The Extra-Strength Tips for the Clients and Friends of Ben Willmore (www.digitalmastery.com):

In this installment we'll explore Photoshop's ever-useful Layer Styles. Layer Styles are so robust that I've covered this feature in three other tip installments, so if you've never used them, be sure to checkout the previous Layer Style tips at www.digitalmastery.com/tips

Layer Styles are mainly useful when applied to a layer that does not fill the entire document. To add a Layer Style, either choose from the options found under the Layer>Layer Style menu, or choose from the Layer Style pop-up menu at the bottom of the Layers palette (it looks like a black circle with an "f" inside).

Once you've added a few styles and have clicked Ok in the Layer Style dialog box, you can click on the triangle that appears next to the Layer Style icon for the active layer (in the Layers palette) to expand or collapse the list of styles that are applied to that layer. If you've like to temporarily hide one of the styles while keeping the others active, click on the eyeball icon for the style you'd like to hide. If you'd like to hide all but one style, then Option-click (Mac), or Alt-click (Win) one of the eyeball icons. To show all the styles again, just Option/Alt-click the eyeball icon a second time.

If you'd like to edit a few styles that have already been applied to a layer, double-click on any of the styles from the list that appears under the layer that's active (assuming you've clicked the triangle icon I mentioned earlier to expand the list). With the Layer Styles dialog box open (it's a big one) you can quickly switch between the styles that are listed on the left side of the dialog box by holding the Command key (Mac), or Ctrl key (Win) and pressing the number keys on your keyboard (0-9). Then you can cycle through the settings for any style that is active by pressing the Tab key and then using the up and down arrow keys to change the currently active setting.

When applying a style, pay close attention to the Blending Mode that is used (found within the Layer Style dialog box). The default mode might not be the most ideal one for your specific situation. For instance, the default Blending Mode for a drop shadow style is Multiply mode. Multiply mode is fine for drop shadows, but you might find that you prefer one of the other modes. I often prefer to set my drop shadows to either Linear Light (which will make them stronger), or Color Burn (which will often preserve more of the texture of the underlying image). When experimenting with Layer Styles, try changing the Blend Mode menu that is found within the setting for most of the styles and cycle through all the blend modes that are found in the same grouping as the default mode the style started with (the groupings are divided by horizontal lines in the Blend Mode pop-up menu).

Finally, there are two layer styles that work together in a special way (I usually apply them to large text). The Stroke style will add a line around the edge of an object. The only problem is that a simple solid stroke can be rather boring. To spice up a normal Stroke style, click on the checkbox for Bevel and Emboss on the left side of the Layer Style dialog box. Set the Style to Stroke Emboss and set the Size setting to the same as what you used for the Size setting in the Stroke style you already have applied to the layer. Finally, if you'd like to just see the styles you have applied and not see the object they are applied to (solid colored text in my case), then click on the Blending Options choice in the upper left of the Layer Style dialog box and set the Fill Opacity setting to Zero.

Don't forget that my Photoshop for Photographers seminar is coming to Chicago and Philadelphia this month (www.photoshopseminars.com) and a special two-day hands-on version is coming up in San Francisco, Boulder and Minneapolis next month (www.digitalmastery.com/handson). And if you can't attend the seminar, then check out my newest book "How to Wow: Photoshop for Photography" at bookstores everywhere.

-Ben Willmore