Adjusting a Limited Number of Layers

There are two methods for causing one or more Adjustment Layers to affect a limited number of layers:

The first method involves grouping the layers into a folder. Start by selecting the Adjustment Layers and all the layers they should affect (Figure 11.60). To place those layers into a group, hold Shift and click on the Group icon (which looks like a folder) at the bottom of the Layers palette. Now, click on the newly created Group and change the blending mode menu at the top of the Layers palette from Pass Through (which allows the adjustments to affect layers that are outside of the group) to Normal (which will limit all Adjustment Layers and blending modes used within the group to only affecting the layers within the group) (Figure 11.61).

The second method is to group the layers into a Smart Object. Adjustment Layers contained in a Smart Object cannot affect layers that appear outside of the Smart Object. As with the previous technique, start by selecting the Adjustment Layers and all the layers they should affect, but this time choose Layer > Smart Objects > Group Into New Smart Object. That will cause all the selected layers to be encapsulated into a single Smart Object Layer (Figures 11.62 and 11.63). To edit its contents, double-click on the Smart Object layer's thumbnail image in the Layers palette, which will cause the encapsulated layer to appear as a separate layer. This is the method I prefer to use when I plan to drag the affected layers into a more complex document because it simplifies the Layers palette view of the image (which usually reduces confusion when working with complex documents). For more information on working with Smart Objects, check out Chapter 15, “Collage.”