Windows > Editors > Canvas Layer Editor

Opens the Canvas Layer Editor window and allows you to control the arrangement of image layers, mask layers and shape layers on the current canvas.

Only the layers on the currently active canvas are displayed. Drag the mouse over an icon to see a “tool tip” describing its purpose.

The editor shows the different types of layers on the current canvas. Image layers and Mask layers are displayed separately inside a split window. This allows you to associate one or more mask layers with any image layer, and re-use the same mask layers for different image layers.

It is also possible to create Invisibility Mask layers in the bottom section of the window. These are similar to mask layers, except that the hidden paint can be shown again.

The window has a set of menus and icons for control over the layers. Some functionality can be accessed from either a menu item or an icon.

All the functions accessible through the menus can also be associated to a hotkey through the Special:Canvas Layer Editor section of the Hotkeys editor (Preferences > Interface > Hotkeys/Menus).

Note

Construction planes and canvas planes are managed in a different editor window. (See Windows > Editors > Construction Plane editor).

To change your active canvas

Click the small arrow next to the canvas name in the Canvas Layer Editor.
Choose another canvas from the Canvas Lister.
The content of the Canvas Layer Editor updates to show the layers on the new active canvas.

To see the properties of the active canvas

Click the icon at the bottom of the Canvas Layer Editor.
The Canvas General Information window opens.
Click the icon again to close it.

To make a layer active

Click the layer name in the Canvas Layer Editor. The active layer is the one you paint on.

Violet highlighting indicates the active layer.
Lavender indicates the mask or image layer(s) associated with the active layer.
Yellow indicates the active shape

To change the name of a layer

Double-click the layer’s name.
Type a new name.
Press (Windows) or (Mac)

To turn off the display of the layer thumbnails

The layer thumbnails are turned on by default. To turn off the thumbnails (in order to provide more space for the layer names):

Choose Preferences > General Preferences.
In the Paint section, remove the check mark in Show thumbnails in Canvas Layer Editor.

To associate image layers and mask layers

Create new image and mask/invisibility layers by choosing the appropriate tool from the Layer menu or by using the icons at the bottom of the editor.
Select the image layer.
Associate and disassociate mask/invisibility layers from the active image layer by clicking the small box to the right of the mask/invisibility layer’s name. The icon turns to a chain link.
Note
To temporarily disable a mask while retaining the link between the mask and image layer, click the small box next to the visibility icon to remove the check mark. Click it again to re-enable the mask.

To see the relationships between image and mask layers

Click an Image layer’s name to determine which mask/invisibility layers affect it.
The associated Masks and Invisibility Masks’ names are highlighted in lavender. A small icon next to the current image layer’s name (in the top part of the window) shows how many masks are associated with it.
Click the Mask or Invisibility Mask layer’s name to determine which Image layers are affected by it.
The affected Image layers’ names are highlighted in lavender.

To disable, hide or filter mask layers

The three toggle buttons on the separator bar between image and mask layers let you affect mask layers in the following ways:

Click to disable all the masks linked with the active layer. Click it again to re-enable the masks.
Click to make all the masks linked with the active layer invisible, but keep them enabled. Click it again to make the masks visible.
Click to show only the mask layers linked with the active layer in the Canvas Layer Editor. Click it again to show all the mask layers.

To change the order of layers on a canvas

When a canvas plane contains more than one image layer, you can arrange the image layers in any order. For example, you can move an image layer in the Canvas Layer Editor so that it appears behind or in front of another image layer.

You can move any number of image layers, mask layers, and folders at once.

Choose Windows > Editors > Canvas Layer Editor.
Click a layer to make it active.
The layer appears blue.
Use the and (Windows) or and (Mac) keys to add other layers or folders to the selection.
The new selected layers/folders appear in white.
Click the or and drag the layers to the desired location.
A small pink arrow points to the location.
Release the mouse button to insert the layers at the indicated location.

To organize layers into folders

To help categorize and group image layers, you can create folders in the Canvas Layer Editor. The folders are collapsible and expandable, to provide better viewing.

