Fill Layers

In this tutorial we will show you how Photoshop Elements can be used to change the colour of an image by adding a Fill Layer. Things are sightly different if other versions of Photoshop are used but the theory remains the same.

1) Start by loading in the image you want to work with. Make sure the image is in RGB mode by clicking Image > Mode > RGB Color.

2) Lets say I have a picture of an iceberg but I want to change the overall colour of the picture from blue to red to fit in with the colour scheme on my site.

Go to Layer > New Fill Layer > Solid Colour > Ok. You will then be asked to pick the colour you wish to filter over the top of the image.

3) Pick the filter colout you want and click OK. The whole screen should fill with the colour. Don't panic we'll fix it in a minute. For the moment lets look at the layer palette.

The layer palette now shows 2 layers: the original layer with an iceberg on it and a new color fill layer with the color you have just chosen.

At the top of the layer palette we can see a drop down menu that currently says normal. This is the layer options menu.

4) Expanding the layer options menu allows you to change the layer type. We can see all the different layer options here. If we now select our color fill layer and change the layer type from normal to something else it is easy to produce color filter effects.

Try using Screen or Soft Light for a nice colour effect. You can also change the Opacity of a layer in the layers palette which alters it's transparencey and is also useful in producing interesting effects. Below you can see the original image and beneath it after a colour fill layer has been applied.