thumbnail in the Layers panel:

Quick Tip: How to toggle a layer mask on and off

Here's a quick tip for working with layer masks. You can toggle a layer mask on and off by pressing and holding your Shift key and clicking the layer mask thumbnail in the Layers panel. Click the thumbnail once to temporarily disable the mask and view the entire layer. A red 'X' will appear in the thumbnail, letting you know that the mask is disabled. Hold Shift and click the thumbnail again to turn the layer mask back on:

And there we have it! That's a quick look at how to blend two images together using the layer opacity option, layer blend modes, and a layer mask, in Photoshop! To learn more about blending images with layer masks, see our Layer Masks and Gradients tutorial. Use our Layers Learning Guide to learn more about Photoshop layers, or visit our Photoshop Basics section for more tutorials! And don't forget, all of our Photoshop tutorials are now available to download as PDFs!

In this Photoshop Effects tutorial, we're going to take a look at some of Photoshop's more advanced blending options, specifically the 'Blend If' sliders. Don't let the word 'advanced' scare you off, they're really very easy to use and lots of fun, and not only can they give you much better blending results than anything you could get using the standard layer blend modes, they also give you a lot more control.

We're going to be using them here to make some simple text look as if it was written on the wall behind it, but you can use them to blend any two images together for both realistic or creative effects, and as we'll see in this tutorial, using them is as easy as dragging a couple of sliders left and right.

Here's the image I'm going to be starting with, a simple photo of a rather grungy looking brick wall with some text that I've added over top of it:

Right now, it looks like, well, text in front of a brick wall. But with a little help from the 'Blend If' sliders, we can make it look more like this:

This Advanced Blending tutorial is from our Photo Effects collection. Let's get started!

Step 1: Open Your Image In Photoshop And Add Some Text

Go ahead and open your image in Photoshop, then press the letter T on your keyboard to quickly access the Type tool, choose your font and font size in the Options bar at the top of the screen and add some text above your image. I've already gone ahead and done that here, as we can see in my Layers palette:

I've added 'PHOTOSHOP WUZ HERE!' (yes I know, I purposely spelled it wrong because I'm crazy like that), as we can see in the image below:

Step 2: Access Photoshop's Blending Options

We need to access Photoshop's Blending Options next, and there's a couple of different ways to do that. We could go up to the Layer menu at the top of the screen, select Layer Style and then select Blending Options, but there's a faster way. With the type layer selected in the Layers palette, click on the Add Layer Style icon at the bottom of the Layers palette:

We're not going to select any of the standard layer styles like Drop Shadow or Stroke here. Instead, we want the option at the very top of the list, Blending Options. Click on it to select it:

This brings up the Layer Style dialog box set to the Blending Options, and the 'Blend If' sliders we're looking for are at the very bottom:

Step 3: Drag The Black And White Sliders In Towards The Center To Blend The Layers

Let's take a closer look at the Blend If slider bars:

Blend Color In Photoshop

There's two Blend If slider bars, and if you're not familiar with them, you're probably thinking they look identical, and you'd be right. They both have a gradient inside them running from black on the left to white on the right, and they both have little black and white sliders on either end. But while they both look the same, they do slightly different things.

If you look closely, you'll see 'This Layer' written above the top slider bar, and 'Underlying Layer' written above the bottom one. The bar on top affects the layer you currently have selected in the Layers palette. The bottom bar is a bit misleading though because while it says 'Underlying Layer', it really affects every layer below the currently selected layer. In my case here I only have one layer, my Background layer, below my type layer, but if I had more than one layer below my type layer, it would look at all of them, not just the one.

As I mentioned, both bars may look the same, but there's a slight difference between them. Moving the black and white sliders for the bar on top will cause areas of the currently selected layer to disappear from view. Moving the sliders for the bar on the bottom will cause areas of the layer(s) below the currently selected layer to show through the selected layer, as if it's punching holes through the layer. In other words, since I had my type layer selected, if I move the sliders on the top bar in towards the center, I'll be making areas in my type disappear. If I move the bottom bar's sliders in towards the center, I'll be making areas of my brick wall photo show through my type. Moving the white slider affects the lightest areas in the image, and moving the black slider affects the darkest areas. The further I move the sliders, the greater the tonal range that's affected.

I want to make my type look as if it was painted onto the brick wall behind it, and to do that, I need some of the wall to show through my type. Since I have my type layer selected in the Layers palette, and my brick wall photo is on the layer underneath it, I'm going to move the sliders on the bottom Blend If bar in towards the center to force some of the wall to show through my type. I'll start by moving the black slider towards the center:

Blender For Photoshop

As I drag the black slider to the right, the darker areas of the brick wall begin to show through my text:

That looks pretty good already, but there's a problem. The areas where the brick wall is showing through the type are too harsh. It's either the text showing 100% or the wall behind it showing 100%. I need more of a subtle transition between the two to smooth things out and make it look more realistic, and I'll do that next.

Step 4: Smooth Out The Blending By Splitting The Slider Bars In Two

To smooth out the blending and create more of a transition between the two layers, I'm going to hold down the Alt (Win) / Option (Mac) key and drag the black slider back towards the left. Holding down the Alt/Option key causes the slider to split in half, as we can see here:

With the black slider now split in two, the half on the left is where the blending begins, the half on the right is where the blending reaches 100%, and the area in between is the transition area. I can now drag both halves independently of each other until I'm happy with the results. Here's my image after dragging the black slider to the right to force the darker parts of the brick wall to show through the type, then splitting the slider in two and dragging the left half of the slider back towards the left to smooth out the transition:

I'm going to do the same thing with the bottom white slider to cause some lighter areas of the brick wall photo to show through my text. First, I'll drag the white slider to the left until I'm happy with how much of the wall is showing through:

Then I'll hold down my Alt (Win) / Option (Mac) key to split the white slider in half and drag the right half back towards the right to create another nice transition between the two layers:

And there we go, all done. I've moved both the black and white sliders in towards the center to force some of the brick wall to show through the type, then split the sliders in half to smooth out the transitions between the two layers. Here's the original image once again with my type above it before I used the Blend If sliders:

And here, thanks to Photoshop's advanced blending options and a few simple moves of the 'Blend If' sliders, is my final, much more realistic looking result:

And there we have it! That's a look at how to create some advanced blending effects using the Blend If sliders in Photoshop! Visit our Photo Effects section for more Photoshop effects tutorials!

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