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Layer merge issue

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Rock's Anne -  
 Rock's Anne -
Hello,

After fruitless searches for my issue, I decided to ask for help. The problem is probably simple to solve, but I haven’t found the trick yet...

Here's what I'm doing: I recently installed Photoshop CS6 and I don’t get the same results as with CS5.

I want to create a starry background:

- Black background
- New layer -> Add noise -> Image Levels adjustment (First issue: with CS5 the level parameters were preserved, and here with CS6 my level adjustment is no longer taken into account as soon as I leave the layer. So I “cheated” by creating a levels adjustment layer applied to that single layer via a clipping mask)
- New layer -> Same as above (to create stars in perspective, with Gaussian blur and all...)
- All these layers (except the adjustment layers) are in Screen mode.

I then want to soften my stars via a layer mask on each layer and incorporate a clouds filter. So far, no problem.

But in the end, when I flatten my new starry background, I end up with a background where the different layer masks are clearly visible! (Whereas in CS5 I didn’t have this problem). I should note that no matter which blending mode I choose, the problem remains: everything is visible in the final image.

Could I have missed a detail? Thank you in advance for any suggestions.

3 answers

  1. Rock's Anne
     
    Hi there!

    I ended up finding the problem by comparing with a friend's software. And as I feared, it was something incredibly simple...

    When opening a new document, my settings were customized (document size, pixels, color profile, etc.). But for some reason, these settings had been reset. My color profile, instead of RGB, displayed "Do not manage colors for this document" -_-' and, out of habit, that was a setting I didn’t even think to check anymore.

    In short, the issue was the color profile, because once it was fixed, everything worked perfectly!

    Hoping this little problem can help others :)
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  2. kitchi76 Posted messages 222 Status Member 49
     
    Good evening,

    I don’t know how you flattened your layers, but try doing: ctrl+shift+alt+E.
    That will keep all your layers intact and flatten them from above.

    If you did it that way, then try applying your blend masks to your layers before flattening (make sure to keep your original layers, always work non-destructively when you’re not sure what it will look like), you never know.
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  3. Rock's Anne
     
    Good evening,

    Thank you for taking the time to reply.
    I use the Ctrl + E command to flatten, always keeping the background separate (I only flatten the entire image when my work is perfect and ready to be published).

    I tested your method but unfortunately it yields nothing. The blending masks are correctly applied, but as soon as I flatten the layer to which it is attached, the said layer does not take into account the imposed changes.

    I checked all my Photoshop settings (sometimes some parameters are pre-saved on the previous work and you have to reset them, such as colors), but I didn’t find any flaw.

    The problem is that no matter what changes I make on a layer (blending masks, clipping mask, adjustment layer... etc), if the image shows each of these changes, the flattened result is only a jumble of stacked layers.

    That said, I wouldn’t be forced to use adjustment layers or blending masks if the levels adjustments of an image were working properly; the adjustments are directly taken into account on the image, but as soon as I leave the layer, pop, the layer reverts to the way it was before the adjustments. I tried cheating by adjusting the image threshold (on a tutorial idea) but the problem remains the same.

    And unfortunately I haven’t found anyone else with exactly the same issue. I’m thinking of reinstalling CS5 to compare or reinstall CS6, to see. But perhaps solving this problem will help others, who knows :)
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