Create a new folder by clicking the New Folder icon at the bottom of the editor.
Create a new layer inside a folder, by clicking an existing layer inside the folder then choosing Layer > New image layer.
Drag and drop selected layers inside a folder.
Expand and collapse the content of a folder by clicking the small arrow to the left of the folder name.
Drag and drop a folder to change its position within the Canvas Layer Editor.
Note
Folders must always contain at least one layer. When a folder is first created, it will contain a default layer.

To copy and paste layers into another canvas

Choose Windows > Editors > Canvas Layer Editor.
Click a layer to make it active.
The layer appears blue.
Use the and (Windows) or and (Mac) keys to add other layers or folders to the selection.
The new selected layers/folders appear in white.
Choose Edit > Copy layers from the Canvas Layer Editor.
Select another canvas from the Canvas Layer Editor, or create a new one with Canvas > New canvas.
Note
The canvas can be located on a different stage.
Choose Edit > Paste layers from the Canvas Layer Editor.
The selected layers are pasted into the active canvas, above its original active layer, and remain selected. The names and relative positioning of the pasted layers is preserved.

Note
If the canvas is on a different stage, the pasting operation must occur while in that stage.

To convert layers into other layer types

You can convert an image, mask, or invisibility mask layer into a different type of layer (for example convert an image layer into a mask layer) by using tools from the Convert menu.

Select a layer
Choose the appropriate tool from the Convert menu.
A copy of the layer is made and converted to the proper type. The original layer is kept.

Note
Convert > Marquee to Mask operates on the currently selected region (created from the Magic Wand or Marquee tools under Paint > Select in the Palette).

To see the content of only one layer in the view window

Instead of turning off the visibility of all layers but the one you want to see, you can isolate it more quickly with this method:

Click the image layer you want to isolate.
Click the button at the top of the Canvas Layer Editor.
Only the content of the selected layer is displayed in the view windows.
To restore the display of all layers, click the button at the top of the Canvas Layer Editor.

Canvas Layer Editor icons

Icon	Meaning
Layer visibility in view window
	Visible
	Invisible
	Active layer opacity value
	Layer opacity slider
	Display all layers
	Display current (active) layer only
Layer type
	Image (Paint)
	Mask
	Invisibility mask
	Image (Paint) shape
	Mask shape
	Invisibility mask shape
	Image layer has hidden paint
	Text layer
Ability to move layer on canvas
	Layer can be transformed
	Layer cannot be transformed
Mask icons on divider bar (toggles)
	Show/hide all masks linked with the active layer (but keep enabled)
	Enable/disable all masks linked with the active layer
	Show all masks/Show only masks linked with the active layer in lister
Other mask icons
	This mask layer is associated with the active layer
	If the check mark is off, this mask layer is disabled but retains its link to any image layer
	Number of mask layers associated with the active image layer.
Canvas Plane icons
	See Construction Plane editor icons.
Tools (at bottom of editor)
	Open/Close Construction Plane Editor
	Open/Close Canvas General Information window.
	New folder
	New image layer
	New mask layer
	New invisibility mask layer
	Duplicate layer
	Clear layer
	Delete layer

The following icons are used in the editor:

Canvas Layer editor menus

Layer menu

New image layer: Create a new image layer on the selected canvas or overlay plane.
New image layer (import): Create a new image layer by importing an existing image. If you are using the Windows browser, you also have the choice to import the image as a mask layer.

Tip
The type of browser can be changed by choosing Preferences > General Preferences and going to the System section
New image layer (capture current window): Create a new image layer containing the snapshot of the current window.
New mask layer: Create a new mask layer. The layer will appear in the bottom section of the Canvas Layer Editor.
New invisibility mask layer: Create a new invisibility mask layer (previously called stencil). The layer will appear in the bottom section of the Canvas Layer Editor.
Duplicate: Makes a duplicate of the currently selected image layer, shape layer, or mask layer. The new layer is placed above the original layer. Duplicate layers are named by adding -1, -2, -3, etc, to the layer name.
Merge below: Merges the current paint layer and the paint layer directly beneath it, and uses the name of the lower layer’s name.
Merge visible: Merges all paint layers that are visible. To retain some layers, turn their visibility off by clicking the eye icon before performing a merge.
Merge all: Merges all paint layers on the selected canvas or overlay plane and discards layer masks.

