Adobe Photoshop CS6 Top 100 Simplified Tips and Tricks by Lynette Kent

BLEND SEPARATE PHOTOS for the best group shot
Photoshop includes an Auto-Align Layers command
to help you combine separate photos for panoramas
or for composites. Auto-Align Layers analyzes edges
and common elements in each image and brings
them into alignment with each other. This tool also
works well when combining multiple photos of a
group so that everyone looks his or her best in the
final photo.
You can drag all the separate images onto one of the
images, making multiple layers. When you run the
Auto-Align Layers command, Photoshop matches each
layer with the others so that the similar shapes and
forms match as much as possible. You can then add a
layer mask to the layers to blend the images, erasing
the unwanted parts of each layer. For group shots,
you erase the closed eyes or grimaces to reveal the
best expressions of everyone in the group.
4
Note: Photograph copyright
© Photospin.com.
1 Open the photos to combine.
2
2 Click the Move tool.
3 Click and drag one photo on top
of the other.
3
Note: In Photoshop, you can drag
a layer from one image onto the
tab for another image.
4 Click to close the photo that you
just dragged.
6
8
9
5 Press Shift and click both layers to
select them.
6 Click Edit.
7 Click Auto-Align Layers.
The Auto-Align Layers dialog box
appears.
7
5
8 Click a projection style,
depending on the elements in
the photos ( changes to ).
Note: In this example, you are
trying to align people in a group
shot; Auto Projection works best.
9 Click OK.
168