Flattening Layers

[terriscrapper]

I'm a little confused on when to flatten layers...when I've worked on a LO I have never flattened...afraid that if I was to want to change something I couldn't get it back??? For instance when we worked on the Christmas star....I probably wouldn't have flattened for fear of needing to change something on it?? I understand that if I'm doing just photo editing and working on a copy I may want to do that..if I'm working in a LO and say I see some changes I'd like to make to a photo and make a copy to work on and make changes..do I need to merge thosetwol ayers together before I print??

[Wendy]

Hi ...

I also tend to keep all my scrapbooking layouts as layered psd file just in case I want ot use them again :)

As far as printing goes you can print from a layered file but I tend to make a copy of the image ... flatten the image, maybe sharpen it a little and then use that to do my prints :)

Wendy

[terriscrapper]

Wendy,,does the printed page actually look a little sharper then?? Why flatten at all???

[Grammy]

I think I flattened my first layout and decided I didn't like not being able to change anything later, so I stopped. If I understand this properly Wendy you are saying it is better to make a copy and flatten the image if you plan on printing it? Have you found that most layouts should be sharpened or have some adjustments done prior to printing?

Lynn

[Priss]

Save it both ways. After you think you're finished with your layout--save it psd. Now DUPLICATE that layout, flatten it, and save that file JPG. I almost always print from a jpg, because the file size of some of my psd's end up close to 200 megabytes, and that's a terrible load of information for my printer. JPGS don't contain so much information because layer histories are not part of the file.

No photos need to be sharpened as the last step in the photo editing workflow, but your layouts don't because you are working with high resolution images that haven't experienced any "lossies."

[terriscrapper]

What do you mean about photos need to be sharpened at the end??? So in other words,,flattening and saving to a JPG is better for printing???

[Wendy]

Hi ...

When you view an image on screen it looks just fine ... but sometime when you priunt that image out it can look softer and slightly out of focus.

Sharpening it can correct that ...

Printing from a layered file or from a flattened jpg gives the same result BUT .. its a lot easier to sharpen a flattened jpg and as Priss said some printers just donlt like the larger file sizes that psd files produce :)

Wendy

[terriscrapper]

I have noticed that a bit...makes sense...so you sharpen the overall Layout..what steps do YOU use to do that?? I notice that it's hard to tell on the monitor!

[Wendy]

Hi Terri ...

I use the unsharpen mask ... its a bit trial & error.

You need to sharpen a few at different setting and then print them out ... after a while you get used to how it looks onscreen and know how it will print out. :)

Wendy

[Bev in Houston]

I'm new at this and my goal is to prepare CDs of scrapbooks to share & to keep. I want them to be viewable on a computer screen as well as a TV screen.

Just finished Linda's Photoshop Elements 5.0 CD & went back over many parts many time! I tried using some templates, and I also made 2 pages of my own starting with a blank page (12x12, 300 psi)--I'm so proud of the results that my arm is tired from patting myself on the back! However, the file sizes are scary to a newbie like me. My PSD file size using a template (from Linda's newsletter) is 65 mb. The ones I made myself are 35 & 37 mb. I thought I was doing something wrong, but then I read that one of the Senior Members has PSD files that are 200 mb--so I guess that's OK??? I took Linda's advice (on the CD) to keep each page in PSD format & save frequently. Then when I finished each page, I flattened the image & saved each as a jpg file. One is 3 mb & one is 5--that still seems huge.

Will my jpg files fulfill my goal of CDs to view on TV & computer??

[troush]

Bev,

Yes, jpegs will be fine for viewing on TV and Computer.

PSD files can be HUGE depending on how many layers, layer styles, clipping groups, etc.

3mb to 5mb isn't bad for a jpeg. (My camera is a 6 megapixel camera - the RAW files can run that big.)

-Trish