Edit menu

Clear layer: Removes paint from the active image layer and retains the blank image layer.
Clear hide show: Restores (shows) hidden paint on the active layer.
Rasterize layer: Converts the vector-based shape or text layer into a bitmap.
Invert layer: When applied to an image layer, it inverts the RGB colors in the image. For example, red (255,0,0) becomes cyan (0, 255, 255).

When applied to a mask layer, or invisibility mask layer, it swaps the masked and unmasked regions.

This tool does not affect Shape layers.
Invert shape/paint mask: Swaps the masked and unmasked regions on the active mask layer.

When applied to an image layer, this operation inverts all the masks linked to that layer.
Invert invisibility mask: Swaps the masked and unmasked regions on the active invisibility mask layer.

When applied to an image layer, this operation inverts all the invisibility masks linked to that layer.
Invert marquee: Inverts a marquee by making the region outside the selected area the new selection area.

Marquees are created by using the Magic Wand and Marquee tools under Paint > Select.
Horizontal Flip: Flips the active image layer from right to left.
Vertical Flip: Flips the active image layer from top to bottom.
Transform layer: Moves or scales an image layer, mask layer or invisibility mask layer. Shape layers cannot be transformed. All layers that have the icon turned on will be transformed.
Delete active shape: Deletes the currently active shape (highlighted in yellow). If this was the only shape on the shape layer, then the shape layer is also deleted.
Delete active layer: Deletes the currently active image layer, shape layer, mask layer, or invisibility mask layer. The active layer is highlighted in dark purple.
Delete all invisibility mask layers: Deletes the invisibility mask layers, and gives you the option to restore the hidden paint. If you choose not to restore the hidden paint, it will be lost.
Delete all layers in transform group: Deletes all the layers that have the icon turned on. This is a quick way to delete several layers at a time.
Delete all invisible layers: Deletes all layers that have their visibility turned off (through the icon)
Delete all layers: Deletes all layers on the current canvas, regardless of their type or visibility.
Copy layers: Copies all the currently selected layers to the Alias clipboard.
Paste layers: Pastes the layers from the Alias clipboard into the active canvas.

Convert menu

All these tools convert a layer into a different type of layer. A copy of the layer is made and converted to the proper type. The original is kept.

Converting a layer into its own type is equivalent to using Layer > Duplicate.

Copy layer to image: Converts a mask or invisibility mask layer into an image layer.
Copy layer to mask: Converts an image, or invisibility mask layer into a mask layer, using the image's opacity values as the mask. Areas that are fully opaque are fully masked.
Copy layer to mask (luminance): Converts an image, or invisibility mask layer into a mask layer , using the image's luminance values as the mask. Areas that are 100% white are fully masked.
Copy layer to invisibility mask: Converts an image, or mask layer into an invisibility mask layer, using the image's opacity values as the invisibility mask. Areas that are fully opaque are fully masked.
Copy layer to invisibility mask (luminance): Converts an image, or mask layer into an invisibility mask layer, using the image's luminance values as the invisibility mask. Areas that are 100% white are fully masked.
Marquee to mask: Converts a marquee to a mask layer. The selected region is unmasked and all other regions are masked.

Marquees are created by using the Magic Wand and Marquee tools under Paint > Select.

Toggle menu

Hide non-current layers: Allows you to see only the currently active layer on the canvas. All other layers are made invisible.
Show all layers: All layers (on the current canvas) are made visible.
Tgl marquee: Lets you toggle the visibility of the marquee (selection area) on or off.

Marquees are created by using the Magic Wand and Marquee tools under Paint > Select.

Project menu

Project sketch: Lets you project a sketch onto one or more objects. The object(s) must be active. All visible layers from the current canvas are projected.